Pride and Prejudice 2/12

Proposals:

Mr. Collins to Elizabeth- “It does not appear to me that my hand is unworthy of your acceptance, or that the establishment I can offer would be any other than highly desirable. My situation in life, my connections with the family of De Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favor; and you should take it into further consideration that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you.”

Mr. Bingley to Miss. Darcy (as hoped for and represented by Caroline Bingley)- “My brother admires her greatly already, he will have frequent opportunity now of seeing her on the most intimate footing, her relations all wish the connection as much as his own, and a sister’s partiality is not misleading me, I think, when I call Charles most capable of engaging any woman’s heart. With all these circumstances to favor an attachment and nothing to prevent it, am I wrong, my dearest Jane, in indulging the hope of an event which will secure the happiness of so many?”

Charlotte about Mr. Collins- “I am not romantic you know. I never was. I ask only a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins’ character, connections, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair, as most people can boast on entering the marriage state.”

Mr. Darcy’s being promised to Miss. De Bourgh

Class and Possessions:

“I never can be thankful, Mr. Bennet, for anything about the entail. How anyone could have the conscience to entail away an estate from one’s own daughters I cannot understand.”

(About Lady Catherine) “Her air was not conciliating, nor was her manner of receiving them, such as to make her visitors forget their inferior rank. She was not rendered formidable by silence; but whatever she said, was spoken in so authoritative a tone, as marked by her self-importance…”

Discussion Questions:

·                  How does the entail add complexity to Mrs. Bennet’s preoccupation with her daughters’ future marriages? How does the nature of an entail affect perceptions of gender roles in the novel?

·                  How does Mr. Collins’ relationship with Lady Catherine de Bourgh show another side of class relations?

·                 Are Charlotte’s reasons for marrying Mr. Collins valid? What does this say about marriage during this time period? Is Elizabeth’s want for love in a marriage uncommon?