Women's Role in Society in Pride and Prejudice - Book Report/Review Example

 Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen lived in a world that was rapidly changing, yet one that still had half of its population living under rigid constraints and traditional expectations. Not only the roles of men, but the roles of women were going through a tremendous shift in understandings as traditional economic and social structures began shifting from the fields to the factories. Young women in particular found themselves suddenly capable of achieving much more, but also experiencing significant new pressures from a variety of sources. It is not surprising that the world Austen captures in her books reflects the dynamics of these economic and social upheavals as they rippled through the country. The world that Austen captures in her books is also a world that is changing from the rigid class systems and gender roles of the past to a new definition. In both the real world and the fictional world of Austen’s creation, new roles for the people also meant a change in the rigid system of manners that had typified the upper classes. Austen illustrates this movement as wealthy merchants and sailors began to afford the properties of the decadent rich who began overspending despite their traditional idle lifestyles (Priestley, 1960). With these changes, the role of women was also changed. Austen captures this in her novels as she introduces the idea of women as full thinking, feeling and reasonable people, planting the early seeds for the future feminist movements in characters such as Elizabeth Bennett in Pride and Prejudice. Using the technique of irony, Austen allows Elizabeth to challenge the traditional class boundaries by ignoring economic concerns (a prime consideration among women her age), crediting herself with having equally valid opinions as men and refusing to adhere to the traditional ‘definition’ of femininity in favor of following her own interests and abilities. One example of Austen’s use of irony to illustrate the social constraints of her time is found in Mr. Collins’ proposal to Elizabeth. In Mr. Collins’ mind, he is being kind to the family that is distantly related to him by offering to marry one of their two eldest daughters (the only two that are viewed as of acceptable marrying age). The house that the family has lived in will fall to Mr. Collins upon the death of Mr. Bennett, so a marriage to one of the daughters would provide the family with some form of security for the future. In Austen’s world, one of a daughter’s principle responsibilities is to take care of her family in any way she can, which frequently translated to making a good marriage as women were still significantly restricted in their abilities to earn a living. This concept is shown in Charlotte Lucas’ decision to marry Mr. Collins as a last act of desperation to secure monetary security rather than any hope for an emotional attachment. She tells Elizabeth, “marriage with Mr. Collins [is] the preferable alternative” to what else society has to offer young women of the middle class. However, Elizabeth is working off of a new worldview that holds the daughter has a right to expect some compatibility with the man she intends to spend the rest of her life with and to assess for herself what the est match might be (Bald, 1963). Despite the tremendous pressure she is under to accept Mr. Collins, Elizabeth cannot even think of considering a marriage in which happiness and true affection are not present. Although she is aware of how she is expected to behave within polite society, Elizabeth doesn’t pay much attention to the social norms when it comes to restricting her true nature. There are several examples within the novel when she gives herself the liberty of speaking her own mind. She openly tells Mr. Darcy what she thinks of him before she is fully aware of his character, demonstrating an unladylike confidence in her own opinions. Despite her sympathy for her friend, she also finds it impossible to keep her opinions to herself when Charlotte informs Elizabeth of her intention to marry Mr. Collins. “Whether married or single all Victorian women were expected to be weak and helpless, a fragile delicate flower incapable of making decisions beyond selecting the menu and ensuring her many children were taught moral values” (Thomas, 2007). Although it does not always help her and is not always shown to be a positive element of her personality, this willful streak also allows her to face down the intimidating Lady Catherine when cornered, “I am only resolved to act in that manner which will, in my own opinion, constitute my happiness without reference to you, or to any person so wholly unconnected with me” (307). Elizabeth’s behavior tends to stretch the boundaries of good breeding as even her mother, not the most astute socialite in town, warns her to “remember where you are, and do not run on in the wild manner that you are suffered to do at home” (35). Despite her proposed marriage to Mr. Darcy and supposed capitulation to expectations, this outspokenness persists, shocking poor Georgiana into realizing the more human and pleasant side of her brother through such lively challenge and making a case for women’s freedoms. As in her unwillingness to constrain her thinking within the acceptable spheres, Elizabeth doesn’t judge herself based upon the merits of a proper lady in Victorian society. “In addition to being able to sing, play an instrument and speak a little French or Italian, the qualities a young … gentlewoman needed, were to be innocent, virtuous, biddable, dutiful and be ignorant of intellectual opinion” (Thomas, 2007). Elizabeth can’t play music very well, but that does not diminish her enjoyment of it or make her feel less capable than other women because she can’t play as beautifully as women such as Georgiana. Elizabeth also doesn’t worry herself about learning to sing for the entertainment of others because it is not something she is interested in pursuing. She is interested in books, however, and spends time getting to know several. Her conversation with others frequently centers on ‘bookish’ subjects, which frequently pass over the heads of her friends and gain her the attention of the better educated noblewomen in her society. Because she has few female friends to discuss her books with, she allows her previously mentioned outspokenness to carry her into conversations with men about these subjects. The ironic twist here again is that her interest in such an improper and wasteful endeavor as improving her mind with books serves to gain her the attention of the well-educated and intelligent Mr. Darcy, already bored with the meaningless conversation of most of the young ladies he’s met within his own social circle. Finally, Elizabeth’s long practice in not holding herself to the strictly correct social mores of her society enable her to overlook her own low social status in order to enjoy herself within this life and to consider marrying the man who makes her happy, regardless of who he might be, what his status might be or what society might have to say about such a match. In the end, Elizabeth’s inability to conform completely to society’s expectations regarding economic security, feminine submissiveness and proper activities fostered for their entertainment value in polite society are exactly those attributes that attract the attention of the man she’s most suited for. By not hiding her own personality or interests, she ends up achieving a marriage that not only provides her with the economic security every young woman of her time dreamed of, but also places her in a marriage of mutual affection, intellectual challenge and gives her the freedom she’s sought to pursue her own interests as opposed to pursuing the interests foisted upon her by a cold and unfeeling society. Austen’s use of irony points out the inconsistencies in the system that both requires women to desist from those activities that might attract the opposite sex while also requiring them to ‘catch’ the most attractive prospect, in terms of financial wealth and social status, she can get. There are a great many ways in which Elizabeth’s lessons can be applied to today’s society. Young women are given many more opportunities in life today than they were 100 years ago, but they are still held under certain familial expectations. Elizabeth always had a tendency to blurt out whatever was on her mind and valued her own opinion regardless of whether it was well-informed or not. Through the story, she learned to control this tendency until she had more information. This is also a frequent mistake young women, as well as young men, continue to make in the modern world. It is easy to think we have all the information with access to the internet and everything else, but it is necessary to actually utilize this information source before learning can be gained. Elizabeth also learned to follow her own interests rather than conforming to the restrictions and expectations of her society. She was expected to be an entertaining little housewife, but was interested in more intellectual pursuits. Her willingness to stand up for herself ended up providing her with the kind of life she’d hardly dared dream about. This, too, is an important lesson for the modern world. Works Cited Austen, Jane. “Pride and Prejudice.” The Complete Novels of Jane Austen: Vol. 1. New York: The Modern Library, 1992. Bald, Marjorie. Women-Writers of the Nineteenth-Century. New York: Russell & Russell, 1963. Priestley, J.B. “Austen Portrays a Small World with Humor and Detachment.” Four English Novels. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1960. Reprinted in David Bender et al, Readings on Jane Austen. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1997. Thomas, Pauline Weston. “A Woman’s Place in C19th Victorian History.” Fashion Era. (2007). Available March 10, 2008 from < http://www.fashion-era.com/a_womans_place.htm> Read More