In my opinion, this is just a book about Victorian snobs talking about snobby things, and I don't like snobs.

•

"I used to hate Mr Darcy until I found out he has ten thousand a year, now I'm madly in love with him."

The unromantic linking of money and love are just too much for me. It just makes women of this time period seem pathetic.

•

It's my goal to read all of the classics that appear on the greatest books of all time lists every year, so I'm glad I can cross this one off.

It's possibly the most boring book I've ever read.

n  n

Old books get a bad rap...but do they deserve it? Check out my latest n  n    BooktTube Video n  n - all about the fabulous (and not so fabulous) Olde Boies.

n  The Written Reviewn:

To summarize: Mister. Darcy.

*cue the long, sustained high-pitched squealing *

This was truly as glorious as I remember. Every time I reread this novel, I love it more.

  

The n  romancen, the n  high societyn, the n  witty banter.n Gah. I just adore it all.

n  "And your defect is to hate everybody."

"And yours," he replied with a smile, "is willfully to misunderstand them."n

Elizabeth Bennet (second eldest of the five Bennet sisters) is the one with a clear, level head. Jane is the beautiful one, Mary is the look-at-me-I'm-so-pious one, Lydia is the I'm-so-dumb-that-I'm-probably-going-to-get-murdered one and Kitty is the well-she's-just-kinda-there one.

Now, back in the day...there was one, singular goal for all women above the age of 16. GET YOURSELF A MAN before you reach 25 and become a n  SPINSTERn *cue high-society ladies fainting*.

n

Mrs. Bennet (their mother) has taken this so completely to heart that she thinks of nothing else. After all,

n  It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.n

Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy moved into town and immediately Mrs. Bennett set her dasterdly plans in motion (on behalf of her mortified children). She will do whatever necessary to get a rich man to put a ring on it (oh Beyonce, your words are applicable in any century).

n  A lady's imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony in a moment.n

Only, there is a snag in her otherwise flawless plans. Elizabeth is not going to roll over to whatever man is thrust her way. To her mother's ever-living-disappointment, Elizabeth has all the spunk and backbone of a truly glorious woman:

n  I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine.n

Truly a great read, no matter the century.

Plus Jane Austen is totally my soul sister.

n  I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! -- When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.

n  
n  n  
n

Audiobook Comments
As with most old-timey books, It is far easier for me to listen to them than to read them. I like hearing the odd phrases and ancient unused words much more than struggling through the hard copy. I really enjoyed this audiobook and the narrator did a fab job of characterization.

The 2018 ABC Challenge - P

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Happy Reading!

THIS BOOK IS MY JAM. JANE AUSTEN IS MY JAM. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT HER AND THIS BOOK. READ THIS BOOK. THAT IS ALL.

‘It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife,’ begins Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, an opening sentence nearly as famous as the novel itself. Austen’s comedy of manners has taken on an immortality, being a title frequently represented in art, knick knacks or decor for book lovers. I mean, this is a book that has tshirts for it as recognizable as a Pink Floyd shirt and if there were a Mt. Rushmore for white people popular classics this would be one of the first to be carved into the rock. Luckily for readers everywhere, it is a book that truly deserves such status and is eminently readable and enjoyable to this day. Pride and Prejudice is sharp, humorous and picturesquely romantic with a cast of characters that practically walk off the page, shake your hand and intermingle in your life as Austen dives into criticisms of class and conventions.

‘I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine.’

Of the many reasons Pride and Prejudice has captured hearts for generations, Austen’s heroine, Elizabeth Bennet, is the most endearing of them. A woman with a great wit and cutting dialogue, she is not without her flaws and hubris which makes her feel so authentic and approachable. The dynamic between Elizabeth and Darcy is a perfectly balanced power struggle of personal judgements as they attempt to maintain individuality under social pressures and obdurate conventions, each stradling a position of both protagonist and antagonist. And antagonize each other they do! Though in the end they come to each other with equal scars and blame. Elizabeth’s belief in her ability to judge others leads her to misjudge—a trait not unlike Emma Woodhouse of Emma who’s pride in her own wit obscured what was right before her—overlooking the blatant flaws of Wickham simply over his adversarial role towards Darcy, and coming too harshly to conclusions on Darcy before knowing him better. It should be with no surprise to learn that Austen originally intended to title the novel ‘First Impressions’.

‘From the very beginning— from the first moment, I may almost say— of my acquaintance with you, your manners, impressing me with the fullest belief of your arrogance, your conceit, and your selfish disdain of the feelings of others, were such as to form the groundwork of disapprobation on which succeeding events have built so immovable a dislike; and I had not known you a month before I felt that you were the last man in the world whom I could ever be prevailed on to marry.’

We see Elizabeth working on herself internally while also working on the external social factors. ‘There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others,’ Elizabeth confesses, ‘my courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.’ Her pride makes her malign others, assuming Miss darcy, for instance, to be a ‘proud, reserved, disagreeable girl’ only to find she is ‘amiable and unpretending.’ It is her intelligence I find most charming, and while she may misjudge, she has the emotional intelligence to self-diagnose and course correct.

Darcy, on the other hand, must overcome his own pride and snobbery. His disdain for those who work a trade, for instance, is part of a larger depiction of those held in high esteem of class being crude and cruel and a predominant theme in the novel. Caroline, Mr. Collins and Lady Catherine are among those who operate like an extension of class hierarchy, allowing their ideas of social position to guide their thoughts and actions and making them feel immune to criticism. Darcy and Elizabeth lowering their guard, looking at the individual instead of at their social circle/status, and coming to a mutual understanding gives the novel a tender nature, one that asks for empathy and understanding in the world and warns against holding on to judgements too tightly.

‘Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.’

Another aspect of the novel that really resonates is just how visual it is. Austen has a gift for description and this quality has lent itself to many visually stunning film adaptations. Austen excels at embedding much of her social commentary into her depictions of settings and characters, such as Elizabeth’s first visit to Darcy’s house, with ‘high woody hills’ and a large, tall garden surrounding a the house, ‘a stream of some natural importance was swelled into greater, but without any artificial appearance.’ This is a major insight into Darcy as a character: a man without artifice and full of ‘natural beauty’ that he keeps hidden from view. His arrogance is merely his grandiose garden that obscures the him beneath the exterior. Similarly, judgements on character are often made in dialogue that focuses on aspects of dress or decor. ‘By describing a material object,’ Roland Barthes writes in The Language of Fashion, ‘if it is not to construct it or to use it, we are led to link the qualities of its matter to a second meaning.’ The criticisms of taste are, in this regard, a criticism of character, so when Caroline and Louisa talk at length about the mud on Elizabeth’s petticoat, we can infer they are telling us they find her herself to be wild, unkempt and unruly. It is in ways such as these that Austen can make such keen observations that don't announce themselves yet amalgamate to portray a life-like impression of a society that thrives on gossip and social interactions that are plotted like chess pieces moving across the board.

‘I must learn to be content with being happier than I deserve.’

Austen’s Pride and Prejudice drifts at the pace of life, enrapturing you in its lush language, vibrant landscapes, dancing with you through the great halls of ornate homes and giving you an introduction to the high society of the times. This is an eternally charming novel that bites with sharp satire and humor while letting deep lessons and emotional bubble up from tender moments and brilliant insights. It is quite funny at times as well. Jane Austen is remembered for a reason, and while I still favor Emma to be my favorite, this comedy of manners is certainly a Must Read.

4.5/5

‘What do I not owe you! You taught me a lesson, hard indeed at first, but most advantageous. By you, I was properly humbled. I came to you without a doubt of my reception. You showed me how insufficient were all my pretensions to please a woman worthy of being pleased.’

Often imitated, never matched. Nobody can do it quite like Jane Austen.

True story: I was rummaging through and throwing away lots of my old papers and souvenirs a few weeks ago and happened to run across my 30+ year old notes from a college course where we studied Pride and Prejudice. I can't believe I still had them! Some of those P&P notes were actually pretty insightful, so in this review I've included some of the more interesting observations from my long-ago class. Hope you enjoy! (ETA: Now with bonus texts and memes)



From the first tongue-in-cheek words:

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighbourhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters.

Austen brilliantly sets up the world of this novel. Marriage - however humorous the personalities and events may be - is serious business. And when the Bennets have five daughters and no sons, the seriousness of getting their girls married off increases exponentially. The desperation of the marriage hunt is really the desperation of economic survival. Mrs Bennet has that essentially right, however misguided she is in the way she goes about it.

The theme of self-discovery works hand-in-hand with the theme of marriage, and the tension between economic interest and romantic feelings. Both pride and prejudice are obstacles not just to understanding others, but to knowing oneself. Elizabeth learns about herself from several other characters along the way:

Wickham: the danger of trusting solely in appearance.
Charlotte: the danger of too much practicality and making decisions based on material reasons.
Lady Catherine: helps Elizabeth to see Darcy's pride in perspective




Jane Austen shows us so many different types of marriages in P&P: those based mostly on initial physical attraction (the Bennet parents as well as Lydia and Wickham), those based on practical, material considerations; those based on emotional feeling and compatibility (Jane and Bingley). And finally, and very gradually, we progress to seeing relationships based on reason and intelligence as well as physical and emotional attraction. The Gardiners are the model here, and the type of marriage Elizabeth wants to have for herself.



I adore Elizabeth and Darcy, working through their flaws (there's pride and prejudice aplenty on both sides!), willing to reconsider earlier judgments, tentatively working their way toward each other. And when you combine that with Austen's insight into human foibles and her sharp wit, every page is a pleasure. Sometimes I've been guilty of rushing through P&P, skimming over some chapters to get to the "good parts" faster, but I took my time this time around, reading it slower and more carefully, and was rewarded accordingly.

P&P is my favorite book of Jane Austen's ... and very possibly my favorite book of all time. It's the perfect mix of intelligence, humor and romance.

Bonus! A studious and completely objective discussion of the merits of the leading actors and actresses in the major P&P movies and TV miniseries.

First up: The Elizabeth Bennet actresses.

First, Greer Garson from the 1940 movie:

… no, for two big reasons:
1. As  one website points out, “Garson's [Elizabeth Bennet] was smirking, empty-headed and flirtatious where Ehle's was smirking, strong and intelligent." Hah!
2. Hoop skirts. Hoop. Skirts. A thousand times no!
(This movie also has a third strike against it, the travesty of its rewriting of Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s personality.)

Second, Elizabeth Garvie in the 1980 BBC miniseries:

She’s not well known except among P&P fans, but she actually does a very nice job with Lizzie.

Jennifer Ehle from the 1995 miniseries:

She’s great, and she gets extra points for just how well she plays off of Colin Firth, but I have a fundamental problem with Ehle, which is that she just doesn’t match my vision of Lizzie. I just can’t entirely buy her in the part.

Keira Knightley:

Very pretty but … too pretty. And man, is she wearing a lot of makeup in some of the scenes.


Honorable mention: Aishwarya Rai in Bride and Prejudice (I don’t even care if she’s too gorgeous):


So for me, it’s Elizabeth Garvie, but kind of in a default win.

Part II: The Darcys:

We begin with Lawrence Olivier from the 1940 Hollywood movie:

... all props to Sir Lawrence, but he's not my vision of Darcy.

David Rintoul from the 1980 BBC version:

... who is a pretty good Darcy, actually; it's not his fault that the production values in this P&P version suck. (it's basically like watching a theater play that's been filmed)

On to the wonderful Colin Firth, from the seminal 1995 miniseries:

... I can't help it, he makes my heart beat faster even when he's not in a wet shirt.

Matthew Macfadyen in the 2005 movie:

Sorry to his fans, but he doesn't cut it for me. He always looks So. Worried!

So clearly for me it's Colin Firth FTW, but feel free to argue with me in the thread. :)

Honorable mentions go to Elliot Cowan in Lost in Austen and Martin Henderson in Bride and Prejudice. (Pics in the thread.)

I'm a great believer in the idea that if anyone didn't like this book it's because they didn't read it properly and/or are possessed. In all seriousness, the wit is timeless and Austen should always be remembered as a literary genius, as I hope she will.

I reread Pride and Prejudice (1813) again and maybe will reread all of the novels of Jane Austen in 2021, but this one, my favorite, is the great one, one of the best novels ever, and I have now reread it a second time this year, in part because I read it with a friend this summer and because we read it in a class I am teaching in Fall 2021 using primarily Young Adult Literature. I began with this book as a kind of precursor to YAL, of special interest perhaps to young people, and then we'll read almost exclusively YAL. I/we are also reading spin-off books such as Pride by Ibi Zoboi, Unmarriageable and others, even a board book version I own! We also read a comics biography of Jane Austen, and will read a range of comics romances.

I own the Colin Firth and Keira Knightly versions of this novel and really enjoy them. I own numerous copies of this book, which became the foundation of my MA Thesis in 1984 on what social criticism I thought Jane Austen was trying to accomplish through the romances in her novels (I was initially going to write about each of the books, but pared it down to Pride, Emma and Persuasion, finally). ISometime in the early eighties I first read P & P for a graduate class and thought after reading it quickly that it was a pretty good romance; when I showed up at the class on the history of the novel, taught by a film and novels professor, Irv Kroese, he opened the class by reading the first sentence:

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”

And he proceeded to lecture our small seminar for an entire hour--I'm not kidding--on the first sentence (okay, maybe it was the whole first paragraph) and how it changed the face of literature forever. The irony, the layering, the complexity, no novels had had quite this tone, these purposes, before. I went home after that class and reread it slowly, and just a bit more carefully, and began to see how great it is.

I listened to it again this summer, and it was thoroughly entertaining for me all over again. The Bennett family is hilariously anguishing in its quest to get all of the daughters financially set--which is to say, "well-married," in a year. Some boy crazy family, this one, you might say, but underneath that surface hilarity around marriageability are some serious questions about the options available to young women, even middle-class young women, in the first decade of the nineteenth century. The questions are occasioned in part by the appearance of some seemingly sophisticated and possibly wealthy young men to the rural village where the Bennett family (including their FIVE daughters) live.

Other questions ensue; the book, initially titled First Impressions, examines the way both pride and prejudice impede the development of, well, everything, though principally, in this book, romantic relationships. You marry for love, not money, many of us will agree, but it's, well, complicated. "What do you hope to do in your life, young man?" a father asks a potential suitor of his daughter. That principle of making sure a future is secured for your daughter--because she has little power herself in this society--is relevant.

There are some great comic characters in this book through which we examine different aspects of society, including both Mr. and Mrs. Bennett. Mister Bennett at one point says:

"An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do NOT marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you DO."

So, there's four principal relationships we can use as a matter of comparison and contrast for the purpose of moral guidance in this matter of conducting relationships:

* Mr. Collins is rich and a buffoon, but Elizabeth's cousin, who says she is not romantic, but practical, marries the old guy for a financially secure future. Reasonable, but not our ideal life.

* The untrustworthy Wickham and the flighty Lydia. This couple in the scheme of things is fun, witty, but not deeply committed to each other, financially irresponsible, so not the model for marriage.

* The most admired couple, Jane and Bingley. This is the thoroughly good couple. Steady. They are maybe a tad boring, but good, so good, so this is an ideal for Austen. They marry for love, and the money is well, very good to boot.

* And the least warm, the most proud, the most prejudiced, but the most interesting (and smartest, most insightful) couple, Elizabeth and Darcy? Eventually, they'll marry for love, and then, again, a lot of money just happens to be part of the bargain. This is, after all, a romantic comedy, so we can expect crazy good things to happen against all odds. Oh, and here's his first proposal, astonishing Elizabeth even more than Collins did in its audacity:

“In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.” Elizabeth’s astonishment was beyond expression. She stared, coloured, doubted, and was silent. This he considered sufficient encouragement, and the avowal of all that he felt and had long felt for her, immediately followed. He spoke well, but there were feelings besides those of the heart to be detailed, and he was not more eloquent on the subject of tenderness than of pride. His sense of her inferiority—of its being a degradation—of the family obstacles which judgment had always opposed to inclination, were dwelt on with a warmth which seemed due to the consequence he was wounding, but was very unlikely to recommend his suit."

But it is Darcy's very different letter to Elizabeth later that turns the tide: Man changes his manners; woman changes her mind. This is a wonderfully insightful and funny novel that I recommend everyone read!

The first time I came across this book was in high school. My mom, a humanities teacher, had a bookshelf filled with various literary novels, but I only took a liking to books by n  George Orwelln and n  Haruki Murakamin - those that I can't even understand, as a teenager. I was not particularly interested in classics like n  Jane Austenn’s works. Occasionally, I'd pick one up, but the intricate lives of the women waiting for marriage in her stories never held my attention.

But frankly speaking, Jane Austen really excelled in writing about women. In that era of feudal thought and oppression, she sought to use her words to rebel and to take control of her own destiny. For women, love and marriage were lifelong concerns, and she used these as tools of resistance. The prevailing view on marriage at the time was centered on money and social standing. Yet, Austen, who herself remained unmarried, did not subscribe to this notion. The concept of marriage in this novel, Pride and Prejudice is subtly built upon the foundation of love.

Austen set clear standards for the quality of a marriage. Unhappy marriages typically fell into 2 categories: 1 like Charlotte and Mr. Collins's marriage, based on economic necessity; the other like Lydia and Wickham's, based purely on physical attraction and lust.

Charlotte was Elizabeth's close friend but accepted Mr. Collins's proposal after Elizabeth had refused him. She was an old maid with little fortune, and marriage was her only goal. She believed, ”Marriage might not make you happy, but it is a convenient safety net for women to ensure they don't starve or freeze, and she didn’t care much about the man or the marriage itself." Charlotte represented the mindset of many single women of her time. Many critique her marriage as being based solely on economics, but I always saw Charlotte as a victim of her era, making a choice due to her limited circumstances (lack of beauty, talent, or wealth). Charlotte's choice was another form of resistance: she didn’t want to remain at her father’s and brother’s mercy and die alone; she sought a lifelong reliable meal ticket.

Lydia’s actions, on the other hand, depict the creation of a problematic young woman. Lydia’s flirtatiousness, promiscuity, vanity, and selfishness are traits detested by everyone. Lydia embodies the societal tendencies of her time - a woman eager to marry a handsome and respectable man, enamored with soldiers, and finally eloping with Wickham. After being rescued and married off by Darcy, she feels neither regret nor shame.

Treasure the person willing to change for you.

In contrast, the marriage of Elizabeth and Darcy, and Jane and Bingley, were based on love. They loved and tolerated each other.

First impressions are just unreliable, and prejudice is more terrifying than ignorance. Elizabeth formed a prejudice against Darcy due to his initial aloofness and later, after listening to malicious gossip, swore she would never marry him. Yet, Darcy gradually recognized the charm hidden within Elizabeth’s seemingly plain appearance.

Truly, after resolving their misunderstandings and prejudices, both characters changed. They altered themselves for each other, and the flaws in their personalities were gradually eradicated through the deepening of their feelings. This foundation in mutual transformation makes their relationship more robust. Elizabeth clearly reflects Austen’s own shadow, her fantasy of an ideal life. She transformed her ideals into Elizabeth and achieved happiness; however, faced with the harsh realities of her time, she remained unmarried.

I have always considered Austen’s lifelong single status somewhat tragic. She sought to handle emotions with reason, believing, "Never marry without love." But as an idealist, she preferred to hope for true love rather than marry without it. This stubborn woman, while not succumbing to reality’s harshness, also retained a touch of romanticism.

Undoubtedly, the issue of balancing economics and love in marriage, as highlighted in Austen’s novels, is still relevant today. People wish to base their relationships on a stable economic foundation. With financial security comes the strength to pursue love. It’s important to note that Austen’s characters were all middle - class, not lower - class; they had certain incomes, statuses, and knowledge. If not, how could they afford servants and so much "imposed leisure"? Without considering this background, discussions about money and love only represent a subset of society. What about those at the bottom, with no hope? How would they choose between money and love?

Ideally, having both love and financial security is perfect, just like Elizabeth and Darcy. However, not every Elizabeth will be fortunate enough to meet a Darcy in today’s world.

I can't definitively say how one should choose between money and love. Choices should be made based on certain conditions. Just like multiple - choice questions in exams, you can only choose from the given options, which is the condition of the choice.

3.8 / 5 stars

I came for an enemies to lovers, 1800s Britain edition with Bridgerton vibes and got a ton of drama about people who were always outside :) I loved the drama though, just wanted a Taylor Swift love story

“The more I see of the world, the more I am dissatisfied with it; and every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of human characters, and of all of the little dependence that can be placed on the appearance of either merit or sense.”

A timeless tale of love and virtue.

Pride & Prejudice presents a study of society figures, family relationships and love through contrasting value. While Mr Darcy intrigues with his aloof characterisation, Elizabeth’s character provides a stunning insight to the idea of a modernised woman, a rebel to a gender and social confined society. While the theme of navigating love- both familial and romantic- through impossible feeling, of challenging boundaries, is one that captivates and resonates with a wide audience.

On the other hand, this book can come across as slightly uneventful in a sense. At times, achieving more as a character study than as an overall narrative- but ultimately, starting and finishing strong.

Overall, the title holds true- a delve into pride, and prejudice.

Another year, another glorious reread of Pride and Prejudice.

n  n    “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”n  n

~ Rating- 5 stars ~

(Content/ Trigger Warnings )

-No Mention of these in the review-

After over a month of trying to write a review, I have officially given up. I cannot review Pride and Prejudice the way I review the rest of the books I read.

Part of it might be because this book is on such a high literally level compared to the rest of the books I usually read, and the other part may be because I always struggle with reviewing classics, but my point still stays the same: Pride and Prejudice is one of the best books I've had the pleasure of reading.

Why?

This book has everything you might want to read in a book. It has amazing characters, who are flawed and realistic, but still have a ton of development, it has incredible writing, which will keep you hooked, and it is set in 1700-1800 England.


In short, Pride and Prejudice has everything that is worth the read.

n  n    “I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! -- When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.”n  n

Pride and Prejudice is hands down my favourite book of Jane Austen, and one of my favourite books this year. (2021)

I have no idea what to say except to urge you to pick this book up. This is the book everyone must read at least once in your lifetime.

n  n    “Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.”n  n

My ratings and reviews for all of Austen's works based on preference-
Pride & Prejudice- 5 stars
Northanger Abbey- 5 stars
Sense and Sensibility- 4 stars
Love and Friendship- 4 stars
Persuasion- 3 stars
Emma- 3 stars
Mansfield Park- 1.5 stars

DISCLAIMER- All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.

How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/ was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/ was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/ was average / Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/ new favourite


...............................................

Update 14th April 2021

I am so blank on what to write.