Pride and Prejudice
I recently read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. It’s a beautiful novel, and I must confess that certain passages brought tears to my eyes (even though I already knew the story from watching the 1995 BBC film version, which I highly recommend, by the way).
The story chronicles the development of a very interesting relationship between wealthy gentleman Fitzwilliam Darcy and a certain Miss Elizabeth Bennet (whose only flaw is that she is not of noble birth). Things get off to a rough start when first impressions find Mr. Darcy to be astonishingly haughty and reserved. But as other aspects of Darcy’s character begin to surface, Miss Bennet starts to see a very different picture of him! I can’t say much more than that without ruining the story, so if you haven’t already read the book, do so immediately!
Darcy is the main reason why I like this book. I’m able to empathize with him in a lot of ways. Of course, I’m not a wealthy gentleman or anything like that, but my personality and way of thinking are similar to Darcy’s. I am a bit quiet and aloof, and for that reason, my character is often severely misunderstood. So Pride and Prejudice is a huge encouragement to me, because of the part that Darcy ends up playing in the story (maybe there’s hope for me after all!).
I love Jane Austen’s writing style. There’s so much humor and romance and spirited dialogue. The characters are very well developed (e.g. the infinitely-annoying Mr. Collins!). I plan to read Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park next.
Obviously, Pride and Prejudice is now high on my “favorite books” list!
Posted: January 25th, 2008 under Literature.
Comments
Comment from Jed
Time 2008/01/25 at 3:23 pm
Nice! Thanks for the info about the show! Looks like I’m going to need to do some serious reading over the weekend to finish Mansfield Park by Sunday. Or maybe I’ll just set up the VCR to record it.
That is indeed interesting, Bethany… yeah I can see you as an Elizabeth type of character. She’s sweet and sensitive, but she’s also not afraid to speak her mind (the little “discussion” with Lady Catherine was classic). All of which are traits that I admire (Lizzy is my favorite female character in the book). I haven’t read Northanger Abbey, so I don’t know about Catherine. But “immature” certainly wouldn’t be a word I would use to describe you!
Comment from Bex
Time 2008/01/25 at 3:24 pm
good story! I haven’t read the book yet but the bbc version of the movie has been one of my favorites for a while.
Comment from Jed
Time 2008/01/25 at 3:28 pm
Oh I LOVE that movie! I’m somewhat hesitant to watch the new Pride & Prejudice movie, because I don’t see how it can be any better than the BBC one.
Comment from Bex
Time 2008/01/25 at 3:33 pm
I don’t think it is. It has its good parts but I couldn’t get used to the new characters. It was shorter too so it didn’t develop the characters or story as well as the other. Have you seen Sense and Sensibility?
Comment from Jed
Time 2008/01/25 at 3:41 pm
Yeah that’s what I was afraid of! Those BBC people are the only ones who know how to approximate British fiction correctly.
I can’t remember if I’ve seen Sense & Sensibility or not. I’ve watched several of the BBC Jane Austen shows, but Pride & Prejudice is the only one that has remained fresh in my mind. I’ll have to watch the others again!
Comment from Eloprah
Time 2008/01/25 at 4:35 pm
If the new Mansfield Park is the same one on YouTube, I wouldn’t recommend it; some nudity, and they *completely* change and ruin the story.
The BBC Pride and Prejudice is very well; however, Colin Firth is not my idea of a Mr. Darcy. I won’t watch it again. The new version has stunning cinematography; yet again, I thought the casting horrible. I thought the movie Sense and Sensibility with Emma Thompson was excellent; it encouraged me to read the book – the first time a movie has made me want to read the book.
It’s not too surprising that most people identify with Mr. Darcy or Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice, or Marianne and Elinor or Colonel Brandon or Mr. Ferrars in S&S – they are, after all, the heroes. The entire book is focused on those characters; one thing that great literature does is make you see the world through another person’s eyes – you then can compare yourself – “how would I have reacted?” It teaches about human nature. It would be far more surprising if one deeply identified with, say, Mr. Collins, Lady DeBourgh, or Mr. Wickham – these are purposely portrayed so that the reader will look at the characters’ faults and do his best to avoid them. No one wants to be a stuck-up prig. However, literature is often at its greatest when it does make the reader identify with the villain – then, it confronts one with one’s own sin. MacBeth, for example, is one of the most powerful pieces of literature. I have always been able to see myself as Lady MacBeth; I recognize my sins of pride and greed in her. Every time I read it, I realize the seriousness of my sins, and am brought to repentance.
Of course, I, too, have always thought of myself as an Elizabeth. However, S&S is my favorite JA novel; I there identify with Elinor – except for the fact that she married Mr. Ferrars. Colonel Brandon is the best! I’ve never thought of myself as a Catherine (Northanger Abbey) or a Fanny (Mansfield Park). I don’t like Emma, and don’t think I resemble her.
Have you read Jane Eyre? Actually, the person with whom I most identify is St. John. And that scares me.
Comment from Bethany Wheeler
Time 2008/01/25 at 9:05 pm
Jed, I really, really like the ‘new’ version of Pride and Prejudice. Kierra Knightly plays Elizabeth sooooooo well, and the Darcy actor is great. He is a much better Darcy than Colin Firth. I have no way of knowing if you will like it better or worse than the BBC version (which I like very much), but don’t not watch it! True, the plot and characters are not so fully developed, but it flows well and sums up the book nicely. It stands by itself very well and doesn’t leave you lacking by any means. I, a Jane Austen fan, have no problem with this rendition of one of her greatest works. And believe me, I HATE it when a movie misrepresents or poorly follows a book.
Oh, the Mansfield Park is a brand new Masterworks theater movie that’s being premiered on Sunday. Therefore it’s not the one with nudity; though it might have some of it’s own. I’d be greatly surprised at this though, because that’s not in the book, and the other two movies have been clean.
Eloprah, how do you pronounce St. John? I’ve heard that is should properly be ‘Sanjen’. In what ways do you identify with him? His fake compassion or selfish intents? I can’t believe that you are really like him! He’s creepy! I’m glad you don’t identify with Emma, she’s not exactly a good role model!
Wow this post has gotten a lot of long comments, hasn’t it? Apparently literature resonates with your fan base, Jed!
Comment from Josiah
Time 2008/01/25 at 11:13 pm
If I were casting a Pride and Prejudice, I would play William Shatner opposite Madonna….. and incorporate aliens in the film somehow…. Hey, it’s 11:00… did you really think I had anything to add to this lively conversation.
Comment from Jed
Time 2008/01/26 at 1:05 am
Haha Josiah… uhhh… yeah. Get some sleep, man. You will be able to think more clearly in the morning.
Well, Bethany, your positive review of the new Pride and Prejudice movie is pretty convincing. So I’ll probably watch it after all. But I doubt I will like it better than the BBC version (I’m like Bekah in that the BBC characters have been sorta burned into my memory, making it difficult for me to adjust to a new cast). Yeah I was amazed at all the responses I got regarding this post! It looks like my readers are really into classic literature! Which is great! I will certainly be posting more “book reviews.”
Eloprah… Sense & Sensibility sounds pretty good. Can’t remember if I’ve seen it or not (I’m guessing I haven’t, because none of the characters’ names sound familiar), so I’ll probably see if I can find it at the library. I haven’t read the book yet, but I can already tell that Elinor made the right decision by choosing Mr. Ferrars over Colonel Brandon (I typically don’t have a lot of respect for men that choose the military as a career)! Oh, and I disagree with the opening statements of your third paragraph… good books are not (and should not be) designed to make me see myself in the protagonist’s character. They are designed to make me see and understand the protagonist, whatever type of character he/she may be. There are many book heroes that I have great difficulty relating to (e.g. Judah from Lew Wallace’s Ben-Hur). Thus, your claim that empathy with Darcy or Eliza is simply emulation of the book’s hero/heroine is not quite accurate (after all, there are many other “heroes” in the book to choose from… Bingley, Jane, etc.). I haven’t read Jane Eyre either, but it sounds intriguing!! I’ll have to check it out.
Comment from jeff
Time 2008/01/30 at 9:07 am
I confess that I find Josiah’s version somewhat intriguing. William Shatner and Space Aliens are hard to beat.
Comment from Bethany Wheeler
Time 2008/01/25 at 1:52 pm
I love Mansfield Park! If you finish the book in time, PBS is airing a brand new Masterworks Theater movie version Sunday night at eight. I’m expecting it to be great; the last two (Persuasion and Northanger Abbey) have been exceptional.
Glad you like Pride and Prejudice. It’s funny that you empathize most with Darcy, because I empathize most with Elizabeth. She’s outspoken, makes mistakes, and is very opinionated. I also empathize with Catherine from Northanger Abbey, she’s imaginative, and slightly immature.