Pride and Prejudice (Lenses)

Pride and Prejudice really has some different ways of portraying women. The most obvious opinions are from the men in the book. Mr. Darcy has a very prominent opinion; I can infer that he thinks of women as "ornaments" so to speak. A better way to call this would be a stereotype. He thinks that women are made to do specific tasks such as cooking and cleaning. Elizabeth sort of challenges that aspect of his thinking.

Book to Book Connection:

This Chapter of the book really connects with the plot of the book Feed. In the book, the characters are all used to the feed, a transmitter implanted in the brain. When a girl named Violet challenges that aspect, it reminded me of this book.The character's in Pride and Prejudice are all kind of used to the fact that men kind of see them as "accomplished". Elizabeth reminds me of Violet because she is so variant from the other people in her family. Both of them kind of stand up to the situation which is the connection I see between these two books.

~Ana Gabriela

Character Analysis: Mrs. Bennet

Characters:  In our book, there had been one very obvious static character: Mrs. Bennet. A static character is a character that stays the same throughout the book. However, I am only half way through the book, so she does still have time to change, she just hasn't so far. Mrs. Bennet is a very odd character. She is a woman, but she is also a feminist. She has a very clear idea of what she wants her five daughters to grow up to be, and this vision is very sterotypical of a woman. She wants them to find a rich, handsome man, marry him, and be a stay at home mother raising children while he goes out and works. All of her daughters wish this for themselves too, except for one daughter, Elizabeth. Mrs. Bennet doesn't show it, but I think that she is worried about Lizzy. She is afraid she won't marry the "right kind of man" or worse (in her opinion), not marry at all. Mr. Bennet thinks that his wife is very frantic and should try to calm down, that their daughters will be fine. But she doesn't listen. She is willing to do anything to ensure that her daughters will each have perfect lives.

~Carolyn

Chapter IX Reflection (Thoughts and Summary)

In Chapter IX, Mrs. Bennet takes Catherine and Lydia to visit Jane. Mrs. Bennet spends the majority of her time there trying to convince Mr. Bingley to stay in Netherfield, which upsets Elizabeth. Lizzy is also embarrassed about the way her mother acts, only talking about how beautiful Jane is and comparing city life to country life. Mr. Bingley also decides that he will wait until Jane is fully recovered until he has another ball.

This is another chapter that really shows Mrs. Bennet's personality. She is desperate for her daughters to be successful, married women, and is willing to do anything to help them achieve that. All of her daughters are also more than willing to do anything, except for Elizabeth. In my opinion, Elizabeth is the only one who's opinions I agree with.

~Carolyn

Chapter VIII Reflection (Thoughts and Summary)

In Chapter VIII, the Bingley sisters make fun of the Bennets, especially Elizabeth. They poke at her because of the way she looks after walking from her home to the Netherfield. Darcy and Mr. Bingley try and defend the Bennets at first, but they do disagree with Lizzy's decision to walk all the way to the Bingley estate. They also agreed that, given the Bennets are rather poor, they are not suitable choices for marriage. Darcy also describes what he thinks is an "accomplished woman," which Elizabeth thinks is too specific and demanding.

When Darcy was describing his idea of an "accomplished woman", he was being very stereotypical and feminist. Mr. Bingley also shows feminist opinions, saying that women should be able to make baskets and do household chores. As I mentioned in a previous post, they believe that women should stay at home and raise children, and the men should do the working. That is a very stereotypical and feminist outlook.

~Carolyn

Chapter VII Reflections (Thoughts and Summary)

The main idea of Chapter VII is that Mrs. Benent sends Jane to the Bingley Estate in Netherfield. The thing I find interesting is that when Jane asked for the carriage, Mrs. Bennet refused to give it to her, even though they both knew it was going to rain. So Jane had to go on horseback instead.

"No, my dear, you had better go on horseback, because it seems likely to rain; and then you must stay all night." 

From a child's and mother's standpoint, it was a very cruel thing to do. Mrs. Bennet had a master plan in her head, though. Since she knew it was going to rain, she wanted her to go on horseback, so she would have to spend the night. That would give Jane some time to get acquainted with Mr. Bingley.

Jane went according to plan, but when Jane arrived at Netherfield, she fell ill. A letter came home to Lizzy, telling her what was going on. Elizabeth was scared that Jane would die. In this scene, Jane Austen really highlights Mrs. Bennet's personality. When Mrs. Bennet recieves news of Jane's illness, she is not worried about Jane dying; she is even happier than before because Jane would have to stay longer to recuperate. I thought that it really showed the true colors of Mrs. Bennet. I think that once her personality was revealed, readers will not be fans of her anymore.

~Ana Gabriela

Chapter VI Reflection (Thoughts and Summary)

In Chapter VI, Mr. Bingley's sisters come to visit the Bennets to try and become better friends with Jane and Elizabeth. Mr. Bingley makes it obvious that he likes Jane very much. Lizzy believes that Jane loves him too, but it trying to hide it for some reason. She talks about this to Charlotte, who thinks that if Jane doesn't show Mr. Bingley she likes him back, that he may lose interest in her and move on. There discussion turns into a small argument about how you should behave to your "future husband." Also, at a party, Darcy makes it extremely obvious that he likes Lizzy, but she refuses to dance with him, saying he is "too proud to like." However, Darcy tells one of Mr. Bingley's sisters that Elizabeth is now the "object of his admiration."

After reading this chapter, I am left with the impression that the only female charater in the story whose values I agree with are Elizabeth's. She refuses to dance with Darcy because, unlike the other girls, she values personality more than wealth. Even though all of the other girls are trying to convince her to be with him, she sees past his riches.

~Carolyn

Chapter V Reflection (Thoughts)

Chapter V discusses the ball between the Bennet's neighbors, the Lucases, and the Miss Bennet's.

I think that the women discussing the ball are like feminists themselves because they are jumping to conclusions with who Mr. Bingley liked more. They debated that though he danced with Charlotte first, he liked Jane better because he danced with her twice. I think the ladies are jealous of Jane and this discussion is sort of a way to vent to others. Elizabeth was the only person who did not get asked to dance, so it was also like a pity party for her. I think that discussion made Elizabeth feel worse about herself; since she had no partner.

Though Elizabeth did not get asked, she does have some very different values than her peers. I feel that she really looks past fame and fortune. For example, her peers are trying to get her to get acquainted with Mr. Darcy; she deosn't see anything in him other than wealth.

~Ana Gabriela

Chapter V Reflection (Summary)

In Chapter V, we are introduced to the Bennets neighbors; Sir William Lucas, his wife, and their children. Their oldest child, Charlotte, is Lizzy's best friend. They two women of the families are talking about the ball the morning after. They came to the conclusion that even though Mr. Bingley danced with Charlotte first, he still thought Jane was the prettiest girl. Then they talk about how Lizzy might be interested in Mr. Darcy, but she hates the idea. Even though he is rich, Lizzy values personality over wealth.

~Carolyn

Chapter IV Reflection (Thoughts and Summary)

In Chapter IV, the Bennets are talking again about Mr. Bingley. Mr. Bennet, who at first was not so excited about the idea of one of his daughters marrying a man he didn't know, came out and told his family that he had actually met Mr. Bingley and they had now become friends. This news excites the girls and they talk more about what they think of Mr. Bingley and how they all hoped of marrying him.

After reading this chapter, I am under the impression that most of the Bennet girls are sort of feminist themselves. They all seem to agree with their mother's words "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." They all act like they have to do the same thing with their lives: marry a rich man, have children, and stay at home and raise them while their husband works. They all want this type of a life, and Mr. Bingley fits the role of rich man well.

~Carolyn

Chapter III Reflection (Thoughts and Summary)

Chapter III was describing the ball that the Bennet girls attended. There, they got a chance to meet Mr. Bingley and dance with him. It talks about Mr. Bingley's manners and who Mr. Bingley danced with. In this chapter, the author, Jane T. Austen focuses on Lizzy the most. While Lizzy's sisters are off dancing, she is moping in the corner because no one has asked her to dance.


Mr. Darcy, a friend of Mr. Bingley's describes Lizzy as, "She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; and I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men" 

I understand that Mr. Darcy was talking about her, but I think that moment showed his true colors because of one crucial thing. He was talking right next to Lizzy. Lizzy heard the whole conversation right where she was sitting from. I think it shows that he wants her to know what he is thinking and he doesn't care if she hears or not.

~Ana Gabriela

Chapter II Reflection (Thoughts)

As said in my earlier post, some sentences said by Mrs. Bennet really show the reader who Mrs. Bennet really is.

In this excerpt, Mr. Bennet is showing, not bias, but more affection to his daughter, Lizzy. Mrs. Bennet's emotion lashes out; very prominent here.

"I hope Mr. Bingley will like it Lizzy."

"We are not in a way to know what Mr. Bingley likes," said her mother resentfully, 'since we are not to visit.'

She is lashing out at Mr. Bennet for "sticking" with Lizzy. I also think she is being hipocritical here because she is in hopes that he will marry her daughters. But in the sentence above, it's almost like she doesn't want Lizzy to marry him.

~Ana Gabriela

Chapter II Reflection (Summary)

In Chapter II, the Bennet family is discussing an upcoming ball. This is an important ball because there, they will meet Mr. Bingley. They are preparing for the ball and talking about what they will do while they are there. In this chapter, the characters Lizzy, Kitty, and Mary are introduced. Lizzy is trimming a hat for Mr. Bingley, Kitty is facing a cough, and Mary is in a disagreement with her father.

~Carolyn

Chapter I Reflection (Summary)

In Chapter I, Mrs. Bennet is telling her husband, Mr. Bennet, about a new man that is in town. His name is Mr. Bingley. Mrs. Bennet hopes that one of her five daughters will marry him because he is said to be very handsome and rich. Mr. Bennet is not as frantic about marriage, but he mentions that he would want Lizzy to be the one to marry him. Mrs. Bennet is shocked that her husband would favor one of their children. In this chapter, the author also describes the contrast in Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. She says that Mr. Bennet is an "odd mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve, and caprice", while Mrs. Bennet is described as "a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper."

~Carolyn

Chapter I Reflections (Thoughts)

In Chapter I, the first sentence in the book really did not seem like it was from the author's point of view, but from Mrs. Bennet's.

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

This is almost stereotypical of rich men. Mrs. Bennet acts like she knows that rich men want wives. I think that the sentences shows the reader what kind of as person Mrs. Bennet is.  The sentence shows that she jumps to conclusions. Not all rich men may want a wife.

~Ana Gabriela

Pride and Prejudice Initial Thoughts II

After reading only a few pages of Pride and Prejudice, I already have a lot of thoughts on it. Obviously, it takes place in the past. This is a disadvantage to me because I'm not as farmiliar with the time period. The difference between then and now that I first noticed is the dialect that they speak with. The author, Jane Austen, uses a lot of words that aren't in most people's vocabulary, so it can make the story confusing. I've found that I have to re-read a lot to understand what's going on. But once I did comprehend the plot, I like it. It's already interesting, and I've only read one chapter.

~Carolyn

Pride and Prejudice Initial Thoughts I

To me, Pride and Prejudice is very confusing. Being a classic, it was set in the past and the dialect is very old-fashioned. I also think the plot is very hard to follow.

It talks about the Bennet family; Mr. and Mrs. Bennet and their five daughters. Mrs. Bennet notices a very handsome man named Mr. Bingley is planning on buying a property near their home. She is very interested in having her daughters visit him because she wants him to possibly marry one of them. I think that the plot was hard to understand because the author placed very common words, of the time, into the story.

I used context clues to help me figure out the plot, but I am at a disadvantage since I am not from the time when the book was written, so I have a different way of understanding the story.

~Ana Gabriela

Welcome to Our Blog

We are reading the books Pride & Prejudice and What My Mother Doesn't Know. While we're reading, we will be frequently posting chapter summaries, opinions, and more.

~Carolyn and Ana Gabriela