“PRIDE AND PREJUDICE” BY JANE AUSTEN

The novel “Pride And Prejudice” has been written by Jane Austen, a great woman novelist of the romantic age. She has written and not only one novel rather six novels have been written by her. She has got great name and popularity in writing novels. Her novels are not the novels of action but of conversation and scene after scene is built up by the power of conversation.

Jane Austen stands a solitary figure in her age. She is unromantic in the Romantic age. She is essentially classical and her novels are also classical like in almost all her novels there is a village in which there live young women. The village is visited by the eligible young men. They fall in love and the story moves with some hurdles for the lovers who are ultimately married. And no wonder such scene is also found in the novel, “Pride And Prejudice”. Love, marriage, money, wealth and property are the subject matter of her novels.

Like Shakespeare she is also very Choosy and selective in the choice of the very suitable title of her novels. Really the suitable title unfolds the theme of the novel. The selection of title requires the skill of the artist and Jane Austen has proved her skill and talent in selecting a very suitable title that is not only catchy at the first instance but it is meaningful and suggestive as the title of Shakespeare’s play is very suggestive and meaningful. It can be compared to Shakespeare’s Much Ado about nothing because it has the plot of drama.

The title reveals half of the meaning and the trend of the action and events of the novel. Pride And Prejudice is a very suitable and appropriate title. No other title can be sub-planted. Although the first selection of the title of this novel was first impression. The title was replaced by Pride And Prejudice and this title is really very suggestive and appropriate. The title of the novel Pride And Prejudice seems to be allegorical. Darcy stands for pride and Elizabeth for prejudice. The entire story of the novel is based on the pride of Darcy and the prejudice of Elizabeth Bennett.

In ‘Pride And Prejudice’ Jane Austen tells the story of the two characters, Elizabeth is one of the bright, beautiful and self respecting character of this novel. The hero of this novel is Darcy who personified pride. These two persons came in contact with each other at the social gathering. Initially, they dislike each other but in cause of time they came close to each other and in fact, they are best suited to each other and they are made for each other, and finally they are tied to a holy wedlock. Though other pairs have also been given attention by the novelist but the plot of the novel really centres round the pride of Darcy and prejudice of Elizabeth. And which is why the title is a very attractive and suitable.

Pride and prejudice is a story about Mr. and Mrs. Bennett who have five daughters, Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty(Catherine) and Lydia. Mrs. Bennett’s chief desire is to see all her daughter suitably married, happily, settled and this has become the obsession of her life. But the main theme of the novel is zeroed in on the relations, conversations and activities of Darcy and Elizabeth. Elizabeth develops dislike for Mr. Darcy when she over hears telling his friend, Mr. Bingley, that she is not attractive to tempt him to dance. Further when Mr. Wickham tells her about the ill-treatment meet to him by Darcy, this adds fuel to the fire of her hatred. Mr. Darcy proposes marriage to Elizabeth but she turns down his proposal.

The next meeting between Elizabeth and Darcy is again an accidental. This time they met at Pemberley House. Darcy is the owner and Elizabeth has come to see in the company of her uncle and aunt. Now he speaks to her in a warmly and polite way and one can see his hospitality and cordiality in welcoming the guests but Elizabeth did not accept the marriage proposal of Darcy. Had she accepted, she would have become the mistress of Pemberley House. The prejudice which she had been harbouring in her heart was to be treated no more. Her every corner of heart was packed with her love for dark. Mr. Darcy arrives at Netherfield Park and this time Elizabeth gladly accept the proposal and they are united in a holy-wedlock.

The style of Jane Austen is simple, witty and ironical. Her sentences are balanced, clear, precise, simple yet refined and lively. Simplicity is the mark of Jane Austen’s style. At her best she writes in the simple, easy and lucid style of swift. Her classical style is based on the classical style of the 18^th century.

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