The themes of Pride and Prejudice 傲慢与偏见中心思想及读后感.doc

the themes of pride and prejudiceabstract: in this article, we attempt to show the themes of pride and prejudice. firstly i will show something about the author jane austen and pride and prejudice. then the main themes of pride and prejudice: love, reputation, class, courtship and pride. the last part of the paper shows that this great novel not only attracted thousands of readers in austens time, but also gave a special feeling to todays people. key words: pride, prejudice, theme 1.the author and pride and prejudice 1.1.the author the english author jane austen lived from 1775 to 1817. her six novels are northanger abbey, sense and sensibility, pride and prejudice, mansfield park, emma, persuasion.her novels are highly prized not only for their light irony, humor, and depiction of contemporary english country life, but also for their underlying serious qualities. she was the founder of the novel which deals with unimportant middle class people and of which there are many fine examples in later english fiction. she is also sparing of describing the internal thoughts and emotions of male characters (thus in pride and prejudice, much of darcys admiration for elizabeth bennet is expressed by means of convenient conversations with caroline bingley). 1.2. information about pride and prejudice first published in 1813, pride and prejudice has consistently been jane austens most popular novel. it portrays life in the genteel rural society of the day, and tells of the initial misunderstandings and later mutual enlightenment between elizabeth bennet (whose liveliness and quick wit have often attracted readers) and the haughty darcy. the title pride and prejudice refers (among other things) to the ways in which elizabeth and darcy first view each other. the original version of the novel was written in 1796-1797 under the title first impressions, and was probably in the form of an exchange of letters. 2.the themes of pride and prejudice 2.1. love between darcy and elizabeth as in any good love story, the lovers must elude and overcome numerous stumbling blocks, beginning with the tensions caused by the lovers own personal qualities. elizabeths pride makes her misjudge darcy on the basis of a poor first impression, while darcys prejudice against elizabeths poor social standing blinds him, for a time, to her many virtues. of course, one could also say that elizabeth is guilty of prejudice and darcy of pride?the title cuts both ways. austen, meanwhile, poses countless smaller obstacles to the realization of the love between elizabeth and darcy, including lady catherines attempt to control her nephew, miss bingleys snobbery, mrs. bennets idiocy, and wickhams deceit. in each case, anxieties about social connections, or the desire for better social connections, interfere with the workings of love. darcy and elizabeths realization of a mutual and tender love seems to imply that austen views love as something independent of these social forces, as something that can be captured if only an individual is able to escape the warping effects of hierarchical society. austen does sound some more realist (or, one could say, cynical) notes about love, using the character of charlotte lucas, who marries the buffoon mr. collins for his money, to demonstrate that the heart does not always dictate marriage. yet with her central characters, austen suggests that true love is a force separate from society and one that can conquer even the most difficult of circumstances. 2.2 reputation _a womans reputation is of the utmost important pride and prejudice depicts a society in which a womans reputation is of the utmost importance. a woman is expected to behave in certain ways. stepping outside the social norms makes her vulnerable to ostracism. this theme appears in the novel, when elizabeth walks to netherfield and arrives with muddy skirts, to the shock of the reputation-conscious miss bingley and her friends. at other points, the ill-mannered, ridiculous behavior of mrs. bennet gives her a bad reputation with the more refined (and snobbish) darcys and bingleys. austen pokes gentle fun at the snobs in these examples, but later in the novel, when lydia elopes with wickham and lives with him out of wedlock, the author treats reputation as a very serious matter. by becoming wickhams lover without benefit of marriage, lydia clearly places herself outside the social pale, and her disgrace threatens the entire bennet family. the fact that lydias judgment, however terrible, would likely have condemned the other bennet sisters to marriageless lives seems grossly unfair. why should elizabeths reputation suffer along with lydias? darcys intervention on the bennets behalf thus becomes all the more generous, but some readers might resent that such an intervention was necessary at all. if darcys money had failed to convince wickham to marry lydia, would darcy have still married elizabeth? does his transcendence of prejudice extend that far? the happy ending of pride and prejudice is certainly emotionally satisfying, but in many ways it leaves the theme of reputation, and the importance placed on reputation, unexplored. 2.3.class boundaries and prejudice the theme of class is related to reputation, in that both reflect the strictly regimented nature of life for the middle and upper classes in regency england. the lines of class are strictly drawn. while the bennets, who are middle class, may socialize with the upper-class bingleys and darcys, they are clearly their social inferiors and are treated as such. austen satirizes this kind of class-consciousness, particularly in the character of mr. collins, who spends most of his time toadying to his upper-class patron, lady catherine de bourgh. though mr. collins offers an extreme example, he is not the only one to hold such views. his conception of the importance of class is shared, among others, by mr. darcy, who believes in the dignity of his lineage; miss bingley, who dislikes anyone not as socially accepted as she is; and wickham, who will do anything he can to get enough money to raise himself into a higher station. mr. collinss views are merely the most extreme and obvious. the satire directed at mr. collins is therefore also more subtly directed at the entire social hierarchy and the conception of all those within it at its correctness, in complete disregard of other, more worthy virtues. through the darcy-elizabeth and bingley-jane marriages, austen shows the power of love and happiness to overcome class boundaries and prejudices, thereby implying that such prejudices are hollow, unfeeling, and unproductive. of course, this whole discussion of class must be made with the understanding that austen herself is often criticized as being a classist: she doesnt really represent anyone from the lower classes; those servants she does portray are generally happy with their lot. austen does criticize class structure but only a limited slice of that structure. 2.4.courtship _those between darcy and elizabeth and between bingley and jane in a sense, pride and prejudice is the story of two courtships?those between darcy and elizabeth and between bingley and jane. within this broad structure appear other, smaller courtships: mr. collinss aborted wooing of elizabeth, followed by his successful wooing of charlotte lucas; miss bingleys unsuccessful attempt to attract darcy; wickhams pursuit first of elizabeth, then of the never-seen miss king, and finally of lydia. courtship therefore takes on a profound, if often unspoken, importance in the novel. marriage is the ultimate goal, courtship constitutes the real working-out of love. courtship becomes a sort of forge of a persons personality, and each courtship becomes a microcosm for different sorts of love (or different ways to abuse love as a means to social advancement). 2.5. two ways of pride: positive and negative the two major themes of jane austens pride and prejudice are summed up in the title. the first aspect can be traced in the actions and statements of all of the works major and many of its minor characters. pride is the character flaw that causes elizabeth bennet to dislike fitzwilliam darcy upon their first meeting. she perceives in him a cold aloofness that she attributes to his own inflated opinion of himself. yet elizabeth herself also suffers from the same flaw; her pride in her own ability to analyze character is such that she refuses to reevaluate darcy in the face of evidence in his favor. the concept of pride can be defined in two ways: positive and negative. possessing positive or right pride is to have self-respect, honor, and integrity. on the other hand, wrong or negative pride is defined as showing arrogant or disdainful conduct and haughtiness. mr. fitzwilliam darcy displays the positive side of pride while mr. bennet possesses wrong or negative pride, and a lack of pride itself in some cases. darcy is responsible for his sister, himself, his estate, and his family name. he takes pride in these things and does anything he can in order to protect them. but mr. bennet who is responsible as a father of five daughters, a husband, and the holder of reputable conduct in the family, does not take pride in his family or his responsibility; mr. bennet instead ridicules the members of his family and in turn does not control their unruly actions. 3.conclusion pride and prejudice was the representative work of jane austen. it gave a vivid expression of the reactionary and traditional country life and peoples minds during 18th centuries and 19th centuries in britain to us. this great novel not only attracted thousands of readers in austens time, but also gave a special feeling to todays people. in order to make much more people know the book, the paper shows the main idea of the pride and prejudiceit is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. you are the last man in the world i could ever marry. lf, however, your feelings have changed. .i would have to tell you, you have bewitched me, body and soul, and i love. i love. i love you. i never wish to be parted from you from this day on. well, then. your hands are cold. 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. characters in pride and prejudice mr. bennet an english gentleman with an estate in hertfordshire. he is married with five daughters, a circumstance injurious to his family. the terms of mr. bennets inheritance require a male heir. because he has no son, upon his death, his property must go to his closest male relative, mr. collins, a clergyman who provides him with much amusement. mr. bennet, a gentle if eccentric man, is very close to his two eldest daughters, jane and particularly elizabeth. however, he has a poor opinion of the intelligence and sensibility of his wife and three youngest daughters, frequently declaring them silly and visiting them with insulting remarks as well as gentle teasing. mrs. bennet the querulous wife of mr. bennet. her main concern in life is seeing her daughters married well. she angles for her new neighbour, mr. bingley, as a match for one of them. she also hopes for a match between one of her girls and mr. collins himself. jane bennet the eldest of the bennets five daughters and the one considered the most beautiful. she has a reserved personality and tends to hide her feelings. she is incapable of suspecting the worst of people, preferring to see only the good. elizabeth bennet the 20-year-old second sister, and the protagonist of the story. she is her fathers favorite and inherits his intelligence and wit. she is generally regarded as one of the most enduring and popular female protagonists in english literature. mary bennet the third sister, bookish and shy. mortified by unfavorable comparisons between her appearance and that of her beautiful sisters, she disdains their frivolous interests and seeks to impress others instead with her scholarly yet ill-timed aphorisms and limited musical abilities. catherine kitty bennet the fourth sister, 17 years old, generally follows the lead of her younger sister, lydia. lydia bennet the youngest sister at 15 years of age. she is extremely flirtatious, naive, headstrong and reckless. william collins a clergyman and cousin of mr. bennet. mr. collins, as the closest male relative, stands to inherit the bennet estate. when not pompously full of himself, collins is a narrow-minded sycophant, excessively devoted to his patroness, lady catherine de bourgh. he is always keen to show his admiration and gratitude. charlotte lucas elizabeths close friend and daughter of a neighbouring landowner. she is willing to put up with mr. collins flaws in return for a home and security. fitzwilliam darcy mr. bingleys close friend, an intelligent, wealthy and reserved man, who often appears haughty or proud to strangers. he is wary of his friend bingleys romantic entanglements with unsuitable women. georgiana darcy much younger sister of mr. darcy. the age difference is so great that he is more of a father figure than a brother. since their parents death, she has been under the joint guardianship of darcy and their cousin colonel fitzwilliam. she became infatuated with george wickham and was persuaded by him to elope. fortunately, she felt it was her duty to inform her brother and he quickly put a stop to this ill-advised plan. charles bingley an outgoing, wealthy young man who leases property near the bennets estate. louisa hurst and caroline bingley mr. bingleys sisters, who look down upon the bennets and their society. george wickham a dashing, handsome young soldier who attracts the attention of elizabeth bennet. his father was the manager of the darcy estate, so he grew up with mr. darcy and his sister. though a favorite of darcys now-deceased father, there is bitter enmity between him and darcy, due to his attempt to elope with georgiana darcy for her substantial inheritance. lady catherine de bourgh aunt of mr. darcy and patroness of mr. collins. a proud and domineering woman, she had planned for the marriage of mr. darcy and her daughter since they were infants. anne de bourgh daughter of lady catherine and presumed betrothed of her cousin mr. darcy, suffers from some infirmity. a gently humorous running joke has the proud mother describing extraordinary talents her daughter would have possessed had she applied herself. colonel fitzwilliam another nephew of lady catherine and friend and cousin of mr. darcy. he is attracted to elizabeth bennet, but is not wealthy enough to consider her seriously as a spouse. mrs. philips sister of mrs. bennet edward gardiner sensible brother of mrs. bennet and mrs. philips. mrs. gardiner wife of mr. gardiner. she is the favorite aunt of jane and elizabeth bennet. analysis of major characters elizabeth bennet the second daughter in the bennet family, and the most intelligent and quick-witted, elizabeth is the protagonist of pride and prejudice and one of the most well-known female characters in english literature. her admirable qualities are numerousshe is lovely, clever, and, in a novel defined by dialogue, she converses as brilliantly as anyone. her honesty, virtue, and lively wit enable her to rise above the nonsense and bad behavior that pervade her class-bound and often spiteful society. nevertheless, her sharp tongue and tendency to make hasty judgments often lead her astray; pride and prejudice is essentially the story of how she (and her true love, darcy) overcome all obstaclesincluding their own personal failingsto find romantic happiness. elizabeth must not only cope with a hopeless mother, a distant father, two badly behaved younger siblings, and several snobbish, antagonizing females, she must also overcome her own mistaken impressions of darcy, which initially lead her to reject his proposals of marriage. her charms are sufficient to keep him interested, fortunately, while she navigates familial and social turmoil. as she gradually comes to recognize the nobility of darcys character, she realizes the error of her initial prejudice against him. analysis of major characters jane eyre the development of jane eyres character is central to the novel. from the beginning, jane possesses a sense of her self-worth and dignity, a commitment to justice and principle, a trust in god, and a passionate disposition. her integrity is continually tested over the course of the novel, and jane must learn to balance the frequently conflicting aspects of herself so as to find contentment. an orphan since early childhood, jane feels exiled and ostracized at the beginning of the novel, and the cruel treatment she receives from her aunt reed and her cousins only exacerbates her feeling of alienation. afraid that she will never find a true sense of home or community, jane feels the need to belong somewhere, to find “kin,” or at least “kindred spirits.” this desire tempers her equally intense need for autonomy and freedom. in her search for freedom, jane also struggles with the question of what type of freedom she wants. while rochester initially offers jane a chance to liberate her passions, jane comes to realize that such freedom could also mean enslavementby living as rochesters mistress, she would be sacrificing her dignity and integrity for the sake of her feelings. st. john rivers offers jane another kind of freedom: the freedom to act unreservedly on her principles. he opens to jane the possibility of exercising her talents fully by w