“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a large 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 someone or other of their daughters.” Element: Women: The opening line of the novel makes women seem inferior to men, but it is Jane Austen’s sense of humor that says that. In the novel, women are the ones that are in search of a husband because they need stability in their life. Regardless of social class, women always seem to be regarded as less smart than men and inferior to them. The entailed Longbourn estate is be given to the oldest son, which shows the prejudice towards women because women are capable to inheriting family property.
“What I have to say relates to poor Lydia. An express came at twelve last night, just as we were all gone to bed, from Colonel Forster, to inform us that she was gone off to Scotland with one of his officers; to own the truth, with Wickham! Imagine our surprise……But self, though it would intrude, could not engross her. Lydia—the humiliation, the misery she was bringing on them all, soon swallowed up every private care; and covering her face with her handkerchief, Elizabeth was soon lost to everything else;” Element: Society: Society plays the role of a minor misogynist in this novel. Everything that everyone does in the novel becomes a social matter. When Lydia elopes with Wickham the family is concerned about what neighbors and other people will think about them because it is inappropriate for a respectable lady to run away with her lover. When characters in the novel make decisions they are aware that society might think bad of them or that they will talk bad of them. Miss Bingley’s society would never accept the marriage between Darcy and Elizabeth.
“‘You are over-scrupulous, surely. I dare say Mr. Bingley will be very glad to see you; and I will send a few lines by you to assure him of my hearty consent to his marrying whichever he chooses of the girls; though I must throw in a good word for my little Lizzy.’…..[Mrs. Bennet] She was a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper. When she was discontented, she fancied herself nervous. The business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news.” Element: Marriage: Mrs. Bennet is unintentionally a misogynist because she just wants to marry her daughters to wealthy, respectable men, so that they will be set their entire life. She doesn’t try to encourage them to be independent from men so that they could essentially be their own person. She just generally has an idea of accomplishment which is marrying off her daughters to wealthy men so they won’t be left without anything when their father dies. The novel revolves around the Bennet sisters trying to find love but their mother is insistent of finding them a rich husband. For women of that day and social class, marriage was the only way to gain financial stability, but the only one who actually married for that reason was Charlotte. However, Jane wanted to find love and Elizabeth simply refused to marry for anything other than for love, and they portray the role of feminists because of this.
