The Prejudice Of The Poor And The Pride Of The Wealthy
Social status is an integral part of society and is viewed as an important indicator on where an individual stands compared to his or her peers, this is evident in the novel, “Pride and Prejudice”, by Jane Austen. This book conveys the idea of social status through many different characters. Main characters such as Darcy and Elizabeth have much of the plot focused on their relationship as it builds and develops through the story. Austen strongly displays the adherent theme through these characters to help explain the title of her book.
Elizabeth although poor is very different then most of the characters because she does not seek wealth from a marriage but love. This characterization truly builds a foundation for the character, Austen writes “There are few people whom I really love, and still fewer of whom I think well. The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it; and every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of all human characters, and of the little dependence that can be placed on the appearance of merit or sense.”() She conveys how Elizabeth does not want a man due to his power or luxury in life but, would rather have one that is able to connect with her emotionally and one that is kind. Elizabeth also is one of the only characters that realizes her flaws due to her preconception and satisfaction of herself. Austen writes,”There was certainly at this moment, in Elizabeth’s mind, a more gentle sensation towards the original, than she had ever felt in the height of their acquaintance,”(Austen 167) Elizabeth realizes that she was wrong and judged Darcy without knowing truly who he was. Her prejudice got the best of her and is able to accept that, this attribute constructs her abstract ability and separates her from the rest.
Darcy, one of the wealthy men in the stories, was once viewed as arrogant by Elizabeth but as the story continued he began to become more aware of his sin. The sin that represents Darcy is pride which can be viewed in many different ways. For example Pemberley the estate owned by Darcy symbolizes his pride due to where it is located, how grand it is and how beautiful it is. Darcy does not comprehend his own pride especially when he states,” 'Where there is a real superiority of mind, pride will be always under good regulation.' Defending his pride due to him believing he has the necessary talents to support his ego. Darcy enhances his this by complementing his own intelligence. Throughout the novel due to his heritage and higher status than most individuals, his standards for women is higher than most believing that no one was good enough for him. Especially someone like Elizabeth who was not rich like himself. This was the thought that Darcy felt in the beginning of the story which gradually changed as like Emily is able to grasp his faults. The pride he once felt in himself began to change as stated, “I was given good principles, but left to follow them in pride and conceit. “ Unlike the previous quote Darcy perceives that he may not be as talented as he thought. Although his riches provide him with a lot like high social status he is not perfect and he is like all other people. Darcy discerns that he is not better than Elizabeth and that he truly loves her.
Pride and prejudice play a big role in the story in which both of the main characters take part in. Elizabeth who represents prejudice and Darcy who represent pride are on different ends of society. The idea that is relayed from Jane Austen is that the poor and the rich are no different and both classes have their faults.
