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Jane Austen 's Pride And Prejudice

Decent Essays

Sa-tired of Society In her novel Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen creates pompous, silly characters, who are often ridiculed mercilessly; however, her emphasis on their flaws does more than make readers laugh. Austen utilizes these characters to satirize the societal norms of Regency Era England. She uses Lady Catherine, a haughty noblewoman, to highlight the aristocracy’s condescension and disdain towards those lower in the hierarchy. William Collins, a submissive and wrongfully egotistic clergyman, represents Austen’s society’s primary concern of advancing in rank through social connections. Lydia Bennet conveys the foolishness of young women whose unrestrained flirtatious behavior leads to frivolity and tactlessness. Austen’s satirization of her characters’ lack of decorum reveal how deeply her society’s motivations and actions were negatively influenced by wealth, social stature, and hedonism. Lady Catherine’s conceit and arrogance epitomize Austen’s disdain for the aristocracy and their contemptuous attitudes. When Lady Catherine first meets Elizabeth, she is appalled that the Bennet daughters were raised without a governess, assuming that their “mother must have been . . . a slave to [their] education . . . [and that the daughters] must have been neglected” (Austen 110). Lady Catherine, as a highly privileged member of society, views having a governess as a social norm; in her eyes, the only way for someone to be socially acceptable is by satisfying these standards.

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