Pride And Prejudice Gender Expectations

What Austen is trying to communicate through Elizabeth’s seemingly simple act of walking to Netherfield by herself is, first of all, Elizabeth’s character and then subtly, she begins to make her point. Austen shows Elizabeth’s selflessness, her bravery, her genuine care for her sister’s wellbeing, and her indifference to what the Bingleys or Darcy would think of her. Even though Elizabeth knew that her traipse would be physically exhausting, would leave her with a bedraggled appearance, and could put her at risk, she decides not to wait for the carriage and goes to see Jane immediately. Along with displaying these positive attributes of Elizabeth, Austen manages to show readers how proud and self-dependent Elizabeth actually is. The bigger picture Austen is trying to get at is that at times a choice must be made between blindly following the rules of society or doing what seems to be more significant. Although she regards “propriety”

Continuing her uncertainty of her sister’s judgement, Elizabeth concurs with Jane’s perception of Bingley while questioning “And so, you like this man’s sisters too, do you? Their manners are not equal to his” (11). Austen included this statement to show Elizabeth’s obsession with people’s manners and acknowledge society’s rules about manners, which Elizabeth has plentiful thoughts about. Simultaneously, Elizabeth ridicules the Bingley sisters’ manners and compliments Mr. Bingley’s. By asking if Jane likes the sisters, Elizabeth’s skeptical and scornful attitude towards people with poor manners is captured. Similarly, Austen demonstrates Elizabeth’s rejection of society’s idea about wealth and being a good person. While she acknowledges that this circumstance is true for Mr. Bingley, Elizabeth uses the Bingley sisters to prove this standard wrong. Without Elizabeth’s pessimism towards the Bingley sisters, the novel would lose

Women are complex and difficult beings that may, or may not, be meant to be fully understood by the brain of their male counterparts. In terms of independence women rightfully deserve their own apart from men, needing the privacy to freely think and judge things on their own. An overbearing male can destroy the female thoughts with the influence of their own independent thoughts. Women were made different, but not as different, from men for a purpose although people have differentiating reasons of their own opinions. Although women were not always bold enough to speak or even think about how they deserved independence and privacy from men, the notion was always there, even in women who lived hundreds of years ago. In Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice the main character, Elizabeth Bennet, embodies what was to become of most modern day women, seeking the privacy from men to obtain her own form of independence and free will. Her constant rejection of being publicly open towards males gives her the

Women’s roles in history have shifted and changed from century to century. From housewife to CEO, women have come a long way to having their independence. In Pride and Prejudice, the character Jane Bennet is a woman of her time period, her focus on getting a husband, and female pursuits such as balls and gowns. In comparison, Elizabeth Bennet, her sister is focused on marriage for love, and rejects some of the ideals of her sister. She shows an attitude not usually found in women in the 1800s. Elizabeth Bennet compared to her sister Jane, exhibits characteristics that are associated with modern women.

Throughout human history’s course, women hardly retained free speech rights. The men possessed an absolute authority over females because they had strength and larger duties. However, women’s low societal position confined them from seeking independence, security, and achievements. The general public’s analysis was strictly constrained to female domestic tasks. If one defied the social structure, the consequences would result condemnation and shame on the entire family. Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice contain many underlying information regarding women’s hierarchy status, maintaining social distinctions and obligations, and acquiring power.

The discouragement of females to break society’s gender roles can be seen through characters’ appearances, thoughts and what they represent in the story. Many characters’ appearances play a major role to discourage females. They enforce beauty ideals set predominantly by males. This can be seen in the following quote in Pride and Prejudice, “[…] he looked for a moment at Elizabeth, till catching her eye, he withdrew his own and coldly said, ‘She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; and I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men”’ (Austen 7). The quote alone makes readers feel sympathetic for Elizabeth. Darcy values women based on their beauty and the same goes for other men in the novel. This targets women who are insecure about their looks, and enforces the idea that women will only be

To begin with, Jane sets Elizabeth’s humors and outspoken views of society to portray those of the oppressed lower-classed women in the early 1800s. During this particular era, women were suppressed of their social and political values. A women’s goal in life was to hopefully fixate a stable political tie through marriage. Elizabeth's objection to society is clearly illustrated by her answer to Mr.Darcy on

There are many social roles that women were expected to have during the regency period, although many things were restricted from them. Men were the dominant figure, and they had a great deal of access to anything they wished to do or have. Women cleaned their homes, cooked, and acted tremendously ladylike. Many women were not even accepted as wives if they were not considered “appropriate” to the levels of their society (Armstrong 59). Women were there for the moral support of their husbands, to make them happy, and to listen to everything mentioned or conversed. Women that were unmarried or under thirty was accompanied by a chaperone anytime in the presence of a man, unless it is professional business (Pool 55). In Pride and Prejudice, there was women such as Lady catherine de Bourgh, Mrs Bennet, and Charlotte Lucas Collins with very different social roles during their time period.

For centuries women have been thought of as less than men even though we are all equals no matter which gender we are. Cultural expectations in many societies say that women can't do as many things as men and need to be married. Early marriages in many societies are expected but can have bad consequences. The way some misogynistic men treat women and objectify then is a big problem in the United States today. Society is not doing enough to empower women; it has improved over the years but we still have a way to go in order to achieve total gender equality.

Today, women are appraised as weak because of the roles women were assigned since they existed. In the 18th century, women were only given the power to submit to bear children, submit to their husband, and be a housewife. Rights were given to women but their roles and expectations were still appended to their gender. In the novel Pride and Prejudice, author Jane Austin’s motive was to reveal how women’s expectations challenged women with different personalities and how things haven’t changed since the 18th century.

"She was shown into the breakfast-parlour…where her appearance created a great deal of surprise. That she should have walked three miles so early in the day, in such dirty weather, and by herself, was almost incredible to Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley… in their brother 's manners there … was good humour and kindness. Mr. Darcy said very little, and Mr. Hurst nothing at all. The former was divided between admiration of the brilliancy which exercise had given to her complexion, and doubt as to the occasion 's justifying her coming so far alone…" (Austen 38). Ms. Elizabeth is portrayed as an outspoken, independent, and prejudiced character throughout the book. She prides herself on being observant, on account of deciphering that marriage is a one-way ticket to unhappiness and misery, but without it, she becomes poor. When she first meets Mr. Darcy, she finds his remark about her being only ‘tolerable’ ridiculous and tells the story in a lively spirit, while her family finds Mr. Darcy quite the “most disagreeable, horrid man, not at all worth pleasing” (Austen 14). The next time the two meet, Mr. Darcy feels admiration and confusion towards Ms. Elizabeth and her individuality for she walked to Netherfield despite the social quota. Her prejudice takes place when she criticizes Mr. Darcy for having

In the romantic novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Mrs. Bennet, Charlotte Lucas, and Caroline Bingley are three characters that fit completely into the gender roles of their time period. These three share a common interest of marrying a man, and almost handing their free will away at the expense of security in life. These characters would rather be sheep on a farm than expose their true feelings and become the one that leads the mob, not the one following everyone else.

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was considered a radical novel back in 1813 when she wrote and published the piece. It is a social commentary on the treatment and societal standards of women, as well marriage expectations at the turn of the 19th century. Austen criticizes the patriarchal society, materialism, double standards of men and women by centering the book around Elizabeth Bennett, a young woman of decent means who does not understand the reason for the pressure to find a suitable husband as soon as she is of marrying age, nor does she feel the need to commit herself to one man for the rest of her life when there is no romantic involvement in the relationship, although her mother pushes her to do so. Through the characters in

Pride and Prejudice was written in 1813 by Jane Austen and the novel’s setting takes place within the “privileged circle of England’s landed gentry and aristocracy” (Advanced Placement Teaching Unit, n.d) The characters are Bennet Family and aristocrats such as Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy. The novel not only shows love and marriage but also explores the social structure and family. In Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, society is portrayed through characters such as Mr. Bingley, Mr. Darcy and the treatment given to women. Pride and Prejudice also shows family relationships and their power over an individual’s decision through the Bennet family and Mr. Bingley’s sister.

At Netherfield to attend to Jane, Elizabeth is forced to socialize with the Bingleys and their friend Mr. Darcy. Here Caroline Bingley first perceives Elizabeth as an interloper in her campaign for Mr. Darcy's attentions and mercilessly ridicules her and her family.Miss Bingley is motivated by self-interest and continues her campaign even as it compels Mr. Darcy to come to Elizabeth's defense.All of this plot development evolves from Mrs. Bennet's insistence on Jane's horseback ride to Netherfield.Her pushy interference has the overall effect of establishing the desired acquaintance, while Miss Bingley's more subtle meddling is enlightening to Mr. Darcy.