The context of a novel or film can greatly affect the values of society through the key concepts of love and marriage, and feminine appearance of a woman. We can clearly observe the comparisons of Jane Austen’s 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice to Sharon Maguire’s 1997 film Bridget Jone’s Diary. The novel Pride and Prejudice was composed in the Regency period where marriage was vitally important for a woman as it meant a financially comfortable and stable future, and it was not based upon true love, whereas Bridget Jones Diary set in a contemporary society where woman married for love and were economically independent on themselves and not relying on their husband. However, both text explores similar aspects where both heroine challenges the …show more content…
Mr. Collins was expecting Elizabeth to accept his proposal, but Elizabeth rejected the proposal showing her desire to marry for love even if it puts her financial security in jeopardy.
However, the idea of love and marriage is completely different in the contemporary society in the film of Bridget Jones Diary. Women had the right whether to marry or not as they were financially independent and had the rights to find a marriage based on true love, but the idea of marriage still remained ideal. Bridget, being the heroine in her late thirties is always pressured into finding a husband in the rhetorical question of “why is it there are so many unmarried single women in their thirties these days?”. This shows that it is extremely normal for a woman to be single yet accomplished in their thirties as marriage was not viewed as important in the Regency period. Towards the middle of the film, Bridget finds a partner, but later finds out he has engaged with another woman. Sharon Maguire presented Bridget’s overreaching ambition to overcome the issue highlighted in the personification “I will not be defeated by a bad man and an American stick insect” Bridget’s confident tone shows that she will not be defeated by a relationship and does not need to rely on a man. Although, Bridget has just
“Pride and Prejudice”, a novel written by Jane Austen represents eighteenth century English women as illogical, domestic individuals who economically depend on male members in their household. Major decisions in their life are decided by their fathers and brothers. They perform subordinate roles, and are considered inferior to men. This novel reinforces the sexist stereotypes of women.The female characters in the novel possess these virtues in varying degrees depending on their role. Marriage is considered essential to secure a woman’s future ,they are expected to behave in a certain manner to earn the respect of the society, and are treated unfairly by the social and justice
This stands in stark contrast to what Miss Elizabeth Bennett wants. Mrs Bennett wants her daughters to marry because it’s thea only way for them to solidfy that they will have food on their plates and a roof over their head. Mr. Collins is Mr. Bennetts brother and is set to inherit his estate when he dies. He comes to visit in the middle of the book and his main intentions are to ask on of the daughters to marry him and to observe what he will in time own. Mrs. Bennett says in response to all this “Oh! Single, my dear, to be sure! A single man of large fortune; four or five thousnd a year. What a fine thing for our girls!” (57, Austen) The single man she speaks of his Mr. Collins, the Bennett kids uncle. Austen describes Mr. Collins as a self retious kind of man who thinks he is above the Benntt’s just because he is set to inherrit their estate. This gives him a villeness quality. Austen is commenting on the blindness of Mrs. Bennett to the qualitys of Marraige. She only shes Mr. Collins as money but Elizabeth sees him as a bad person to spend the rest of her life with and theirfore turns down his marraige purposal. Which causes trouble between her and her mother. This is the best example of the contrast in what the two women see as the meaning of Marriage.
Through a comparison of Bridget Jones’ Diary and Pride and prejudice, both of which represent their perspectives to an extreme within their era. It gradually shows the differences and similarities of 19th century and 20th century’s standpoints regarding gender issues. Jane Austen’s Pride and prejudice represents the mainstream viewpoints of British Society in the 19th century, as England was the empire on which the sun never sets; while Bridget Jones’ Diary symbolizes the opinions in the modern advanced-technology society during the 20th century. Pride and prejudice, “proved one of the most enduringly popular novels in the English language” , depicts specifically about a higher-class society where gender issues have been depicted cleverly by Jane Austen. In the 19th century England her imaginary land, she expanded her opinions of society through a subtle description of the plot, using a third-person perspective to explain her subjective viewpoint of genders and society. Helen Fielding, following the same footsteps of Jane Austen, express her opinion of the society using a strong, female character Bridget Jones in a similar way to Austen’s. Fielding’s point of view, however, explains the situation of genders issues in the 20th century, when awareness of pursuing equality between males and females are raised. Following the inspiration of Jane Austen,
Mr. Collins incorrectly uses logical and emotional appeals when asking for Elizabeth’s hand in marriage, which will probably not lead to his desired result. Mr. Collins is very direct and business-like with his proposal, starting his appeal with the words “my reasons for marrying are”. He then lists out facts about why he needs to marry her, even citing his benefactor. His word choice creates a very professional and objective tone, which may be effective in a business setting, but is not right for a romantic marriage proposal. He never mentions that he likes Elizabeth, only expressing that it’s a practical marriage. When Mr. Collins attempts an emotional appeal, he is not very successful. Mr. Collins tells Elizabeth
Gaining fresh, innovative insights that appeal to modern consciousness entails the adaption of a text to a contemporary contextual environment, and by comparing both Jane Austen’s Regency Era novel, Emma (1815), and Amy Heckerling’s postmodern American film, Clueless (1995), it is evident that the film has been re-appropriated in such a way that Austen’s voice is still heard today, while simultaneously projecting Heckerling’s views on present-day society. While both Emma and Clueless fall under similar timeless themes, such as the social hierarchy, the social values of marriage and patriarchal society, which contribute to the female bildungsroman of their main protagonist who both go through a process of being childish, ignorant and surrounded by misconception to maturing, the texts are moulded by differing contexts. Where Austen’s representation is shaped by the Regency Era conception of marriage which wasn’t for the purposes of genuine love but to maintain social status, Heckerling’s portrayal is derived from 1990s American teen culture of consumerism, materialism and superficiality and where marriage is represented as romantic in nature.
“Pride and Prejudice” and “Letters to Alice” contains many similarities yet some obvious differences even when considering the fact that they were written hundreds of years apart. Both texts provide strong perspectives on a variety of issues and are very blunt in their approach. The key issue throughout both novels is the ideology of marriage in the sense of whether one should marry for love or financial stability and standing. Both novels are written in an epistolary format providing a different perspective for the reader from the standardised third person format. Similarities and differences exist between the changing values of women within the two texts on such issues as moral standards and behaviours or class and social rank however
It is truly impossible to believe that relationships have not changed at all since Austen’s time. Pride and Prejudice took place in a setting where the male had complete authority over the female, and primogeniture decided who received the family fortune. However, most of Austen’s main points about personal relationships still ring true today. For instance, Austen begins her novel by saying, “it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife” (Austen 1). People in
Jane Austen’s novel is commanded by women; Pride and Prejudice explores the expectations of women in a society that is set at the turn of the 19th century. Throughout the plot, Austen’s female characters are all influenced by their peers, pressures from their family, and their own desires. The social struggle of men and women is seen throughout the novel. Characters, like Elizabeth, are examples of females not acting as proper as women were supposed to, while other women like Mrs. Bennett allow themselves to be controlled by men and society. Mr. Collins is a representation of the struggles males deal with in a novel dominated by women. The theme of marriage is prominent during Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Marriage can be examined in
Austen’s classic novel pride and prejudice (P&P) and the film adaptation - Maguire’s romantic comedy Bridget Jones Diary (BJD) show the transformation of societal expectations over time whilst also revealing which ideals and values have remained the same.
The affluent Charlotte Lucas marries Mr. Collins not out of love nor infatuation, but in effort to continue her rich lifestyle. This was frequently seen in many of the relationships in the 19th century due to entailment which was common in most households. Once the father of the family passed away, the closest male relative would inherit the house and land. The daughters were then expected to find a well suited spouse who could provide an acceptable home and a piece of land for them. Mr. Collins is able to provide Charlotte with everything she needs besides true love. Since he is a soon to be wealthy man and can serve as a sufficient husband, Charlotte is able to look over his first proposal to Elizabeth and accept his request in marriage.
Love and marriage is the theme of the best selling book Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding and the critically acclaimed novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. There are numerous similarities between the two yet they are set in different eras. Despite this, the young women in both texts have to deal with family and people in their social circles pressurising them to meet the ideal man or love interest.
that she is humoured by the idea that every young an who has a large
their opinion and had no income of their own so they had to rely on
If she married a man with enough money and respectability, then she could look forward to a comfortable life. If she did not marry, then she was doomed to be homeless and indigent, as there were little to no job options for women at the time. In this time when women were fully dependent on men for survival, Elizabeth still manages to stay true to her beliefs by not being eager to marry. If she is to be married, Elizabeth would want it to be out of “true affection”, which could then grant her much “felicity” (Austen, 75). She would never want to marry a man solely for financial security, as society expects many women to. Elizabeth doesn’t let societal pressures hinder her beliefs on what constitutes a successful, worthwhile marriage. When Mr. Collins proposed to Elizabeth, she confidently turned him down by saying it was “impossible for [her] to do otherwise than to decline” his offer (Austen, 81). She had long decided that Collins was a ridiculous man who she had little respect for. She would not give up her independence to spend the rest of her life with him, even if it would have kept the Bennet property within the family. Declining this opportunity of marriage is rather courageous of Elizabeth because she is risking never being proposed to again, putting her chance for a stable life at risk. The Bennets could only afford a small dowry, which would not attract many suitors. With that in mind, Elizabeth shows her
Jane Austen’s well-known novel, Pride and Prejudice, discussed multiple social themes in the 19th century. Austen mainly criticized marriage during her era, when she says that, “it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife” (Austen 3). As she explains that it was valuable to women since it provided them with security and a social title. The author explored the diverse motives behind matrimony in her time period by using a humorous and romantic plot to discuss the social issues. For instance, Charlotte Lucas’s unreasonable marriage to Mr. Collins is a vital example of how women needed to secure a future and attain social status. To conclude, Lydia Bennet’s meaningless marriage to George Wickham shows that entering the marriage estate could have also been for mainly financial purposes. Contrastingly, Jane Bennet, the heroine’s older sister, marries Charles Bingley for love, security, and a social ranking. On the other hand, Elizabeth Bennet marries Fitzwilliam Darcy after months of misunderstandings and romantic drama for none other than true love. Thus, Austen uses her leading characters’ marriages in Pride and Prejudice to exhibit the various attitudes and reasons for marrying in the 19th century. (Lane 2015)