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Jane Austen Research Paper

1365 Words6 Pages

Jane Austen is often considered one of the chief novelists of her time. To present day readers, especially high school students, this may be shocking as her works do not seem to contain much depth at the first glance. However, what many do not realize is that Austen’s works are scintillating constructions of social commentary, and, contain radical ideas; such is the case with Pride and Prejudice (Evans 18). Throughout the novel, readers are immersed in Austen’s world. What world is this you might ask? A world in which women are passed over in entailment, constrained by strict etiquette, and only allowed superfluous pursuits (Republic of Pemberley 2011). As part of the pre-feminist movement, Austen has structured Pride and Prejudice to illustrate …show more content…

The success of Pride and Prejudice lies in its clarity. In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen has effectively set the tone for the rest of the novel by introducing the major themes of marriage, class, and love in the first two chapters of her work. In the first sentence of Pride and Prejudice, Austen says “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a man in possession of a good fortune, must in want of a wife,” (Austen 1). This sentence is highly telling of what the ensuing novel will cover, including two of the three major themes, class and marriage. Love is somewhat pointedly missing in this opening, paralleling the idea that in Austen’s time, love was often an afterthought of relationships. As the novel follows, we are introduced to Mrs. Bennet. A mother of five daughters, the novel depicts her as being almost fanatical about the marriage prospects of her …show more content…

and Mrs. Bennet. Despite the fact that their words focus upon class and marriage, the banter between the husband and wife is what draws readers attentions to the matter of love. When Mr. and Mrs. Bennet are talking about Mr. Bennet visiting Mr. Bingley, Mrs. Bennet says,
“I certainly have had my share of beauty, but I do not pretend to be anything extraordinary now. When a woman has five grown-up daughters, she ought to give over thinking of her

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