Who Is Darcy Prideful

“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 12). In Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Darcy can be seen as a very prideful man. He has shown that he believes he is above everyone else because of his great wealth. Another prideful character is Miss Elizabeth Bennet. She has brought to light that because she thinks she is smarter than everyone, she believes this makes her better than them. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet both are too prideful and need to humble themselves before they can have a relationship. Pride is the only thing keeping Mr. Darcy from finding his true love. "Where there is a real superiority of mind, pride will be always under good regulation" (Austen 51). Darcy explains how he knows he is prideful and knows when it is appropriate to be so. This pride results in Darcy not fully comprehending the emotions that are present. "In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you” (Austen 161). Although Darcy admits his love for Elizabeth, he subtly states that he did not want to tell her this because he is socially above her. His

She is also extremely proud. “Elizabeth remained with no very cordial feelings towards him. She told the story however with great spirit among her friends; for she had a lively, playful disposition, which delighted in anything ridiculous” (Austen 12). Elizabeth turns Darcy’s insult into a big joke. She laughs it all off and turns it around on him by saying she would never even dance with him. “I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine” (Austen 19). Elizabeth proclaims that Darcy’s pride defeated hers. She wants nothing to do with him. The two have to lose some of their pride to realize how they actually feel about one