Satire Of Jane Austen s Pride And Prejudice - 1764 Words

One of the most notable aspects of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, is the use of satire as a way to comment on English society in the 19th century. Austen’s satirical approach to analyzing societal norms gives the novel a comedic and lighthearted tone, while also educating the reader on faults in the social class in which she was raised. Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Collins serve as satirical objects of the society Pride and Prejudice depicts and are crucial in portraying Austen’s view on conventional attitudes towards marriage and women. Austen establishes her satirical view of these characters in the first line of the novel. The narrator states, It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.† (p.1). The plot of the novel surrounds this societal assumption and provides a medium for author Jane Austen to critique society. In the classic novel of Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen uses satire as a way to critique the role of women and marriage. Jane Austen chooses to satirize Mr. Collins in order to comment on the misguided purpose of marriage. Mr. Collins exemplifies this in his proposal to Elizabeth Bennet. In his proposal, Mr. Collins says haughtily, â€Å"‘My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certainShow MoreRelatedSatire Of Being Earnest And Jane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1533 Words   |  7 Pagesorganized religion and a rigid class system. Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest and Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice use satire to reveal faults in these elements of society. Many of Wilde’s criticisms of society are provoked by his closeted homosexuality. He portrays religion as a restricting, meaningless convention and de picts the aristocratic class as a hypocritical and unempathetic lot. Austen similarly finds faults in these areas of society, but her opinions stem from her experiencesRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen1189 Words   |  5 PagesLiterature April 21, 2016 Jane Austen s use of Satire in Pride and Prejudice Set in Nineteenth-century England, Jane Austen s Pride and Prejudice is a satirical novel focused on the ideals of social class and marriage. Austen plays on social behavior to show a society in which a woman s character is of the ultimate importance. A lady is expected to behave in a specific way and breaking the set social norms can put her at risk of being ostracized. In the 1800 s there were very little financialRead More Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice: Novel and Movie Essay652 Words   |  3 PagesJane Austens Pride and Prejudice: Novel and Movie Pride and Prejudice, the novel by Jane Austen, and Sense and Sensibility, the movie based on the novel by Austen, share many striking similarities. These similarities lie in the characters, plots and subplots between these characters, the settings, and the overall style and themes used in creating the two works. Jane Austen uses extremely similar characters in almost the exact same situation in Pride and Prejudice and Sense and SensibilityRead MorePride And Prejudice : A Comedy Of Characters1387 Words   |  6 PagesPride and Prejudice: A Comedy of Characters In Jane Austen s novel Pride and Prejudice, a subtle layer of comedy exists that is especially noticeable when very different characters are juxtaposed. This method is used to deepen characterization and make clear the intended satire. The distinct differences between characters help to bring out Austen’s subtle satire because the negative qualities of certain characters are more blatant when surrounded by opposing positive qualities in another characterRead MoreThe Theme of Society in Pride and Prejudice Essay976 Words   |  4 PagesOriginally written in the late 1700s, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice satirically depicts the universal ideals in Old Regency England, primarily regarding social class. Austen follows the development of an outspoken middle-class British woman, Elizabeth Bennet, as she encounters and overcomes the many social barriers that separate her from her wealthy upper-class neighbors. Throughout the novel, Lizzie must confront society’s cla ss-consciousness, particularly with her family’s growing relationshipRead MorePride and Prejudice: Exploring the Chasm Between Love and Marriage in Georgian England1675 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"Pride and Prejudice†, is a novel which explores the huge chasm between love and marriage in Georgian England. Jane Austen’s presentation of passion and matrimony reiterates the fact that marriage is a â€Å"business arrangement†. Austen uses irony to make fun of polite society in this satire and Austen also emphasizes the point that social hierarchy dictates whom you can marry. The pressures of men and women in Georgian England are revealed through her exploration of the aristocracy’s prejudice againstRead MoreSeparation between Classes in the Movies, My Fair Lady and Pride and Prejudice1409 Words   |  6 Pagesmovies, Pride and Prejudice and My Fair Lady, represent different classes, and how they interact with each other. Even though the movies are set in different time periods, the interactions between the classes are very similar. Although both movies show the differences of the society classes, My Fair Lady shows the differences of the classes in a more obvious manner than Pride and Prejudice which tends to show the differences in a more subdued manner. In Joe Wright’s 2005 Pride and Prejudice, theRead MoreNontraditional Women in Jane Austen ´s Pride and Prejudice Essay983 Words   |  4 Pagessilently admiring the three commanding attitudes of these nontraditional women. For the 19th century, these women express attitudes that deviate from the typical stereotype. Pride and Prejudice offers Jane Austen’s take on the traditional 19th century woman through indirect characterization, tonal elements, and heavy satire and irony to portray the idea that flawed women (in the 19th century sense) hold the key to success. Charlotte Lucas, the rational, plain often overlooked character in Austen’sRead MorePride and Prejudice Research Paper2598 Words   |  11 PagesProgressive Work in a Conservative Time Pride and Prejudice, a Jane Austen novel, is one of the most classical pieces of literature in history. It has been evaluated and critiqued a countless number of times, and has been adapted into several films. It can be argued that there is a lot to be retained by readers from this literary work, an important message that can be passed down from generation to generation. During Jane Austen’s time, in the early 1800’s, women were around to be married off, bearRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1035 Words   |  5 PagesThe novel Pride and Prejudice was written by Jan Austen and first published in 1813. She had begun writing it in about 1796 after spending some time with her brother and his wife in Goodnestone Park. The book was first titled First Impressions but was renamed after a bookseller refused to see the manuscript. The genre of this novel is best described as a satire or novel of manners. The main character is Elizabeth Bennet and it follows her on her j ourney to understand manners, marriage, mortality