Austen packed as many messages and critiques of her society into her book as possible. I am focusing on this; change in character is essential to overcome harmful standard and power structures set in you by society. The main characters, Elizabeth bennet, and Fitzwilliam Darcy, both must overcome the prejudices in their thinking that they have never had to examine before. They make a contrast to the rest of the characters, in that their opinions change as they examine them.
Austen was writing in a climate of highly popular novels that were extremely fanciful and unrealistic. This is not to say that she thought badly of them, she reportedly read many of them, however, her work was not immediately popular, partially because it had much more reflection of real life than most other popular novels of that time. (Source) (does this reflect the source? what were other causes of pride and prejudice not doing as well as other novels of the time? who was reading these novels? what was the target audience?) …show more content…
On one hand, the main character, Elizabeth, oftens critiques that structure that she is caught in, from the lack of inheritance from her father, the fate of her friend Charlotte and her sister Lydia, to everyone around her DEMANDING that she marry. On the other hand, both she and her older sister find extremely good matches, both of them marrying from love, and marrying above their class.
These matches are only made, however through change on the part of the main characters, elizabeth and Darcy. They both undergo drastic changes of character through the course of the book. The problem is, no one else does. They all continue in their ways and
Austen was writing in a climate of highly popular novels that were extremely fanciful and unrealistic. This is not to say that she thought badly of them, she reportedly read many of them, however, her work was not immediately popular, partially because it had much more reflection of real life than most other popular novels of that time. (Source) (does this reflect the source? what were other causes of pride and prejudice not doing as well as other novels of the time? who was reading these novels? what was the target audience?) …show more content…
On one hand, the main character, Elizabeth, oftens critiques that structure that she is caught in, from the lack of inheritance from her father, the fate of her friend Charlotte and her sister Lydia, to everyone around her DEMANDING that she marry. On the other hand, both she and her older sister find extremely good matches, both of them marrying from love, and marrying above their class.
These matches are only made, however through change on the part of the main characters, elizabeth and Darcy. They both undergo drastic changes of character through the course of the book. The problem is, no one else does. They all continue in their ways and