Patriarchy In Pride And Prejudice

Authors often draw inspiration from the environment that they live in and Jane Austen is no different. Her novel, Pride and Prejudice, is reflective of ordinary life in the early nineteenth century, with a special emphasis on the life of the average country woman in England. Jane Austen explores and exemplifies the intricate nuances of society and its standards on its inhabitants, particularly through the characterizations of the plethora of characters appearing in Miss Elizabeth Bennet’s—the protagonist—journey through the occurrences in the book. Austen expertly uses each character to comment on a specific aspect of society. Some characters highlight the battle between following rationality and logical thought and feelings and sensibility, …show more content…
Collins as a satirical device to mock the patriarchy instilled in her society, by first creating a man who has the external qualities to demand respect in society and then exposing his absurd personality, which negates any need for …show more content…
In the intricacies of Austen’s characterization of Mr. Collins, there is a strong and doubtless commentary on society’s instilled patriarchy and its effects on the social status of women. To do this, Austen creates a character with all the external qualities to demand respect, providing the character with one of the most imperative qualities—male gender. Although Mr. Collins should be respectable, Austen is mocking the arrogant members of the privileged male class by inflicting Collins with a detestable personality. With each misstep, Mr. Collins becomes a figure of ridicule and the mere idea of the Georgian man is reduced to an unfounded male superiority complex. The juxtaposition of Mr. Collins’s personality detracting from his respect and the juxtaposition of Elizabeth’s thoughts being more accurate and rational than his on a situation emphasizes Austen’s use of Mr. Collins as a satirical device. Therefore, Jane Austen employs Mr. Collins as a satirical device to comment on the farcical nature of her society—a society with an instilled patriarchy that is not only detrimental to its women but also reinforces a mockery of