Elizabeth proves herself being a fallible heroine from the very beginning of the story. Her quickly made opinion of Mr Darcy shows an example of hurt pride leading to deep prejudice. The moment she decides to despise Mr Darcy is important for the plot as all the following mistakes are based on this particular one.
Mr Bingley tries to convince Mr Darcy to dance with Elizabeth but Darcy does not feel attracted to her and his comment about Elizabeth being “tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt [him]” (PP 13) awakes in her negative feelings that Marilyn Butler suggests to call “hate at first sight” . Moreover, Butler continues in developing her theory explaining that this hate at first sight is “built on insufficient or wrong evidence, and fostered by pride and complacency towards the unreliable subjective consciousness” . …show more content…
Elizabeth cannot deny this fact, however, she admits she “could easily forgive his pride if he had not mortified [hers]” (PP 19). Nonetheless, Debra Teachman in Understanding Pride and Prejudice: A Student Casebook to Issues, Sources and Historical Documents claims that although Mr Darcy is endowed with both charm and money, it “does not, however, excuse his behavior in all circumstances” . Since this moment, Elizabeth looks at Mr Darcy adversely and her prejudice against him grows bigger, which is seen in a way Elizabeth talks to him as she teases him and often uses an irony, which is something extraordinary for him because he is not used to being treated the way Elizabeth
Mr Bingley tries to convince Mr Darcy to dance with Elizabeth but Darcy does not feel attracted to her and his comment about Elizabeth being “tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt [him]” (PP 13) awakes in her negative feelings that Marilyn Butler suggests to call “hate at first sight” . Moreover, Butler continues in developing her theory explaining that this hate at first sight is “built on insufficient or wrong evidence, and fostered by pride and complacency towards the unreliable subjective consciousness” . …show more content…
Elizabeth cannot deny this fact, however, she admits she “could easily forgive his pride if he had not mortified [hers]” (PP 19). Nonetheless, Debra Teachman in Understanding Pride and Prejudice: A Student Casebook to Issues, Sources and Historical Documents claims that although Mr Darcy is endowed with both charm and money, it “does not, however, excuse his behavior in all circumstances” . Since this moment, Elizabeth looks at Mr Darcy adversely and her prejudice against him grows bigger, which is seen in a way Elizabeth talks to him as she teases him and often uses an irony, which is something extraordinary for him because he is not used to being treated the way Elizabeth