Welcome to our website! The purpose of this site is to look at Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice, and address how she critiques the institution of marriage in the novel. We will be specifically looking at how she addresses the legal, social, and economic factors of marriage at the time through the Bennet family and their relationship with other characters in the novel.
Our research question is:
“How does Austen address issues regarding the legal position of women, as well as the social and economic pressures surrounding marriage, through the marriages of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, Jane and Mr. Bingley, Lydia and Mr. Wickham, and Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy?”
The characters that we will be focusing on are the women of the Bennet family, specifically Mrs. Bennet, Jane, Lydia, and Elizabeth, but our blog posts will also address other characters that are significant to the story, such as Charlotte Lucas and her marriage to Mr. Collins in contrast with Elizabeth’s rejection of Collins. We hope that this site will be helpful in understanding how Austen uses her characters to critique the marriage institution of 18th C. England.
Thanks for stopping by and happy reading!
Emily Elsasser, Tyler Knoll, and Celeste Hutchinson
Marriage In "Pride and Prejudice" 