Write at least two to three paragraphs (6-8 sentences each) to answer the following question:
Within the society that Jane Austen depicts throughout her novel, Pride and Prejudice,
women are confined to social conventions. Through the discourse of
conversation between characters, we learn what is expected of women,
such as,
A woman must have a thorough knowledge of music, singing,
drawing, dancing, and the modern languages, to deserve the word; and
besides all this, she must possess a certain something in her air and
manner of walking, the tone of her voice, her address and expressions.
(p.27)
While Austen presents to us characters who esteem such an
abundance of narrow qualities in women, she moreover presents to us a
few characters who do not strictly obey convention. Through the voice of
Elizabeth, for example, we witness a young woman who rejects the
marriage request of Mr.Collins and defies her mother’s wishes concerning
the subject. We also see Elizabeth disapprove of Miss Lucas’s decision
to marry for non romantic, practical reasons. It is evident that Austen
is providing a window through which the reader has the opportunity to
judge conventionality. And it is significant that this window is seen
especially through the eyes of a woman. But how far does Austen allow
women to stray from convention? And how deeply does she permit us to
judge convention? After all, the focus of the story is centered around
the conventions and expectations of courtship and marriage.
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