Favourite Passage from PnP - Sara Peh 08S204

“From Mr. Collins! and what can he have to say?”
“Something very much to the purpose of course. He begins with congratulations on the approaching nuptials of my eldest daughter, of which it seems he has been told, by some of the good-natured, gossiping Lucases. I shall not sport with your impatience, by reading what he says on that point. What relates to yourself, is as follows.” “Having thus offered you the sincere congratulations of Mrs. Collins and myself on this happy event, let me now add a short hint on the subject of another, of which we have been advertised by the same authority. Your daughter Elizabeth, it is presume, will not long bear the name of Bennet, after her elder sister has resigned it, and the chosen partner of illustrious personages in this land.”
“Can you possibly guess, Lizzy, who is meant by this?” “This young gentleman is blessed in a peculiar way, with every thing the heart of mortal can most desire, - splendid property, noble kindred, and extensive patronage. Yet in spite of all these temptations, let me warn my cousin Elizabeth, and yourself, of what man’s proposals, which, of course, you will be inclined to take immediate advantage of.”
“Have you any idea, Lizzy, who this gentleman is? But now it comes out.”
“My motive for cautioning you, is as follows. We have reason to imagine that his aunt, lady Catherine de Bourgh, does not look on the match with a friendly eye.”
“Mr. Darcy, you see, is the man! Now, Lizzy, I think I have surprised you. Could he, or the Lucases, have pitched on any man, within the circle of our acquaintance, whose name would have given the lie more effectually to what they related? Mr. Darcy, who never looks at any woman but to see a blemish, and who probably never looked at you in his life! It is admirable!”
Elizabeth tried to join in her father’s pleasantry, but could only force one most reluctant smile. Never had his wit been directed in a manner so little agreeable to her.
(Volume III, Chapter XV)

The part of the story takes place in Mr. Bennet’s room. Mr. Bennet had called Elizabeth into his room to talk to her about the letter that he had received from Mr. Collins. This also takes place after the visit from Lady Catherine, thus allowing Elizabeth to understand how Lady Catherine came to learn of Mr. Darcy’s proposal to her.

This part of the story concerns prejudices that the characters have for one another. One of which is Mr. Bennet’s prejudice against Mr. Darcy, though it was not emphasized upon as much as Elizabeth’s in the story. Mr. Bennet truly does care for Elizabeth, so he should have been offended by Mr. Darcy’s remark about Elizabeth being “tolerable, but not handsome enough”, and even though he was not there to witness it for himself, Mrs. Bennet told him about it. From what he had heard, he learned that Mr. Darcy is a disagreeable man, therefore, upon learning that Mr. Darcy is supposedly interested in Elizabeth, Mr. Bennet did not believe it. This is shown in the passage where “Mr. Darcy” was italicized when Mr. Bennet revealed who Mr. Collins was referring to in his letter. He claimed that Mr. Darcy “never looks at any woman but to see a blemish” and “probably never looked at you (Elizabeth) in his life!”. The words “never” and “in his life!” highlights how extremely prejudiced Mr. Bennet is against Mr. Darcy. Mr. Bennet’s prejudice against Mr. Darcy also brings us to recall how Elizabeth was also prejudiced against Mr. Darcy as well as how it was later resolved, and in this way, highlights the one of the main themes of the story, prejudice. It also shows us that even though Mr. Bennet tends to neglect his daughters, he still does love them and care for them.

Social caste was also emphasized in the passage. Mr. Collins describes Mr. Darcy as having “illustrious personages in this land”, “splendid property, noble kindred, and extensive patronage” and this only goes to illustrate Mr. Darcy’s wealth and his higher social standing as compared to Elizabeth. After which, Mr Collins goes on to caution Mr. Bennet from “take immediate advantage of” Mr. Darcy’s proposal as Lady Catherine is against it. This is with reference to an event, which took place not too long before this passage, where Lady Catherine paid a visit to Elizabeth to discuss about Mr. Darcy. We are also reminded of how Mr. Darcy had been trying to repress his feelings towards Elizabeth due to her social standing. Lady Catherine, Mr. Darcy as well as Mr. Collins’s concern about class effectively emphasizes how social caste is very important to the society in which Elizabeth lives in.

Overall, this passage, being one with more action from Mr. Bennet, allows us to have some insight on Mr. Bennet's character. It also lets us see how social class plays a part in marriage and how it is an obstacle in Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy's marriage.