Jane Austen - Pride And Prejudice
...with social conventions, but rather from the compatibility between the personalities of two individuals. The interclass marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, and the expected "intraclass" marriage of Lady Catherine's daughter stand as a foil to the true happiness in the interclass marriage of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. A lack of affection, esteem and congruity between the Bennet's, and likewise between Miss de Bourgh and Mr. Darcy, results in an unsuccessful marriage and a potentially unsuccessful marriage, respectively, while the paradigm of these qualities between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy generate a successful relationship. By illustrating that happiness and unhappiness in marriage overlook the boundaries of the class system, Austen emphasizes the individual and thus challenges the English class system.
Although the most commended marriage in the novel involves individuals from separate classes, Jane Austen does not deny that marriages across classes can turn out less than satisfactory. Mr. Bennet, who is of a higher class than Mrs. Bennet, depicts this unfortunate side of interclass marriages. However, the reasoning behind the misfortune lies not in their distinct classes, but rather in his imprudence in realizing the disagreeability of their personalities. Austen explains that when he was young, Mr. Bennet,
captivated by youth and beauty, and that appearance of good humour which youth and beauty generally give, had married a woman whose weak understanding and illiberal mind had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her. Respect, esteem, and confidence had vanished forever, and all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown. (228)
This synopsis of the past forces the reader to acknowledge that the clashing of character early on was the cause of unhappiness, rather than differences in class. In the text, the author describes...
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