Designing Love

These people seem to create their own ideas of love. In this case, what Tinkerbell says is true. If you believe in fairies, they exist. If you don't, they die. I already talked a little bit about this in a prior blog. As long as the characters in Pride and Prejudice believe in the love stories they create, they exist.

Charlotte believes she is happy:

"Poor Charlotte! it was melancholy to leave her to such society! But she had chosen it with her eyes open; and though evidently regretting that her visitors were to go, she did not seem to ask for compassion. Her home and her housekeeping, her parish and her poultry, and all their dependent concerns, had not yet lost their charms."

Lady Catherine plans her daughter and Mr. Darcy's future.

This is an interesting topic but I'm out of textual proof. Maybe I could merge it in with happiness.

* Off topic but very interesting:

Elizabeth's modesty and lack of interest in army men, wealth, and such.

While Lydia brags about her marriage with Wickham, she keeps Mr. Darcy's proposal a private matter.

"We have dined nine times at Rosings, besides drinking tea there twice! How much I

shall have to tell!"

Elizabeth added privately, "And how much I shall have to conceal!"

Irony

Whole lots of irony in Pride and Prejudice.

Elizabeth hates Darcy. She says he's "the last man she would marry," and ironically, they become husband and wife.

Mr. Darcy dislikes Wickham and ends up paying for his marriage. Not any marriage. Darcy pays for his enemies nuptials with Lydia, his love's sister.

Lydia's running away makes the family mourn. Mrs. Bennett turns very ill. Upon her return, the Bennett family couldn't be happier. Mrs. Bennett's attitude toward the whole situation is ironic.

Mrs. Bennett is concerned of getting her daughters married. Her sadness as Lydia departs is ironic.

Charlotte joins Elizabeth in saying that Collins is silly. She ends up marrying him.

Focusing On A Deeper Happiness

Insightful.

Elizabeth:

The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it; and every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of all

human characters, and of the little dependence that can be placed on the appearance of merit or sense. I have met with two instances lately, one I will not mention; the other is Charlotte's marriage. "My dear Lizzy, do not give way to such feelings as these. They will ruin your happiness. "

"You shall not, for the sake of one individual, change the meaning of principle

and integrity, nor endeavour to persuade yourself or me, that selfishness is prudence,

and insensibility of danger security for happiness."

Caring for a friend's happiness:

"You persist, then, in supposing his sisters influence him?"

"Yes, in conjunction with his friend."

"I cannot believe it. Why should they try to influence him? They can only wish his

happiness; and if he is attached to me, no other woman can secure it."

"Your first position is false. They may wish many things besides his happiness; they

may wish his increase of wealth and consequence; they may wish him to marry a girl

who has all the importance of money, great connections, and pride."

Long lost happiness:

Her father, 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 for ever; and all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown.

True happiness:

"Jane, I congratulate you. You will be a very happy woman."

"You are a good girl;" he replied, "and I have great pleasure in thinking you will be

so happily settled. I have not a doubt of your doing very well together. Your tempers

are by no means unlike. You are each of you so complying, that nothing will ever be

resolved on; so easy, that every servant will cheat you; and so generous, that you will

always exceed your income."

Maybe compare Mr. Bennett's "happiness" with his daughters. Or compare the views of happiness of each of the characters.

Possible Essay Topic

Whenever I have to write an essay, I get a little stressed. What am I going to write about? It has to be perfect. Then I tell myself I have to chill. Enjoy the book. The ideas will come naturally. Luckily, this has never failed. I started to write down quotations I found insightful. Then I realized almost all of them talked about the same thing: happiness.

All the characters in the book want to be happy. This makes me respect Pride and Prejudice a little more. It isn't just a chick novel after all.

Two types of happiness. In this blog I will focus on happiness due to love.

"Mr. Collins, to be sure, was neither sensible nor agreeable; his society was irksome, and his attachment to her must be imaginary. But still he would be her husband. Without thinking highly either of men or matrimony, marriage had always been her object; it was the only provision for well-educated young women of small fortune, and however uncertain of giving happiness, must be their pleasantest preservative from want."

Charlotte: "I am not romantic, you know; I never was. I ask only a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins's character, connection, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as most people can boast on entering the marriage state."

Although the couple believes they will be happy, other people, such as Elizabeth don't. Although she disagrees with her friend, she feels the necessity to act happy about the subject:

"Elizabeth, feeling it incumbent on her to relieve him from so unpleasant a situation, now put herself forward to confirm his account, by mentioning her prior knowledge of it from Charlotte herself; and endeavoured to put a stop to the exclamations of her mother and sisters by the earnestness of her congratulations to Sir William, in which she was readily joined by Jane, and by making a variety of remarks on the happiness that might be expected from the match, the excellent character of Mr. Collins, and the convenient distance of Hunsford from London. "

Mr Collins believes Charlotte will make him happy:

"Charlotte to name an early day for making him the happiest of men."

For Bingley and Jane:

"Even Elizabeth began to fear—not that Bingley was indifferent—but that his sisters would be successful in keeping him away. Unwilling as she was to admit an idea so destructive of Jane's happiness..."

Mr. Bennett remarks Jane is in love. "Next to being married, a girl likes to be

crossed a little in love now and then."

Ms. Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy

Darcy for Elizabeth:

"If his own vanity, however, did not mislead him, he was the cause, his pride and caprice were the cause, of all that Jane had suffered, and still continued to suffer. He had ruined for a while every hope of happiness for the most

affectionate, generous heart in the world; and no one could say how lasting an evil he might have inflicted."

There are many more insights on happiness in the novel. These are just a few I happened to have noted on a piece of paper. Very possible essay topic indeed.

Boyfriend? For What?

For you desperate women with failed relationships.

I met Bob when I was nineteen. He was two years older than me. We started to go out, and three months later we became official. We dated for five years. When I had finished college, I started to hint it was time for us to get married. "I want to get to know you first," he'd say. "How lucky am I," I would think. "I'm with a guy who thinks carefully before taking such decisions." Finally, after three years, he proposed. We got married the following year. Seven years later, here I am. Divorced. In bed with a tissue box next to me and a stack of books on my lap. Jane Austen has been my therapist through all this. She gave me the best advice anyone could ever give a young girl. Too bad it's too late for me. I deeply hope no woman has to repeat my story, so I am willing to share the advice with you.

Skip the boyfriend part. Go straight for the husband.

Look at me. I spent nine years getting to know a guy who left me seven years into the marriage. For goodness sake, we spent more time getting to know each other than actually being husband and wife!

But look at Jane and Elizabeth! They've known Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy for less than two years and they're engaged. I have no doubt they will be happy. They will grow old together and be like Mr and Mrs. Bennett who have been married for twenty three years. I used to criticize this rush for marriage. But ironic as it may seem, it works.

Get to know the man, and you'll end up like me. Marry him like they do in fairy tales, and prepare yourself for a happily ever after.

Flowers

There once was a man who decided to grow flowers. He bought five seeds. To make them grow bigger and more colorful, he added chemicals to the soil. As he was doing so, the man got distracted and forgot to pour chemicals where the last seed was. The first four flowers quickly bloomed. They were big and their petals had radiant colors. The last flower took longer to flourish. It was smaller than the rest and not as colorful. Within a five days, the first four flowers were dead. When the man went to see the last flower, he saw it had bloomed even more than before. Although it never acquired such vivid colors as the rest, without a doubt it was the most beautiful flower of all. "Seeming vs. being."

How About We Get To Know Each Other First

Case 1 Mr. and Mrs. Bennett:

-Married for twenty three years: "Mr. Bennet was so odd a mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve, and caprice, that the experience of three-and-twenty years had been insufficient to make his wife understand his character."

-Five daughters, the youngest "not being sixteen."

- Could be considered a successful marriage but, as Miss Elizabeth Bennett pondered: "Her father, 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 for ever; and all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown."

Case 2 Mr. and Mrs. Collins:

- Mr. Collins asks for Elizabeth's hand in marriage.

- "Within three days", he's already engaged with Charlotte. Her explanation? "I am not romantic, you know; I never was. I ask only a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins's character, connection, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as most people can boast on entering the marriage state."

- Marry now or never. Oh, the power of low self esteem.

Case 3 Mr. Bingley and Ms. Jane:

- From the very first ball in which they danced, they were expected to marry.

-Both Charlotte and Darcy feel Jane doesn't have the same strong feelings as Bingley. Elizabeth comes to her defense and says her sister is shy and has trouble expressing her feelings.

- They are separated in the winter. We see no "I don't care how crazy this is, let's look for my long lost love" behavior from either side.

- Mr. Bennett comes back. They get engaged.

Case 4 Mr. Darcy and Ms. Elizabeth:

-Ms. Elizabeth describes him as "the last man she would marry."

-Out of nowhere, Mr. Darcy, not only declares his love for her, but also asks for her hand in marriage.

-Ms. Elizabeth rejects him, but they later meet again and spend time together. They actually get to know each other.

- Elizabeth realized she loves Mr. Darcy and they get engaged.

Case 5 Mr. Whickham and Ms. Bennett:

- ABSOLUTELY PURE NONSENSE

Nothing more needs to be said.

Case 1: Blame it on Mr. Bennett's young soul.

Case 2: Blame it on Mr. Collins' hurt pride and Charlotte's low self esteem.

Case 3: Blame it on Mr. Bingles single and wealthy position and Jane's beauty.

Case 4: Blame it on Elizabeth's intelligence.

Case 5: Blame it on Mr. Wickham's money problem and Lydia's stupidity.

Love is what you let yourself believe in. If you get married with the first man that winks at you, and you truly believe he's the man of your dreams, so be it. But just because you're happy now, it doesn't mean you'll be happy in forty years. Yes, you can get a divorce but that's just a synonym for failing. So how about you actually meet the person you're going to spend the rest of your time with? There's a slight chance that the marriage doesn't work and your "soul mate" turns out to be the biggest mistake of your life but hey, what's life without risks? Just make sure the risks you take, are actually worth taking.

Animal Version

I couldn't agree more Paredes. If Mrs. Bennett was an animal, she would totally be a hen. I can't remember the other character you described, but I decided to do the same and pick an animal for every character we've met so far.

The Three Lettered Word

Music, dance, words- all vast fields for interpretation. Flexible, maneable, they are willing to serve humans as paths between their deepest emotions and the outside world. Art, we call them. One of the few discoveries humans should be proud of.

Pride and Prejudice, the movie doesn't kill me. It's sort of expected. There is, however, one scene which is absolutely amazing- I dare to say better than the chapter itself. Somewhere around chapters eighteen and nineteen, Mr. Bingley throws a ball. There's a variety of emotions all over the place. Jane and Mr. Bingley, as always, are ecstatic. One of the Bennett girls is sad because her father interrupted her piano playing. Mrs. Bennett doesn't stop bragging about her daughter's soon to be matrimony. Mr. Darcy looks pissed off and Elizabeth seems confused. The book doesn't focus on the character's emotions very much, but in the film, these are portrayed through the music in the background. We see Jane and Mr. Bingley dance to the jolly music, and although Mr. Darcy and Ms. Bingley are also dancing, they do it stiffly. It's inevitable to compare the two dancing couples. Excited Mrs. Bennett walks from the ball room to some sort of common room, and as she does, the music goes from merry to melancholic. We see Mr. Collins plucking petals from a flower, Ms. Bennett crying for her interrupted performance, and Elizabeth pondering behind a dark wall.

Other characters surrounding the ones priorly mentioned seem to mirror them. In the ball room, everyone except Mr. Darcy and Ms. Bingley are enjoying themselves. As we move along, people in the common room look gloomy. We see some crying, a few being rejected and others being lonely. This part in the movie is greatly interpreted. It's able to transform a story from words, to dance and music.

Link to the movie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPkimDfbCF0&feature=related

A Reason To Read Pride And Prejudice

After two hundred thousand years of human existence, love stories have become very predictable. We've heard them all before. The faked pregnancy to keep a marriage from falling apart, the impossible love between the rich girl and the poor man, the young couple separated by their parents. Even the close-to-original stories, where a girl finds herself in Italy looking for the long lost love of an old lady are fairly predictable.

We can all anticipate what will happen in Pride and Prejudice. There's nothing exciting about a wealthy man looking for a wife while his "unworthy and proud" friend falls in love with the man's potential wife's sister. If the story's so predictable, then what makes this novel such a favorite?

Words.

It is much agreeable to read "gone with such celerity", than to read "gone with such quickness." "Gallantry" is much more magical than "courageous," "laconic" is more picturesque than "brief". Why confine ourselves to the specific list of adjectives we were given in third grade? Austen may not bring suspense to the table, but she does bring the most tasteful of desserts: the enchanting world of words.

Women Must

We are gathered here today to discuss and evaluate Miss Elizabeth Bennett's capacity of being an accomplished woman. Before we proceed on such a delicate subject, let's define what an accomplished woman is and does. Mr. Bingley, what do you have to say about the subject?

All young ladies are impressively accomplished. Their patience is admirable. "They all paint tables, cover screens, and net purses. I scarcely know anyone who cannot do all this." (p. 28)

Painting tables, covering screens, or netting purses is a task any regular woman can do. Such a lady has no extraordinary thing to speak on her behalf. An accomplished woman, besides doing the tasks mentioned before, must greatly surpass what is expected from her. "A woman must have a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, all the modern languages to deserve the word; and besides all this, she must possess a certain air and manner of walking, the tone of her voice, her address and expressions, or the word will be but half deserved." (p.29)

If I may add Miss Bingley, "to all this she must yet add something more substantial, in the improvement of her mind by extensive reading." (p.29)

You're not describing an accomplished woman Mr. Darcy, you're describing an impossible one!

Miss Bennett, you doubt the capacities of your own kind. What a woman!

Mr. Darcy, I beg you not talk of my daughter in such a way. My daughter Lizzy, I feel confident to say, has more "quickness" than her other sisters. All of them are rather "silly", but Liz has something about her that makes her different.

I agree with you, Mr. Bennett. Miss Elizabeth certainly has something that makes her different. That something lies in her capacity to knock on a door with her "hair so untidy", and her "petticoat six inches deep in mud." I dare to say no other women in the country would make such a "blowsy" appearance.

There are women of women, Miss Bingley. Every young lady carries with her the capacity of being an accomplished woman. This is all a very personal manner. And I believe we should intrude no more.

I ask you, Mr. Bennett, allow me to conclude. I find Elizabeth's actions to "show an affection for her sister that is very pleasing." (p.26) This loyal demonstration towards her sibling starts making of her an accomplished woman. Besides this fact, and I'm sure Mr. Darcy will agree with me, Ms. Bennett possesses a wonderful quality. Her deep fond of books, talks greatly on her behalf.

Your comment is very well appreciated Mr. Bingley. But as I said, let us leave the subject alone.