Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

[AlysonofBathe]

Hi everyone,

I'm a little late to the Pride and Prejudice party; just finished it for the 1001 books challenge.

Overall, I liked it, although I'm not yet an Austen-convert; the characters felt a tad flimsy to me, especially in comparison to Persuasion. But I enjoyed the meta-narrative produced by the inclusion of letters and the theme of reading/misreading.

What does everyone think?

Cheers,
Alyson

[Maud Fitch]

Yes, I agree with your comments. If push came to shove, I'd say I'm a Brontë sisters fan. Perhaps because they are more down-to-earth and more believable for me than Austen's characters.

[AlysonofBathe]

The characters in Pride and Prejudicefelt either bland (Jane the oh-so useless) or idiotic (Mrs. Bennet, Lydia, most of the Bennet clan actually), and while idiotic can be fun, it just doesn't carry the book well, at least not for me. And I appreciate Lizzy's wit, but not enough to cancel out the rest of the characters.

I read Jane Eyre years ago in high school, but I honestly can't recall the details much; I'll get back to it eventually.

Cheers,
Alyson

[Fran]

The characters in Pride and Prejudicefelt either bland (Jane the oh-so useless) or idiotic (Mrs. Bennet, Lydia, most of the Bennet clan actually), and while idiotic can be fun, it just doesn't carry the book well, at least not for me. And I appreciate Lizzy's wit, but not enough to cancel out the rest of the characters.

I read Jane Eyre years ago in high school, but I honestly can't recall the details much; I'll get back to it eventually.

Cheers,
Alyson

@Alyson
What about Lady Catherine de Bourgh ... I just LOVE her

[AlysonofBathe]

What about Lady Catherine de Bourgh ... I just LOVE her

I stand corrected!

You are completely correct - she was interesting, and added so much levity. On that note, I actually found Caroline pretty interesting too. And Collins. Ok, I may have been hasty to judge all of the characters based on the Bennets; there were certainly entertaining bits. I guess my issue remains with the fact that the characters given the most "pagetime" just don't suit my literary tastes.

Cheers,
Alyson

[bookgator]

Not much into Jane Austen but I love some of her novels and Pride and Prejudice as one. I got bored a bit while reading it but enjoyed it when I finally finished it.

[AlysonofBathe]

If you're not accustomed to the genre (I was going to say it's Victorian lit., but it's about twenty years too early), it can definitely be a little slow going, but I think it's a very accessible introduction for readers looking to explore this period of literature.

[Stacygee]

I just joined this forum and was so dismayed to see that the first post I read was critical of my very favorite book Pride and Prejudice. I just loved it and have read it over and over. I love the complexity of Lizzie falling in love with Darcy and even trying to figure out exactly when she did. I also love the misunderstood Darcy as I married my Mr. Darcy and a lot of people don't understand him.

[DATo]

I read P&P for the first time earlier this year on the recommendation of a coworker and enjoyed it very much. Austen wrote before George Eliot and Dickens and one of the things I noticed was the omission of any nods to the lower class which stood out starkly to the banners of social justice carried by the aforesaid authors (as well as others of their period). I did very much enjoy the story and Austen's writing style and I found myself comparing Austen to Eliot in this regard. I consider Eliot the most masterful female writer of prose in the English language, but Austen is certainly Eliot's master when it comes to humor. I absolutely LOVED the contentious discussions between Mr. and Mrs. Bennet!

Also, though Austen presented a bit of a feminist attitude she moderates it and voices it with an equanimity seldom seen in current day feminist writers such as Jane Smiley. Smiley's book A Thousand Acres presented literally EVERY man in the story as a villain of one kind or another or lacking in moral principles. (Can You say "manipulation" ? I bet you can!) I would imagine that even a woman reading Smiley sooner or later has to stop and say, "Wait a minute, even a clock that's broke is right twice a day." A much better presentation of a feminist viewpoint in my opinion was Amy Tan's Joy Luck CLub which was more believable given the more ubiquitous sexist attitudes prevalent in the Chinese culture towards girls. Austen plays it fair right down the line and I admire her for this.

GREAT BOOK !!! (Even if Mark Twain didn't think so *LOL*)

"To me his prose is unreadable -- like Jane Austen's. No, there is a difference. I could read his prose on salary, but not Jane's. Jane is entirely impossible. It seems a great pity that they allowed her to die a natural death."
- Mark Twain (Letter to W. D. Howells, 18 January 1909)

[purrin]

I simply loved it! I loved the narrative. But I didn't like Emma as much.

[Redlegs]

I must say I really enjoyed Pride and Prejudice. It was full of relatively gentle social commentary and humour. Some of the characters were caricatures to a certain extent, but they were well integrtaed into the structure of the novel. I was sufficiently impressed to name one of my cats Mr Darcy.

[DATo]

I must say I really enjoyed Pride and Prejudice. It was full of relatively gentle social commentary and humour. Some of the characters were caricatures to a certain extent, but they were well integrtaed into the structure of the novel. I was sufficiently impressed to name one of my cats Mr Darcy.

I cannot help myself but to compliment you on your choice of a name. After due consideration I feel 'Mr. Darcy" is a PERFECT name for a cat *LOL*

[primrose777]

I am a Jane Austen fan, and love the book Pride and prejudice. I felt that Jane was not endevouring to write a "serious" work but one with humour and larger than life characters, which lets face it... how many of those do we meet in our lifetime? The constraints of the time for women are evident but I like her main characters who on the whole have a bit of go in them and a strong backbone.

[tinatin]

I recently read "Pride and Prejudice" and I must say it is most likely one of the best books I ever read, in fact, so good, I named my dog after one of the main characters, Mr. Darcy! The book is written in a very interesting language and has a wonderful plot, perfect for anyone who is interested in learning more about the ways of humainty or just wants to read a pleasant story, with a happy ending.

[Redlegs]

I recently read "Pride and Prejudice" and I must say it is most likely one of the best books I ever read, in fact, so good, I named my dog after one of the main characters, Mr. Darcy! The book is written in a very interesting language and has a wonderful plot, perfect for anyone who is interested in learning more about the ways of humainty or just wants to read a pleasant story, with a happy ending.

Perhaps your dog can be Facebook friends with my cat, tinatin?