It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife
Rating: 4/5
Trigger Warnings: -
Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t read the book, this review will contain spoilers so it’s up to you if you continue…
I was going to start this review by saying it was pretty redundant to have a spoiler alert on a book as widely-read as Pride and Prejudice but then I realise that I’m a third year English student and have never voluntarily picked it up. In fact, I was adamant, when I saw it on the module reading list, that I’d hate it. I’ve read two Austen novels previous to this - Emma and Northanger Abbey. The former was when I thought I should probably have read some more classics than I had done if I wanted to study English Literature, and the latter was part of my college course. I didn’t really like either, but I definitely preferred the satire of Northanger Abbey.
What I might have missed about Emma (though I’m not going to re-read it, so I guess I’ll never know if I did) was the humour in Austen’s voice. I thought she was one of those authors that was essentially an account of the upper class in the 1800s, with hundreds of characters meeting each other at balls but never really taking the story anywhere, just watching people live their lives. In a way, that’s what Pride and Prejudice is: a simple account of the Bennet sisters lives. It’s done in such fun, lively way though. Don’t get me wrong, they go too balls, and there’s too many characters to keep track of, and at times the language feels a little superfluous, but I can’t get over how surprising my enjoyment of this novel was.
The characterisation, to begin with, is so complete and well-rounded. There is such variety in the characters, and their emotions, characteristics, and foibles all feel so true to life. One of my favourite characters was Mr Bennet, if I’m being completely honest. Sure, his lack of interest or discipline with his daughters led to the whole Lydia issue, but his bluntness and sense of humour was brilliant. If he didn’t care something, he was open about it, if he didn’t want to do something, he wouldn’t, but he knew how to have fun with his family and (obvious favouritism aside) his love of Lizzie was truly touching.
Though if we’re talking of loving Lizzie, we really ought to focus on Darcy. I was fully prepared for a Heathcliff character - dark and brooding, not wishing to partake in civilisation - but I was saved from that hell by the wonderful Darcy. Yeah, prideful, lacking charm or charisma maybe, but let’s be honest, he was just a shy boy unsure how to express his love. He also turned out to be surprisingly selfless, acting out of his love for Lizzie even after she had rejected him and he had little reason to believe her feelings would change. Turns out he was a proper gentleman.
Lizzie was likewise delightful. I knew I’d like her to be honest, because she was headstrong and willing to express her opinion even if it went against the majority - but she was also super conscious of not offending people unless they deserved it. Though I didn’t love the whole atmosphere of Victorian-esque manners and reserved politeness, Lizzie stayed true to herself as best she could despite the need for decorum - and she was willing to admit that she was wrong…eventually.
The characters were just so genuinely flawed (apart from maybe Jane) and it somehow came as a surprise to me to read such an old novel (well, old is a relative term) and find characters related to so much. Especially in something I was reading for class, rather than pleasure. It seems I never learn that it’s in those I least expect it, that I find something so utterly relatable.
The book was also unexpectedly accessible. The chapters, at least at the start and end of the book, are really short - a couple of pages at the most, and the language is not particularly high-flown. There are a couple of run-on sentences that, had Austen been writing nowadays, would probably have been cut down, but if you just take your time, and occasionally read a sentence twice, it’s no harder than modern fiction. It was difficult, in the beginning, to be introduced to so many characters at once and be able to keep track of relations, but it’s pretty easy to find a character list/mind map kind of thing online to explain everyone’s relationships to each other (you might not want to do this if you want to 100% avoid spoilers, however), and once you get about 10 chapters in, you’ll have the important characters down easily.
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