When I first borrowed Pride and Prejudice from my friend, I did not anticipate to have enjoyed it as much as I did. First of all the book was amazingly ahead of its time – the tone of feminism was far from subtle. Some would say that Elizabeth was a 21st century woman stuck in the 18th Century, but I think this is disloyal to the character. Though women have been oppressed in cultures worldwide, there were a few that have always been feminists whether or not they realized it. The very fact that Elizabeth was not going to succumb to the rule that the sole purpose of a woman was to get married and bear children, coupled with the contemporary positive response of the book by the public speaks volumes in terms of the growing feminism of the day. It was not as vocal as it is today, but it was present nonetheless.
The book takes place in a time when civility was of the utmost importance and naturally expected of everyone, especially those that come from families that are more prosperous. What I love about Mr. Darcy is that in a world plagued with pretentious civilities, he was never afraid to be himself. Obviously people thought him proud for it but he never cared. He was not going to do things just because they were expected of him. In that regard, I can really relate to him – I think he might be an INTJ as well, what with his perceived arrogance and all.
Part of the reason why I love the book so much is because the two main characters – Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy – have a natural chemistry that only those of us that have broken out of the traditional fairy tale romance mindset would be able to grasp and appreciate. Neither of them fell in love with each other at first sight. Gradually they began hating one another!
The story culminates in a happy-ending. I am usually one for tragedies, but this one got me good. The parallels that we could draw between the social scene of the 18th century and our own 21st century are numerous. Even today, we are brought up to expect people to act a certain way and when someone comes along who does not fit within such paradigms, we dismiss them outright. Society has not really matured in that aspect.
I would just like to add that I think Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen did a wonderful job of embodying the characters in the movie adaptation. I really enjoyed it. I hope that I can get my hands on more Jane Austen books soon.
