How does Austen use contrasting characters in Pride and Prejudice? (Part B question)
How does Austen use contrasting characters in Pride and Prejudice? (Part B question)
Jane Austen uses contrasting characters in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ to highlight her characters traits, both good and bad, and comparing them to others, and by doing this she can shape the plot of the novel.
One obvious contrast in the novel is that of Mr Wickham and Mr Darcy and is used to build tension in the plot and convey Jane Austen’s message of being too judgemental. When we, and the characters of the novel, are introduced to Wickham for the first time we see him in an extremely good light because of the overwhelmingly positive description of his ‘gentlemanlike appearance’, ‘perfectly correct and unassuming’ manners and everyone in the communities good opinion of him. This contrasts to when we first meet to Darcy who is instantly ‘discovered to be proud, to be above his company and above being pleased’. This is judged by Elizabeth as well as the whole community; the effect of this is that as a reader we are instantly prejudiced against him and have a very low opinion of his character from the start. However this view is challenged by Austen’s use of a casual narrator that can switch from the, more usual, point of view of Elizabeth to the view of the Bingly’s and Mr Darcy at Netherfield, which shows Darcy in a better light than we previously saw him. We go from hearing his outrageously rude manners at the ball; saying ‘there is not another woman in the room whom it would not be a punishment to [him] to stand up with’ to the narrator informing us that ‘he began to find it was rendered uncommonly intelligent by the beautiful expression of her fine eyes’. However the most drastic alteration of our view of him comes in Volume two of the novel, when we find out about Wickham’s true character and how much of a fraud he is, and the repercussions of this for the Darcy and Bennet families. Austen uses these characters and their contrasts in order to highlight one of the main
Jane Austen uses contrasting characters in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ to highlight her characters traits, both good and bad, and comparing them to others, and by doing this she can shape the plot of the novel.
One obvious contrast in the novel is that of Mr Wickham and Mr Darcy and is used to build tension in the plot and convey Jane Austen’s message of being too judgemental. When we, and the characters of the novel, are introduced to Wickham for the first time we see him in an extremely good light because of the overwhelmingly positive description of his ‘gentlemanlike appearance’, ‘perfectly correct and unassuming’ manners and everyone in the communities good opinion of him. This contrasts to when we first meet to Darcy who is instantly ‘discovered to be proud, to be above his company and above being pleased’. This is judged by Elizabeth as well as the whole community; the effect of this is that as a reader we are instantly prejudiced against him and have a very low opinion of his character from the start. However this view is challenged by Austen’s use of a casual narrator that can switch from the, more usual, point of view of Elizabeth to the view of the Bingly’s and Mr Darcy at Netherfield, which shows Darcy in a better light than we previously saw him. We go from hearing his outrageously rude manners at the ball; saying ‘there is not another woman in the room whom it would not be a punishment to [him] to stand up with’ to the narrator informing us that ‘he began to find it was rendered uncommonly intelligent by the beautiful expression of her fine eyes’. However the most drastic alteration of our view of him comes in Volume two of the novel, when we find out about Wickham’s true character and how much of a fraud he is, and the repercussions of this for the Darcy and Bennet families. Austen uses these characters and their contrasts in order to highlight one of the main