Jane Austen was born December 16, 1775, to Rev. George Austen and the former Cassandra Leigh in Steventon, Hampshire, as the seventh of eight children. Like the central characters in most of her novels, the Austens were a large family of respectable lineage but no fortune; her father supplemented his "living" - his clergyman's income - by farming. This lively and cheerful family frequently passed their evenings in novel-reading, charades and amateur theatrics. Among her siblings, her sister Cassandra, three years older, was her lifelong friend and confidant. The abundant correspondence between the sisters provides historians with the greatest insight into Austen's past. The only undisputed portrait of Jane Austen is a somewhat rudimentary coloured sketch done by Cassandra, which currently resides in the National Portrait Gallery, London.
In 1783, Austen was educated briefly by a relative in Oxford, then in Southampton, and finally in 1785–1786 attended the Reading Ladies boarding school in the Abbey gatehouse in Reading, Berkshire. This uncommonly advanced level of education may have contributed to her early proclivity towards writing.
Her large family supplied material for the kind of novels popular when she wrote, but she chose not to draw upon any of it: her mother, for example, was related to a Duke who was master of Balliol College, Oxford; one aunt married an admiral; another, Mrs. Leigh Perrot, was falsely imprisoned for petty theft in 1799; a cousin, the Comtesse de Feuillide, fled the Reign of Terror after the execution of her husband, came to live with the Austens at Steventon, later fell in love with and married Jane's handsome and cheerful brother Henry, who later went bankrupt and then went into the Anglican priesthood; her brother James married a duke's granddaughter and followed in the path of their father and joined the clergy (the latter towards the end of his life after a successful career as a banker); her brothers Frank and Charles (who married the daughter of the Attorney-General of Bermuda) became naval officers, saw action in the Napoleonic wars, and eventually wound up admirals; and her charming and amiable brother Edward was adopted by the first family of Steventon, the Thomas Knights, a wealthy and childless couple. They educated him, sent him on the grand tour, married him to the daughter of a baronet, and made him their heir.
In 1801, Rev. Austen retired and the family moved to the socially esteemed spa city of Bath, probably so that the still-unmarried Jane and Cassandra might have a better chance of meeting marriageable men. Bath provides the setting for many of Austen’s novels.
In 1802 Austen received a marriage proposal from a wealthy but man named Harris Bigg-Wither, who was six years younger that she. Such a marriage would have freed her from some of the constraints and dependency then associated with the role of a spinster. Such considerations may have influenced her initially to accept his offer, only to change her mind and refuse him the following day. It seems clear that she did not love him.
Although she never married, Jane had several romantic liaisons, the most serious with a Rev. Blackall who died suddenly, just before they were to become formally engaged. After her father's death in 1805 the family moved to Southampton, and in 1809 her wealthy brother Edward was able to install Jane, Cassandra, and their mother in a "pretty cottage" back in Hampshire.
From 1809 on Austen lived happily with her mother and sister, her time employed in writing. In 1816, she began to suffer from ill health. In May 1817 she moved to Winchester to be closer to her doctor. It is now thought by some that she may have suffered from Addison's disease, a failure of the adrenal glands that was often caused by tuberculosis. The disease was at that time unnamed. Her condition became increasingly unstable, and on July 18, 1817 she died at the age of forty-one in Winchester, Hampshire, England and was buried in Winchester Cathedral.
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Society in Jane Austen's time
In Jane Austen's time there were great differences between the social classes. The aristocracy remained at the top of the social ladder, owning lands and estates that were passed from generation to generation so they did not have to work to earn a living. Their main occupations were going to parties, giving balls and arranging marriages. Jane Austen underlined how the aristocracy tended to keep its distance from people who belonged to other social classes, considering them inferior. Below the aristocracy came the gentry, to which most of the characters in Jane Austen's novels belong. People of this class owned land but they were not as wealthy as the aristocracy.
Style and themes
Jane Austen's polished and elegant style is characterised by wit, irony and well structured sentences. Her great skill at orchestrating conversation plays an important part in bringing the characters alive to the reader.
This was her way of dealing with important social matters, such as the role of money, property and marriage in a society where women had little or no
economic power.
Chronologically her works belong to the Romantic age, a time in which feelings and passion for the world and what was happening in it were paramount for many writers. Austen, however, remained untouched by the upheavals which affected other artists of her time, even though she was a close contemporary to the greatest Romantic poets, Wordsworth and Coleridge. She was certainly not ignorant of the power of feelings but believed they should be controlled. Her novels are a balance between reason and feelings and her female characters may be independent, but they do not aspire to individualism and real unconventionality like Romantic heroes.
Novel of manners
Pride and Prejudice is a typical novel of manners, clearly illustrating how people interact, and how the feelings you show in public can often be very different to your true feelings. Property, social class and the need to marry to maintain both are at the heart of this novel. This heart, however, is cleverly disguised by a complicated interweaving of events, misunderstandings and jealousies, all coated in a patina of wit and irony which is typical of Jane Austen's style.
Pride and Prejudice
The Bennet family (Mr and Mrs Bennet and their five daughters: Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty and Lydia) live in Longbourn, Hertfordshire. They discuss the expected arrival of Charles Bingley, a rich young man who'll soon be living at a nearby estate called Netherfield. Mrs Bennet wants her husband to go and meet him, as he might make a good husband for one of her daughters. Marrying them off is her main concern in life.The Bennets soon meet Mr Bingley at a ball organised by their neighbours. He arrives with his sister and a friend, Mr Darcy. While all agree that Mr Bingley is a very nice man, Mr Darcy is recognised as being snobbish and conceited. From this moment, however, Elizabeth and Darcy meet several times on different occasions and while a love story develops between her sister Jane and Mr Bingley, Elizabeth does not seem to notice the increasing interest that Darcy has for her as she is more conditioned by the negative gossip she hears about him. Her prejudice towards him becomes almost unbearable when she hears that Darcy convinced Mr Bingley not to marry her sister Jane.
Darcy's first attempt at proposal and Elizabeth's bitter refusal represent the central point of the plot. From this moment on the reader, Elizabeth, begins to learn more about Mr Darcy and his real nature.
She begins to put the pieces together of a complicated story and in the end is forced to realise how Darcy has acted in a dignified and generous manner towards her
family on more than one occasion. Darcy later tells her that it was all done in an attempt to win her love. By now Elizabeth is forced to look inside herself and acknowledge how her own feelings towards Darcy have changed. The novel ends with Darcy's second proposal. This time both characters confess their mistakes and openly express their feelings for one another. It is a happy ending all round: for Elizabeth, Darcy, Jane, Mr Bingley and for everyone in the Bennet family.
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In the novel “Pride and Prejudice”, Jane Austen uses the techniques of contrasting actions of couples leading up to marriage, characterisation and setting to show the different kinds of marriage and their outcomes. She does this to show the key role of marriage in her society, a concept that remains relevant today.
Austen uses the actions of couple to convey ideas about the three motivations for marriage, these being lust, convenience and true love. The actions of Lydia Bennet and Mr. Wickham are used to convey the idea that lust is not an appropriate motivation for marriage, and that lust can damage reputations and get you into uncomfortable situations. Lydia Bennet and Mr. Wickham act thoughtlessly and disrespectfully when they elope together, barely knowing each others characters or intentions and without the consent of Mr and Mrs Bennet. This results in ‘so imprudent a match on both sides’. The fact that ‘W. never intended … to marry Lydia at all’ damages not only Lydia’s reputations but those of her sisters by association, and gets her into a very awkward situation from which she has to be rescued by Darcy, who pays Wickham to marry her. These actions are used by Austen to show that lust causes more harm than good as a motivation for marriage. The actions of Charlotte Lucas and Mr. Collins are used to convey the idea that mercenary marriage is a realistic motivation for marriage, but not an ideal one. Charlotte Lucas is past the usual age for marriage and there is an increasing possibility that she will never marry. Mr Collins is just looking for a wife on Lady Catherine’s instructions, not really minding who he marries. Neither of them are looking for love but instead they both see marriage as a means of gaining security and comfort. In Charlotte’s opinion, ‘Mr Collins to be sure was neither sensible nor agreeable … But still he would be her husband.’ Charlotte acts to accept Mr. Collins’ proposal despite feeling no love for him. This used by Austen to show how mercenary marriage is acceptable when true love is not an option. The actions of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy are used by Austen to show how true love takes work, but that a marriage based on true love is much happier than one based on lust or convenience. Elizabeth and Darcy initially dislike each other, with Darcy thinking Elizabeth ‘not handsome enough’ and Elizabeth thinking Darcy ‘a most disagreeable, horrid man’. Shakespeare wrote that ‘true love never did run smooth’ and this is especially true in the case of Elizabeth and Darcy. Elizabeth is so offended by Darcy’s initial treatment of her that she rejects his first proposal. This causes him to re-evaluate his attitude and priorities, and this causes such a positive change in his character that Elizabeth is forced to abandon her own pride. She realises that she is in love with him and accepts his second proposal. Elizabeth and Darcy have to overcome many obstacles to reach true love but when they finally achieve it they find that it was worth the effort. Through these actions Austen shows the reader the different motivations for marriage, and shows her opinion on each.
Austen uses characterisation of the couples to enforce her opinions on the different motivations behind marriage. Lydia and Wickham are both characterised negatively, and this encourages the reader to think of their motivation for marrying, lust, negatively. Lydia is portrayed by Austen as shallow, fickle and silly. She has no understanding of correct social etiquette or manners, and is constantly embarrassing Elizabeth and Jane by behaving inappropriately at balls and in Meryton. Wickham is also characterised negatively, ad a gambling, lying man living ‘a life of idleness and dissipation’. Lydia’s silliness and Wickham’s dishonesty further enhance the idea that lust is a poor motivator for marriage. In addition to this, Mr and Mrs Bennet are an example of the outcome of a marriage for lust. Their relationship is hardly ideal, neither of them are happy and the reader is encouraged to disapprove of this. Austen’s characterisation of Charlotte Lucas and Mr. Collins also enhances the reader’s view of the different types of marriage. Elizabeth disagrees with Charlotte’s opinions on marriage, and as Elizabeth is portrayed by Austen as a likeable character the reader is inclined to agree with Elizabeth’s view of Charlotte. Charlotte is a realist who does not believe that true love is necessary in a marriage and that ‘happiness in marriage is entirely a matter of chance’. Her views are less attractive than Elizabeth’s, who believes that if you marry for love happiness will naturally occur. Mr. Collins is characterised as an unintelligent, smarmy man and it is difficult to empathise with either of these characters, but as Austen does characterise parts of their lives positively and they do take some positive actions the impression created is not overly negative and the idea that mercenary marriage is acceptable when necessary is reinforced. Elizabeth and Darcy and both characterised as intelligent, proud and lively characters who are able to overcome their differences to fall in love. They are both characterised positively in the novel through their actions and interactions with other characters, and through their happiness at the end of the novel we see that true love is the ideal motivation for marriage and what should be aimed for.
Austen also uses setting to show the outcomes of the different types of love. The outcome of lust is shown both through the setting of Longbourn and through the setting of Lydia and Wickham’s marriage. Both are unstable and temporary. There is an entailment on Longbourn that means that after Mr. Bennet dies, the estate will be out of the family. Lydia and Wickham are always ‘moving from place to place in quest of a cheap situation’. This shows the temporary nature of lust and the negative outcomes that it has. The outcome of mercenary marriage is shown through the setting of Hunsford where Mr. Collins and Charlotte live following their marriage. They are both happy here, and they have the security and comfort that they married for. It is a preferable environment to the temporary nature of the Bennets' and the Wickhams' settings but not ideal, just like mercenary marriage is preferable to lust, but not ideal. The setting of Pemberley where Elizabeth and Darcy live following their marriage shows the positive outcome of true love. The grounds and buildings of Pemberley are described much more favourably than any other setting in the novel. It is permanent, admired by everyone who knows it and envied by everybody, even by members of Darcy’s own class such as Bingley, who says “I will buy Pemberley itself if Darcy will sell it.” This shows the permanent nature of a marriage based on true love, and how it is the ideal.
Austen’s purpose in “Pride and Prejudice” is to convey ideas about love and marriage. Marriage played a pivotal role in society at the time this novel was written. This is shown by the first lines of the novel, which read “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” In this novel Austen provides advice and social commentary on marriage, and what the correct motivations for it should be. This was especially relevant for women in the 19th Century, as the quality of their adult life would depend on their marriage, as they would be utterly dependent on their husband. Marriage is still an important part of society today, so the novel continues to be relevant today.
In the novel “Pride and Prejudice” Jane Austen effectively used the techniques of actions, characterisation and setting to convey her message of different forms of love and marriage. This message is still relevant in the 21st Century due to the continuing importance of marriage in society.
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