Characters
This eldest Bennet daughter is renowned for her gentle disposition and beauty, and falls in love with Mr. Bingley.
Who is Jane Bennet?
Austen's famous opening line — 'It is a truth universally acknowledged...' — immediately introduces this social pressure placed on young women in Regency England.
What is the pressure to marry?
The novel is primarily told in this narrative perspective, filtering events through Elizabeth's viewpoint while maintaining a degree of authorial distance.
What is third-person limited omniscient?
The novel's central conflict is ignited at this social event, where Darcy refuses to dance and famously insults Elizabeth.
What is the Meryton ball?
Charming at first, this militia officer is eventually exposed as dishonest, reckless, and deeply in debt.
Who is Mr. Wickham?
Both Darcy's condescension and Elizabeth's hasty dislike of him embody these twin flaws named in the novel's title.
What is pride and prejudice?
Mr. Collins and Mr. Darcy are placed side by side as this literary device — two characters whose contrasting qualities illuminate each other.
What is a foil?
This document, sent after Darcy's rejected first proposal, serves as the novel's pivotal turning point — forcing Elizabeth to question her own judgment.
What is Darcy's letter?
This Bennet family friend accepts Mr. Collins's proposal for financial security rather than love, serving as a foil to Elizabeth.
Who is Charlotte Lucas?
The contrast between the wealthy Bingleys and the financially precarious Bennet family highlights this pervasive theme.
What is social class (or class distinction)?
Austen's reliance on dialogue and action — rather than direct authorial description — to reveal character is an example of this narrative technique.
What is indirect characterization (or showing vs. telling)?
The entailment of Longbourn means the estate must pass to this pompous clergyman, adding urgency to the Bennet daughters' need to marry.
Who is Mr. Collins?
Haughty and obsessed with rank, this aristocratic widow travels to Longbourn to prevent Darcy from proposing to Elizabeth.
Who is Lady Catherine de Bourgh?
Austen critiques this institution as economically transactional, revealing how financial motives often drive decisions more than genuine affection.
What is marriage?
Austen's satirical lens targets this social group — wealthy, idle, and preoccupied with rank — embodied by the Bingley sisters and Lady Catherine.
What is the landed gentry (or British upper class)?
Lydia's elopement with Wickham threatens the family with ruin. Darcy secretly resolves the crisis by doing this.
What is paying Wickham's debts and securing the marriage?
'There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others.' This spirited quote belongs to the novel's protagonist.
Who is Elizabeth Bennet?
Austen's gentle but pointed exposure of Regency society's hypocrisies and vanities places the novel firmly in this literary genre.
What is social satire (or comedy of manners)?
Saying the opposite of what is meant — the defining feature of Austen's famous opening line and her narrative voice throughout — is called this.
What is irony (or verbal irony)?
The novel resolves with two marriages that complete its plot. Name both couples.
Who are Elizabeth & Darcy, and Jane & Bingley?