Jane Austen's Pride And Prejudice: Socialization
AP English Literature
10/14/13
Pride and Prejudice: Socialization
Social class has a monumental impact on a person’s social behavior; their impressions on other individuals and society as a whole are greatly influenced by their social class/position. These “first impressions” can have disastrous effects to both the person forming the impressions and the person/people to whom they are directed towards, often because these perceptions blind people from their own personal faults and foibles. As a result, social class predominates their lives, influencing their every motive and action. In the novel Pride and Prejudice, Austen employs this theme in which various characters that pertain from multiple social classes come into conflict with …show more content…
Darcy and Elizabeth. Lady Catherine, the aunt of Mr. Darcy, thought of Mr. Darcy’s marriage to “a young woman of inferior birth, of no importance to the world, and wholly unallied to the family,” as repulsive. She even took out some of her time to visit the Bennets to safeguard no marriage between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy would actually take place. Caroline Bingley, Mr. Bingley’s sister, shows her own prejudices and hate towards the modest Bennets as well. She aspires to the higher levels of aristocracy through marriage to Darcy and looks down upon the lower social class. Like Lady Catherine, Caroline Bingley finds the Bennets to be unworthy of associating with the elite, the rich, the upper social …show more content…
It mentally corrupts people and dictates/influences their decisions throughout their life, leading them to make discriminatory impressions of other people and over-inflate their opinions of themselves. Mr. Darcy, through his interactions with Elizabeth, finally concluded that his wealth did not make him a better person than anyone else. Mr. Collin’s case, however, was completely the opposite. His sudden leap to wealth and prestige corrupted his perception of himself and of others. This goes to show how social class influences a person’s life, whether directly or
10/14/13
Pride and Prejudice: Socialization
Social class has a monumental impact on a person’s social behavior; their impressions on other individuals and society as a whole are greatly influenced by their social class/position. These “first impressions” can have disastrous effects to both the person forming the impressions and the person/people to whom they are directed towards, often because these perceptions blind people from their own personal faults and foibles. As a result, social class predominates their lives, influencing their every motive and action. In the novel Pride and Prejudice, Austen employs this theme in which various characters that pertain from multiple social classes come into conflict with …show more content…
Darcy and Elizabeth. Lady Catherine, the aunt of Mr. Darcy, thought of Mr. Darcy’s marriage to “a young woman of inferior birth, of no importance to the world, and wholly unallied to the family,” as repulsive. She even took out some of her time to visit the Bennets to safeguard no marriage between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy would actually take place. Caroline Bingley, Mr. Bingley’s sister, shows her own prejudices and hate towards the modest Bennets as well. She aspires to the higher levels of aristocracy through marriage to Darcy and looks down upon the lower social class. Like Lady Catherine, Caroline Bingley finds the Bennets to be unworthy of associating with the elite, the rich, the upper social …show more content…
It mentally corrupts people and dictates/influences their decisions throughout their life, leading them to make discriminatory impressions of other people and over-inflate their opinions of themselves. Mr. Darcy, through his interactions with Elizabeth, finally concluded that his wealth did not make him a better person than anyone else. Mr. Collin’s case, however, was completely the opposite. His sudden leap to wealth and prestige corrupted his perception of himself and of others. This goes to show how social class influences a person’s life, whether directly or