Mrs. Bennet: Pride and Prejudice

Before 1840 women were viewed as something that needed to be taken care of. They could not own property, fathers would not mention their daughters in their wills, women could not be treasurer of their own companies, it was the husband’s responsibility. Only seven vocations were available to them outside of the home in the late 1840’s; widows would receive no share of her husband’s property or his families, and if one did not marry or remarry she had to enter one of the few employments for her or be a charity case for her relatives. When factory jobs became available to women they were quickly taken because it gave women a way to be independent and not a burden to their loved ones, but earn and spend their own money however the wished. For once

Elizabeth Bennet is considered an odd bird for her time period. She has not been raised by a governess, but rather has taught herself. She is not only well educated she is head strong and sticks to her guns. She has acquired her one view points on her life that differ from most women of her time period. Elizabeth Bennet’s views on marriage differ from most people during her time period.

One of Margaret’s siblings, John, accepted the opportunity to marry a woman higher in social class but needed a substantial settlement, which included a farm, (Preez, 53). John was married to Miss Ward, a woman of high class, in 1803 and essentially ruined the financial prospects of his family. Margaret Ann and her mother, Mary-Ann, were thrown out and forced to either face starvation or reach out for help - this began the path to Margaret’s great success as a medical professional. Mary-Ann reached out to her brother, James Barry, by letter on April 11, 1804 explaining the financial situation of her family. After nine months of correspondence between the siblings, Margaret and Mary-Ann had arrived in London, (Preez, 53). During the 19th century, England experienced great reform throughout all aspects of society. The 19th century altered the ways in which women worked - 80% of the population was considered working class, which often proved difficult for women with children; however, most girls belonging to working class families received an education. During the beginning of the 19th century, churches provided educational services for girls, (Lambert, 1). Later on in the 19th century, the 1870 Education Act was put in place to provide educational services to areas that needed school systems and required that children from the ages 5 to 10 attend schooling, (www.parliament.uk, 1). Many advances were made such as: a ban on women and young boys under 10 from working in mines was established in 1842; a ban on all children under 8 from working was established in 1844; the hours in which women and children could work was restricted to 10 hours by the Factory Act of 1847; 20 years later, in 1867, the act was extended to all factories;

An idealist is someone who follows and is influenced by ideals and standards as opposed to considering the practicalities of a situation. In other words, an idealist does not carefully think every situation through, but rather responds to the norm instead. In Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth Bennet, the novel’s protagonist, is an intelligent and sharp individual, who is profoundly interested in romantic relationships and getting married, as her mother wants her to do. Elizabeth, willing to marry anyone for the sake of romance, becomes easily distracted and, in turn, does not consider every aspect of the situations she entangles herself in before fastening conclusions. Because she so easily succumbs to the powers of romance and often leaves her better judgement at home, Elizabeth Bennet can be considered an idealist.

Some women would even be considered so low in terms of rank because of what others thought they were. Society needed a change and once the late 1800s happened, that’s when movement toward equal education to both men and women were considered “acceptable.” It wasn’t until when women started going to college and finding their own inner peace and not going to college just to find a man, they were going to find who they wanted to be. Now, there were still some women who wanted to go to college to marry a man, but it slowed down once it was acceptable for women to get out of their houses and work for a living.

It wasn’t just not having it widely available to them, as soon as they were old enough they were married and started having kids, which made getting an education was close to impossible for these women. “May we not trace its source in the difference in education, and continued advantages?” (Equality of the sexes) The difference in men and women having and education was that a man was expected to have one and women weren’t. Having an education started to become something that women wanted to have, and from 1896-1911 girls outnumbered boys in high school; women crowded the colleges and almost monopolized the teaching in the public schools (History of woman Suffrage). As women became more educated, men started to somewhat fear what was happening; because women were starting to speak their minds and wouldn’t take no for an

Despite the radical behaviour of Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen would not be consider a feminist by today’s standards. Viewing what meant to be a feminist in Austen’s time, how the main character of the novel illustrated that feminism, what feminism is today we can see how Austen would not be consider a feminist.

From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. ---Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do’” (97). Mrs. Bennet makes a fuss over trivial things and is partial to exaggeration. These attributes prompt her children and husband to see her as unimportant and harmless. Although her word is ineffective in her household, Mrs. Bennet’s persistence to marry her daughters is ceaseless: “Not yet, however, in spite of her disappointment in her husband, did Mrs. Bennet give up the point. She talked to Elizabeth again and again; coaxed and threatened her by turns” (97). Mrs. Bennet can’t see past her marital ideals for her daughters and can’t understand why they don’t concern themselves as ardently as she does with them. In a fit of anger, Mrs. Bennet claims to disown Elizabeth for refusing Mr. Collin’s proposal by stating, “’But I tell you what, Miss Lizzy, if you take it into your head to go on refusing every offer of marriage in this way, you will never get a husband at all --and I am sure I do not know who is to maintain you when your father is dead’” (98). Elizabeth’s mother thinks that her threats have weight but all the Bennet children know her warnings are hollow. Even when Lydia runs away with Wickham and brings shame to the Bennet family, Mrs. Bennet is only concerned with the fact that Lydia is getting married: “She was now in an irritation as violent from

Mrs. Bennet’s desperation is especially noticeable when Elizabeth, the protagonist, is given the opportunity to marry Mr. Collins, a distant cousin and a wealthy land owner. After learning of Elizabeth’s refusal to marry Collins, she implores Mr. Bennet to force Elizabeth to change her mind. In her final efforts to convince Elizabeth, Mrs. Bennet addresses,

They were restricted to occupations that dealt with childcare and minor education positions. Some of the few jobs that women could hold without other is batting an eyelash were governess, schoolteacher, companions, a lady’s maid and as stated before an authoress.

Throughout Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice , there are many references to the unusual character of Elizabeth Bennet ; she is seen to be an atypical female during those times. Wit , bravery , independence , and feminist views all describe a most extraordinary model for women.

Historically, the average women in the Victorian era were only known for doing domestic chores. Middle class women were raised to be submissive, obedient and virginal to fit the image of the Virgin Mother Mary during this era, and having her rights taken away with the male of the household whether it be her father or eldest brother, who would decide what would be best for her. There were very few professions that were open to women who had an education such as a governess as a way to support themselves when times were tough. If a women were to have a higher level of education the men considered it to be of no use because they believed women to be the weaker counterpart both mentally and physically, as well as thinking that work made women ill.

The women at times were also business people. If the women had a husband that passed away, then the women had to take over the family and take charge. Then in the article called Women Workers in the British Industrial Revolution, said, (“women commonly ran shops, taverns, and worked in different places, but were not confined to these areas.”)

Women during the Victorian era were married by their early to mid twenties for the sole purpose of having children. Their jobs consisted of taking care of their families, practicing how to be the perfect housewife, and performing everyday chores such as washing, cleaning, cooking and weaving. If she had married into a wealthy family,her responsibilities would change and the family would hire maids and nannies to take care of those time consuming tasks. At this point in society, women were not allowed to go to school and learn different trades because that privilege was only granted to the men. A professional author by the name of Mrs. Sarah Stickney Ellis had once stated, “A woman’s highest duty is so often to suffer and be still”. Men and women at this time did not have

Another aspect of Elizabeth and Charlotte is their position in society, which is rather different and this is partly down to their wealth. Elizabeth’s wealth is greater than that of the Lucas family. Mrs. Bennet often likes to point out that they