Theme Of Letters In Pride And Prejudice

An important feature of Jane Austen’s novel, “Pride and Prejudice,” is the utilization of letters, which were the prevalent form of communication in the nineteenth century. “The novel is packed with correspondence, with forty-four letters referred to, and eighteen of those either heavily quoted from or given in full” (Fullerton 46). Letters are used as a dramatic device in the novel to advance the plot, uncover character and benefit in the composition of theme in “Pride and Prejudice.” Through the use of letters, and discussions about letters, Austen creates an intriguing plot. “Letters of invitation, letters of thanks, begging letters and those full of explanation, letters announcing dramatic events and letters of congratulation fill many

Elizabeth begins to see she has truly misinterpreted both men saying that she had been “blind, partial, prejudiced and absurd” (Austen 137). Austen states that “Pride and Prejudice, like her other novels, is about people who learn (though some fail to learn) to recognize good in others, and therefore they themselves become better people” (Austen vii). This letter expresses the theme and can be viewed as the turning point of the novel. In Jane Austen’s novel, “Pride and Prejudice,” letters function to advance the plot, inform readers of character’s personalities and expose the theme of pride and prejudice. Austen declares the importance of letters by explaining, Every day at Longbourn was now a day of anxiety; but the most anxious part of each was when the post was expected. The arrival of letters was the first grand object of every morning’s impatience. Through letters, whatever of good or bad was to be told would be communicated, and every succeeding day was expected to bring some news of importance (Austen 192).

In “Pride and Prejudice,” letters serve as both a mode of explanation by the writer and a method of connection by Jane