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Pride and prejudice CHARACTERIZATION
Essay on characters of pride and prejudice
Essay on characters of pride and prejudice
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To what extent does pride become a harmful or beneficial trait? Pride is the feeling of pleasure gained from one’s own achievements. There are two types of pride; “good” and “bad”. Good pride is when one’s intention to help another is to prosper and positively assist them. The person who helps the other gains pride after he completes his “task”, showing how his fundamental goal is to benefit the other person. On the other hand, bad pride is when one’s intention is to benefit himself, ultimately resulting in the harm for others. Men who possess bad pride put their own satisfaction in front of someone else’s, and their main goal is to essentially obtain pride. To be able to achieve this goal, men go on to “help” others to gain a better reputation. …show more content…
Darcy, Mrs. Bennet, and Lydia Bennet. Darcy is widely perceived as the “proudest, most disagreeable man in the world” (13). In the beginning of the novel, Darcy exhibits bad pride by putting his reputation in front of Elizabeth’s feelings. For instance, Darcy says to Bingley at the Netherfield ball, “[Elizabeth is] not handsome enough to tempt me” (13). Darcy does not only unveil his arrogance, but he also offends Elizabeth by calling her too ugly for his satisfaction. Although Elizabeth “remained with no very cordial feelings towards [Darcy]” (14) after his rude remark, Darcy’s comment holds the potential to lower Elizabeth’s self-esteem and pride in her beauty. In this example, Darcy favors his pride, consequently revealing a harmful trait that can negatively affect Elizabeth, or in fact anybody, which ultimately makes Darcy seem narcissistic and vain. Although Darcy originally shows bad pride, his character reveals later that he, as a matter of fact, obtains mostly good pride. In a conversation between Elizabeth and Wickham, Elizabeth asks, ‘“can such abominable pride as [Darcy’s], have ever done him good?”’ (80). Wickham responds, ‘“Yes... brotherly pride, which with some brotherly affection, makes him a very kind …show more content…
This deed is to experience and get to know Darcy through time, and Wickham does just this. He finds Darcy to be “liberal and generous” (80), rather than viewing him as egotistical. Furthermore, since Darcy cares for his family rather than only for himself, he displays a sense of concern and responsibility for others, proving that Darcy does possess good pride. This quote demonstrates how Darcy cares about his family’s well-being by showing affection to them and consequently, Darcy gains pride after he expresses his love to them, verifying that Darcy obtains good pride. Another example of Darcy displaying his good pride is through his love for Elizabeth. Darcy expresses his love for Elizabeth by paying for Wickham’s debts. As a result, he helps the Bennet family from having to pay a fortune. Darcy conveys his strong admiration for Elizabeth not by direct love, rather he turns to her family as a way of transmitting his adoration for her. This act of helping her family shows how his love for Elizabeth is so powerful, it causes him to help her family for the sake of helping them and not for a good reputation. We know this is true
Pride is a trait everyone possesses, but is having pride and being boastful a double-edged sword? Pride and boasting are something that appears in many different characters with different manifestations throughout literature. In "Beowulf" and "Lanval", pride and boastfulness are demonstrated as both a strength and a weakness. Having the pride to boast caused many issues for Beowulf, Lanval, and Queen Guinevere.
When considering the connotation of pride and whether it is a good or bad characteristic it is important to consider the definition applied. Pride, according to the Oxford Press Dictionary, is defined as “a feeling of pleasure or satisfaction that you get when you or people who are connected with you have done something well or own something that other people admire.” While this definition does not insinuate a faulty or sinful perception, and a healthy measure of pride is acceptable, there is a line of demarcation that cannot be crossed. Pride has become a customary and unquestioned value that has been ingrained in culture because society the structure and precepts of God have been removed from the worldview. Pride has evolved beyond a beneficial characteristic and, for some, has morphed from an acceptable satisfaction derived from one’s own achievements, to an unreasonable desire or love of one 's own excellence.
What is the effect of having too much pride? Can different forms of pride such as familial and social have different consequences? Pride is usually considered to be a positive aspect in one’s life, but too much of it can have adverse results. By observing today’s society, as well as Shakespearean society, it is clear that too much pride in any form can inhibit the ability to accept differences in people and oneself.
Pride is defined as “a feeling that you respect yourself and deserve to be respected by other people.” It is also defined as “a feeling that you are better than other people.” These definitions rings true for the obstacles the characters face in both Much Ado About Nothing and Pride and Prejudice. (“Pride” Merriam Dictionary).
In Pride and Prejudice, the main female character Elizabeth is shown to have extreme pride towards the main male character Darcy. This is because in their first meeting Elizabeth's pride is wounded by Darcy as he says She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me, and I am in no humour to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men.' This thoughtless and proud comment causes Elizabeth to take an instant dislike to Darcy. It also clouds her judgement of Darcy's true nature.
Darcy, the illusion that Mr. Wickham had built surrounding himself was now shattered: “How different did everything appear in which he was concerned.” Elizabeth now realizes her mistakes, which her prejudice was built and hopefully will never fall for such deceit again. Mr. Darcy is not the only one who is haughty, Elizabeth’s pride takes a massive blow after reading the letter, “she grew absolutely ashamed.” Realizing her mistakes will make Elizabeth grow as a person as she realizes how despicable she was, and has learned from her mistakes. Elizabeth had always thought she had the perfect judgement, but in fact she was horribly blind: “Till this moment I never knew myself.” Elizabeth now sees that she has flaws and it got in the way of her judgement rendering it blind. It is in maturity that people see their flaws; now Elizabeth has to make sure the same mistakes does not happen again. It was only after her prejudice of Mr. Darcy was finally gone that Elizabeth realized her true feelings towards him: “She explained what it’s [the letter] effect on her had been, and how gradually all her former prejudice has been removed.” After reading the letter, Elizabeth was able to realize her flaws as a character and grow into maturity and because of that she was able to see her true feelings about Mr.
Mr. Darcy was prideful all because he was too shy to socialize with other people. He was too prideful to admit that he was shy, so he decides to degrade Elizabeth’s
However, Darcy was prideful in public, but upon Elizabeth refusing his marriage proposal and reprimanding his prideful behavior, he had not necessarily a change of heart, but a reveal of his true character. He heeded to her reproach and allowed his inner gentlemen to surface. In the same way, Elizabeth was humbled by her original, incorrect assessment of Darcy. She had branded him prideful and allowed that one trait to encompass her entire opinion of him. I was convicted by this ordeal, because I tend to be incredibly intuitive about people and situations, which many times proves to be beneficial, but when it leads me astray I am really, really in the wrong.
Pride is idolatry, boastfulness, and the failure to recognize deficiencies (Peters 87). With time, people have become more accepting of pride in their societies. This progression of acceptance has led to alterations in the definition. It is the slight tweakings of the definition that have allowed us to perceive pride as a deadly sin and simultaneously an essential for success.
The reader is first acquainted with Mr. Darcy's arrogance at the Meryton Ball. Speaking of Elizabeth Bennet, he so snobbishly says that she was, " tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me" (Austen 9). His feelings of superiority to the people of the town lend Mr. Darcy to be judged as a man with a repulsive and cruel personality. The women, who had found him dashingly attractive at first glance, deemed him a man unworthy of marriage because he offered no positive qualities other than wealth. Not only did Darcy refuse to dance with Elizabeth, but he makes it clear that no woman in the room was worthy or met his standards of a suitable partner stating that, " there is not another woman in this room, whom it would not be a punishment to me to stand up with" (Austen 8). In the beginning of the novel, Mr. Darcy is only concerned with the wealth and social standing of the people in the town. Because of their lesser social rank, he feels they are un-deserving of his presence and refuses to communicate with them. As the novel progressed, however, Darcy became more and more accepting of the Bennet family. Growing most fond of Elizabeth Bennet, the straightforward, clever daughter, he finally breaks and confesses his true feelings of love for her. "In vain...
The Good and Bad of Pride As people grow into adults and experience things that help us grow and have more knowledge in doing things, which lead into accomplishing more; we have pride in it, in what was accomplished. When we feel the need to have something to give or say to make us look good it's almost as we are envisioning what will happen from the beginning of doing so. But what if having to much pride is bad for us. If we are already envision something that will give us the feeling of pride, then are we prideful and expecting the respect from others? In article one “why pride is nothing to be proud of” it states that the merriam webster dictionary say pride is “ a positive one is a feeling that you respect yourself and deserve to
Mr. Darcy, the leading male character in the novel, possesses an ancient family name, magnificent estate, and a sizable fortune which may seem to contribute to his pride. But later on in the book, we learn that he is a generous master to his servants and tenants and a loving brother to his young sister Georgiana. He is responsible for so much: his sister, his family name, and his estate, Pemberley. Although seen as excessively proud in a negative way, Charlotte Lucas defends Darcy by saying that a man of his wealth and family background has a right to be proud.
Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has emphases on how characters are perceived by the world they live in. Mr. Darcy is an unpopular and misunderstood character who is the symbol of pride throughout the novel. Mr. Wickham is a charismatic soldier who is perceptive of those around him and capitalizes on his knowledge. Throughout the novel similarities and differences between characters are highlighted. Mr. Wickham and Mr. Darcy grew up together, yet Mr. Darcy is known for having a disagreeable countenance and a large sense of pride and Mr. Wickham is more charming, charismatic, and socially well-versed. In the fourth chapter of Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth says “It does not necessarily
Darcy’s feelings towards Lizzie begin to change at the second ball, and again when she visits Jane at Netherfield. It is almost as if the hatred has sparked an interest, one that turns to love. Due to social norms, Darcy believes he cannot be with Elizabeth. He refers to it as a “handicap,” she does not belong to the aristocratic class of society and wealth as to which Darcy belongs. This social pressure puts a strain on the possible relationship. Despite this obstacle, the two continue to get to know one another. Darcy admits to avoiding weakness, which includes vanity but no pride. This is another problem in the relationship, Darcy is a prideful man and sees nothing wrong with it. They continue to feel drawn to each other, no matter the differences in
Darcy has pride in his character and morals and has a prejudice for the Bennet’s and their money. Now people do the same things for money, rather than choosing to live happy and stable lifestyles. Another comparison is having the ability to tell the truth or being deceitful. Darcy is telling Elizabeth many lies to make him look more appealing to her.