Stereotypes In Pride And Prejudice By Jane Austen

The wonderance of film tropes and their origins in Western society is prevalent. Why are the same plots shown again and again? Why are the same character traits recycled? Where did they all come from? Pride & Prejudice, an 1813 novel by Jane Austen, was the first of its kind. It possessed an unconventional and liberated female heroine, a romance started by a strong dislike for each other, as well as many other stereotypes. Pride & Prejudice was the predecessor of the modern romantic comedy and has therefore shaped our societal norms in one way or another. First and foremost, Elizabeth Bennet began the “not like other girls” stereotype seen in romantic comedies. She was a scholar, witty, and does not want to get married. Elizabeth was known

Darcy and Elizabeth’s relationship comes off to a bad start. Their acquaintance begins when Elizabeth overhears Darcy insult her, and then she herself expresses distaste for him. Darcy says, “‘She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me; I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men. You had better return to your partner and enjoy her smiles, for you are wasting your time with me,’” (Austen 9). Darcy’s original standoffish and crude view of her begins their distaste for one another When Elizabeth overhears this, her mother rebuts, “‘But I can assure you,’ she added, ‘that Lizzy does not lose much by not suiting his fancy; for he is a most disagreeable, horrid man, not at all worth pleasing. So high and so conceited that there was no enduring him! He walked here, and he walked there, fancying himself so very great! Not handsome enough to dance with! I wish you had been there, my dear, to have given him one of your set-downs. I quite detest the man,’” (Austen 10). With Elizabeth’s honest, carefree nature, she and her family do not hesitate to automatically hate him. However, she changes her tune later in the novel and falls in love with him. She says, “‘You know nothing of the matter. That is all to be forgot. Perhaps I did not always love him so well as I do now. But in such cases as these, a good memory is unpardonable. This is the last time I shall ever remember it myself,’” (Austen 304). Nowadays, a lot more couples start out this way. This stereotype is more common than not in modern society. In most instances, it is even romanticized. Even when young girls are teased by other boys, they are told it is because he likes her. Darcy and Elizabeth also butt heads often and dislike each other for the majority of the novel. This is especially prevalent when Darcy convinces his