Pride and Prejudice Questions Chapter 1

1. The first title Jane Austen chose for this work was First Impressions. What are your first impressions of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet? Compare and contrast them. Illustrate this with dialogue that gives insight into their characters.

The first impression of this couple is very very contravercial. They are so different that it’s difficult to imagine how they could survived so many years. Mr. Bennet believes in a loving respectful marriage whereas Mrs. Bennet values a marriage which concerns wealth and social status. Their aspirations for Lydia, Jane, Mary, Kitty and Elizabeth mirror their conflicting ideologies. Mr. Bennet seems to have a quiet deep love for his daughters while, on the contrary, Mrs. Bennet’s love is over-acted and conditional. Mr. Bennet was so odd a mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve, and caprice, that the experience of three-and-twenty years had been insufficient to make his wife understand his character.  And mrs Bennet is a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper. When she was discontented, she fancied herself nervous. The business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news.