Major Works Data Sheet
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APIB English Literature and Composition Major Works Data Sheet Biographical information about the author: Jane Austen was born December 16, 1775 in Steventon to Reverend George Title: ___PRIDE AND PREJUDICE________ and Cassandra Austen. She was the seventh child and formed a very close bond with bother her only other sister and her elder brother Henry, who would become her literary agent. Austen grew up with access to literature Author: ___Jane Austen______ and open learning, with parents and siblings who encouraged her creativity and writing experiments. Her one brush with true love came in 1795 when she fell in love with the nephew of a neighbor, but neither truly had much to Date of Publication: _______1813________ offer in a marriage so his family separated the pair and she never saw him again. The only offer of marriage she ever received she accepted, but rejected the next day, much like one of her heroines. The first draft of First Genre: ____novel of manners________ Impressions, what we know today to be Pride and Prejudice, was completed in 1799 but not published until 1813. Three other of her novels were published in her lifetime: Sense and Sensibility (1811), Mansfield Park Historical information about the period of publication: (1814), and Emma (1815). The books were widely popular with the public This time period, known as the Regency Period, began in and for the most part received favorable criticism, aiding the financial 1811 when the Prince of Wales assumed the duties of King prospects of the Austen women. Jane‟s brother Henry was key in the success George III who suffered from porphyria and was declared of these publications. However, partway through her work on two new novels, Jane grew ill and died on July 18th, 1817. She is buried at the unfit to rule as his behavior became erratic and unpredictable. Winchester Cathedral. Her last two completed works, Northanger Abbey and King George III was largely unpopular for having lost the Persuasion were published posthumously in 1817. colonies in the Americas when they revolted in the 1770‟s. The Prince Regent was discouraged from making policies Characteristics of the genre: regarding official business or war and instead spent large A novel of manners typically deals with satirizing a particular time amounts of money that the Treasury could not cover on period and the behaviors accepted in it, or it describes one person or building projects and large parties. Though he was a large set of persons and their desires to defy the socially acceptable supporter of the arts, his reputation and self-indulgences behaviors or sentiments of the day. In terms of Pride and Prejudice, created in Jane Austen a vehement dislike for him, particularly this most strongly applies to Elizabeth who refuses to marry for when the Prince Regent gave her „the honor‟ of dedicating anything less than passion and love, who admits she will most likely Emma to him, which she could not refuse, nor hide her disdain die an old maid for refusing to settle for anything less. in her wording. Plot summary: Elizabeth Bennett is born the second oldest into an extraordinarily shallow family. Her one point of comfort is her elder sister, Jane, who is as quiet and reserved as she is beautiful and level-headed. The rest of her family is a disaster. Her father, while mostly reasonable, shows little concern for the workings of his family and remains reserved in the peace of his own library, apart from the rest of his family. Her mother and sisters are incredibly silly and possess only thoughts that involve ribbons, balls, gentlemen, and particularly the militia. Thus, they are practically worked up into a frenzy when a handsome, young gentleman named Mr. Bingley, possessing large sums of wealth, moves into the neighborhood with the company of his sister, Caroline, and his long-time friend, Mr. Darcy. The Bennett family immediately descends upon the single gentleman in hopes of him marrying one of the daughters. Indeed, he falls in love with Jane who is much too shy to show much encouragement, despite the mutual emotions. Mr. Darcy on the other hand, fails to impress anyone, despite his wealth. His cold arrogance and apparent disdain for others strike Lizzie particularly hard. She finds friendship in a handsome young officer who has equal hatred towards Darcy, Mr. Wickham. Meanwhile, Jane is invited to spend time with Caroline Bingley, and after catching a cold, is requested to stay there awhile with Lizzie as her nursemaid. This only intensifies Lizzie‟s dislike of everyone but Bingley, Bingley‟s love for Jane, Caroline‟s disdain for the Bennetts, and Darcy‟s attraction towards Lizzie‟s handsome eyes. Thus, almost everyone is glad to see them go, though the Bennetts less so when they discover Mr. Collins, who is to inherit everything from the Bennett family has come to visit the family in hopes of securing a wife. His interests first rest on Jane, but she‟s taken, so he moves on to Lizzie. He proposes to her and she rejects him quite forcefully. He then becomes engaged with Charlotte, Lizzie‟s dearest friend. The mood around the house grows even more gray when it is discovered Mr. Bingley has departed for London, dragged along by his sister and Darcy who declares Jane‟s indifference towards him. Jane also goes to London, to be with her aunt and uncle, and to try to reunite with Mr. Bingley. Meanwhile, Lizzie visits Charlotte and Mr. Collins and meets the cantankerous Lady Catherine who is Darcy‟s aunt and Mr. Collin‟s patroness. While alone one evening, Darcy barges in and announces that he can no longer hide how much he loves Lizzie and asks that she marry him. She coldly refuses and accuses him of separating her sister and Mr. Bingley and of his heartless behavior towards Mr. Wickham. He leaves but writes a letter addressing the two charges in which he is proven faultless except in thinking Jane didn‟t like Bingley. Lizzie travels with her aunt and uncle and accidentally encounters Darcy at his home. At the same time, Lydia is discovered to have run away with Mr. Wickham in a scandal that could ruin the whole family. Unknown to Lizzie, Darcy tracks them down and forces them to marry, paying off Mr. Wickham so that the scandal is abated. Mr. Bingley arrives back in the neighborhood and Jane faces her feelings reemerging, however there is no fear- Mr. Bingley appears and asks forgiveness and marriage to Jane who accepts. Lady Catherine arrives to speak to Lizzie of her engagement to Darcy which Lizzie has no knowledge of. Insulted and humiliated, Lizzie sends her from their home. Later, Darcy asks if Lizzie‟s feelings are the same as they had been before and she says no. The two sisters have a double marriage and stay tight friends. Major Works Data Sheet Page 2 Describe the author‟s style, incl narrator/point of view, Examples that demonstrate the style (you need metaphors/similes: more than one example): Austen uses a third person omniscient narrator with the “As soon as they were gone, Elizabeth walked out majority of the novel coming out of Elizabeth‟s point of to recover her spirits; or in other words, to dwell view through past tense. This point of view often has without interruption on those subjects that must much of the same wit or wry humor that Elizabeth retains deaden them more.” Chapter 54. Ironic tone about through the entire novel. The tone is rather light and her own confusion. comical, almost as Austen describes it “light, bright, and “The tumult of her mind was now painfully great. sparkling.” Since most of the novel is told and described She knew not how to support herself, and from through dialogue, there aren‟t all that many metaphors or actual weakness sat down and cried for half an similies. hour. Her astonishment , as she reflected on what had passed, was increased by every review of it.” Chapter 34 Memorable Quotes Quote Significance “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a This summarizes the assumption of the majority of the Bennett family and gives a single man in possession of a good fortune, must wonderful insight into the mentality of Mrs. Bennett and the three younger Bennett be in want of a wife.” Ch. 1 page 5 sisters. “Which do you mean?” and turning round, he looked for a moment at Elizabeth, till catching her This firmly establishes his reputation of being rude and haughty among many. It also eye, he withdrew his own and coldly said, “She is begins the struggle Darcy has with himself in order to confess his attraction towards tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; Elizabeth and also her own dislike towards him, which is one of the many reasons and I am in no humour at present to give for her refusal of marriage upon his first attempt. consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men.” Chapter 3, page 13 “Vanity and pride are different things, though the This quote by Mary perfectly describes the majority of the characters in the novel. words are often used synonymously. A person may Darcy and Elizabeth, while proud, are not exceptionally vain. Meanwhile, Mrs. be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to Bingley, Mrs. Bennett, Lady Catherine, and Mr. Collins are all incredibly vain. our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.” Chapter 5, page 21 “It is better to know as little as possible of the This statement by Charlotte is highly ironic- both Darcy and Elizabeth both know defects of the person with whom you are to pass each other‟s faults before they ever notice the other‟s good attributes.