Pride And Prejudice Sexism

Words: 981
Pages: 4
Open Document
It is difficult to apply modern ideologies such as feminism to works of past generations because of how greatly gender dynamics have evolved. Still, Pride and Prejudice can be considered a feminist work because Jane Austen presents a realistic protagonist that fights against the sexist social conventions of her time without falling into reductionist cliches. Austen portrays Elizabeth as a realistically imperfect character rather than either characterizing her as an exaggerated ideal or as sexist cliche. Like all the other characters--male and female--in Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth is flawed. In fact, the novel’s central theme, that people form prejudices without fully understanding situations, reflects one of Elizabeth’s greatest personal …show more content…
In the Victorian era, marriage represented the only real path towards security for women. Because of the rules of primogeniture, women had to marry within or above their class in order to secure their social and economic standing. Austen emphasizes the importance of marriage through the characters’ reverence towards it as a social institution. For Elizabeth’s friend Charlotte, “marriage had always been her object; it was the only honourable provision for well-educated young women of a small fortune” (Austen 120). By interjecting the importance of marriage throughout the novel, Austen reinforces the significance of Elizabeth’s brazen actions in rejecting multiple suitors. Mr. Collins’ disbelief in response to Elizabeth’s rejection further underscores the rarity of her actions. He insists that “my situation in life, my connections with the family of De Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favor; [...] it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made to you. Your portion is unhappily so small” (106). In response to Mr. Collins’ protestations, Elizabeth implores him to “not consider me now as an elegant female [...] but as a rational creature” (106). Elizabeth wants Mr. Collins to treat her as an equal rather than reducing her to the cultural stereotype of women he avows to. This exchange embodies Elizabeth’s repudiation of the sexist norms of her time and, therefore, solidifies Austen’s status as a feminist
Show More

Related Documents: Pride And Prejudice Sexism

Comparing Pride And Prejudice And It's Relevant To The Present

January 2015 Pride and Prejudice and It’s Relevance to the Present Prompt: How is the work relevant to the present? Pride and Prejudice is a story of the weaknesses of humans, of friendships and the most fundamental of feelings. Jane austen is regarded as one of the greatest authors in literary history. Being a woman, she was forced to publish her works anonymously due to the patriarchy of the 1800s and the expectation that women wrote “silly” novels that couldn’t be taken seriously. Pride and Prejudice…

Words 825 - Pages 4

P1 – Explain the Range of Meanings Attached to Citizenship, Diversity and the Associated Terminology Essay

P1 – Explain the range of meanings attached to citizenship, diversity and the associated terminology Racism Racism is prejudice or discrimination directed against someone of a different race based on such a belief. An example of racism in the public services comes from a news report on channel 4 earlier this year. The report tells how there has 120 racism cases in the Metropolitan Police over the past decade, but only one officer was dismissed as a result. This shows that racism is common in…

Words 1290 - Pages 6

To Kill A mockingbird Essay

manages to send us the main reason why her book is still significant. To Kill a Mockingbird is an accurate historical representation of the culture of American South during the Great Depression. The Ewell family symbolizes the type of white pride and prejudice toward African Americans and other minority groups. Tom Robinson’s character serves an example of the victimized black man who is found guilty of a crime because of his skin color instead of his actions which would prove him innocent. In this…

Words 616 - Pages 3

Womens and Genders Studies Essay

Essay topic 1B Sarah Durrer 100889288 Women’s and Gender Studies-1808 B Dr. Debra Graham Yamikani Women’s and Gender Studies- B02 December 3rd, 2012 Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice is critical of the gender injustices of the 19th century. The story revolves around Mr. and Mrs. Bennet and their five unmarried daughters, Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Catherine, and Lydia. The main interest of Mrs. Bennet’s life is to see that all five of her daughters marry, preferably to wealthy men…

Words 836 - Pages 4

Alice Walker Tone

nightgowns to bed and overalls during the day. I can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man. My fat keeps me hot in zero weather,” (Thakkar) yet even while she defends her own sense of self, she never slides into deprecation but maintains a tone of pride: “Johnny Carson has much to do to keep up with my quick and witty tongue.” She is compassionate when she speaks about Maggie, but critical when she speaks about Dee and frequently sarcastic when she speaks to her. However, I think the author becomes…

Words 1894 - Pages 8

Higher English Essay

the training and previous competition get you to the final spot of success. Both of these achievements are unforgettable moments of sporting pride. These achievements have also been won by other women which proves that women have a lot of success in sporting events which have been achieved by sporting celebrities. At live matches and games it is still prejudice that people prefer to watch the men play sport rather than women. The only sports that are popular for women is gymnastics, swimming and beach…

Words 1112 - Pages 5

religon note Essay example

biblical term that sums up the nine visible attributes of a true Christian life written of by Paul in his Letter to the Galatians chapter 5. Ageism: Stereotyping and discrimination against individuals or groups on the basis of their age. Sexism: Prejudice or discrimination based on a person’ssex. Materialism: THe excessive desire to acquire and consume material goods. Racism: Actions, practices, or beliefs that…

Words 1488 - Pages 6

Essay Just Dark Enough 20

Ashanti Mason-Chambers Jane Shattuc VM_____ 15 December 1014 Just Dark Enough Living in a twenty first century world that is heavily influenced by media, one can rarely escape from the various messages being broadcast. Whether it is television and film or social media and the Internet, media platforms can be seen portraying images nearly everywhere. In the midst of the countless forms of media, society is constantly discussing the true impact media has on the general public verses the public’s…

Words 8983 - Pages 36

Intersectionality: The Causes Of Public Shaming Women

Public shaming can happen to any one, for any reason, at any time. In today’s society, a shaming attacks the fault of a person – whether it be racism, sexism, or lying – but there is always a division of shamers that focus not on the action that brought on the shaming, but the person who is being shamed. When shaming minority groups, people use their physical or cultural traits to harass them. Intersectionality is a complicated state of being in society that entails unique issues and paves the way…

Words 1197 - Pages 5

How Does African Americans Change Their Identity

certain demographics and their contributions to the country or community. Black and white demographics are in a constant cycle of hate and love, especially in the United States. Throughout its history, white Americans had treated black Americans with prejudice and discrimination for so long, it changed the global identity and self-identity of black men forever. With the ever-growing lack of proper parenting in the black community and constant discrimination from their own people, it is safe to assume that…

Words 2258 - Pages 10