Love

Pride and Prejudice contains one of the most cherished love stories in English literature: the courtship between Darcy and
Elizabeth. As in any good love story, the lovers must elude and overcome numerous stumbling blocks, beginning with the tensions
caused by the lovers’ own personal qualities. Elizabeth’s pride makes her misjudge Darcy on the basis of a poor first impression,
while Darcy’s prejudice against Elizabeth’s poor social standing blinds him, for a time, to her many virtues. (Of course, one could
also say that Elizabeth is guilty of prejudice and Darcy of pride—the title cuts both ways.) Austen, meanwhile, poses countless
smaller obstacles to the realization of the love between Elizabeth and Darcy, including Lady Catherine’s attempt to control her
nephew, Miss Bingley’s snobbery, Mrs. Bennet’s idiocy, and Wickham’s deceit. In each case, anxieties about social connections, or
the desire for better social connections, interfere with the workings of love. Darcy and Elizabeth’s realization of a mutual and
tender love seems to imply that Austen views love as something independent of these social forces, as something that can be
captured if only an individual is able to escape the warping effects of hierarchical society. Austen does sound some more realist
(or, one could say, cynical) notes about love, using the character of Charlotte Lucas, who marries the buffoon Mr. Collins for his
money, to demonstrate that the heart does not always dictate marriage. Yet with her central characters, Austen suggests that
true love is a force separate from society and one that can conquer even the most difficult of circumstances.
Reputation

Pride and Prejudice depicts a society in which a woman’s reputation is of the utmost importance. A woman is expected to behave
in certain ways. Stepping outside the social norms makes her vulnerable to ostracism. This theme appears in the novel, when
Elizabeth walks to Netherfield and arrives with muddy skirts, to the shock of the reputation-conscious Miss Bingley and her
friends. At other points, the ill-mannered, ridiculous behavior of Mrs. Bennet gives her a bad reputation with the more refined
(and snobbish) Darcys and Bingleys. Austen pokes gentle fun at the snobs in these examples, but later in the novel, when Lydia
elopes with Wickham and lives with him out of wedlock, the author treats reputation as a very serious matter. By becoming
Wickham’s lover without benefit of marriage, Lydia clearly places herself outside the social pale, and her disgrace threatens the
entire Bennet family.
The fact that Lydia’s judgment, however terrible, would likely have condemned the other Bennet sisters to marriageless lives
seems grossly unfair. Why should Elizabeth’s reputation suffer along with Lydia’s? Darcy’s intervention on the Bennets’ behalf
thus becomes all the more generous, but some readers might resent that such an intervention was necessary at all. If Darcy’s
money had failed to convince Wickham to marry Lydia, would Darcy have still married Elizabeth? Does his transcendence of
prejudice extend that far? The happy ending of Pride and Prejudice is certainly emotionally satisfying, but in many ways it leaves
the theme of reputation, and the importance placed on reputation, unexplored. One can ask of Pride and Prejudice, to what
extent does it critique social structures, and to what extent does it simply accept their inevitability?
Class

The theme of class is related to reputation, in that both reflect the strictly regimented nature of life for the middle and upper
classes in Regency England. The lines of class are strictly drawn. While the Bennets, who are middle class, may socialize with the
upper-class Bingleys and Darcys, they are clearly their social inferiors and are treated as such. Austen satirizes this kind of class-
consciousness, particularly in the character of Mr. Collins, who spends most of his time toadying to his upper-class patron, Lady
Catherine de Bourgh. Though Mr. Collins offers an extreme example, he is not the only one to hold such views. His conception of
the importance of class is shared, among others, by Mr. Darcy, who believes in the dignity of his lineage; Miss Bingley, who
dislikes anyone not as socially accepted as she is; and Wickham, who will do anything he can to get enough money to raise
himself into a higher station. Mr. Collins’s views are merely the most extreme and obvious. The satire directed at Mr. Collins is
therefore also more subtly directed at the entire social hierarchy and the conception of all those within it at its correctness, in
complete disregard of other, more worthy virtues. Through the Darcy-Elizabeth and Bingley-Jane marriages, Austen shows the
power of love and happiness to overcome class boundaries and prejudices, thereby implying that such prejudices are hollow,
unfeeling, and unproductive. Of course, this whole discussion of class must be made with the understanding that Austen herself
is often criticized as being a classist: she doesn’t really represent anyone from the lower classes; those servants she does portray
are generally happy with their lot. Austen does criticize class structure but only a limited slice of that structure.
Family

Family is an integral theme in the novel. All of the characters operate within networks of family connections that shape their
decisions and perspectives. For the female characters in particular, the influence and behavior of their family members is a
significant factor in their lives. Because “the business of [Mrs. Bennet’s] life was to get her daughters married”, the Bennet sisters
constantly have to navigate their mother’s plans and schemes. While male characters like Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley have much
more social and financial independence, they still rely on the judgement and opinions of female family members like Caroline
Bingley and Lady Catherine de Burgh. Individuals are judged according to the behavior of their family members, which is why
Darcy points out to Lizzy that he is doing her a favor by proposing even though she comes with embarrassing family connections.
The theme of family shows that individuals never lead totally autonomous lives, and that individual actions have wider communal
implications.
Integrity

Elizabeth Bennet considers herself to have very high standards of integrity, and is often frustrated and disappointed by the way
she sees others behaving. She complains bitterly to her sister that “The more I see of the world, the more am I dissatisfied with it,
and every day confirms my belief of the inconsistency of all human characters.” She behaves in ways she considers consistent
with her definition of integrity by refusing to marry both Mr. Collins and Mr. Darcy (when he proposes the first time): Elizabeth
thinks it is very important to only marry a man she loves and respects, despite the pressure to achieve economic security. By the
end of the novel, her commitment to integrity has been rewarded because she marries a partner who will truly make her happy.
She has also come to see that she can sometimes be too rigid and judge too quickly, since she was initially mistaken about the
nature and ethics of Wickham and Darcy. The novel both endorses the importance of integrity, and reminds readers not to be too
quick to pass judgement on who has it, and who doesn’t.
Gender

Gender is a key theme in Pride and Prejudice. The story takes place at a time when gender roles were quite rigid, and men and
La storia è un classico d’amore e narra le vicende di Elizabeth e Darcy i cui rapporti non si presentano facili
all'inizio perché le barriere sociali li pongono in contrasto. Entrambi però nel corso della storia crescono
interiormente, si ricredono e si rendono conto dei propri errori. Darcy ci è piaciuto molto come personaggio
perché abbiamo ammirato il fatto che durante il libro non abbia mai dubitato del suo amore per lei nonostante
fosse di una classe sociale inferiore. Ci è anche piaciuto il fatto che per amore abbia addirittura cambiato se
stesso ed i suoi principi. Ma il personaggio di Elizabeth ci ha un po’deluse, infatti nonostante Darcy abbia più
volte dato prova del suo amore lei comunque continuava ad avere pregiudizi nei suoi confronti. Però abbiamo
ammirato il suo coraggio nell’opporsi ai genitori e nell’infrantendere ed ignorare gli ideali di quel periodo legati
al matrimonio. Un altro personaggio che abbiamo trovato molto interessante è quello di Jane, una ragazza
dolce e sensibile che provava un sentimento vero e sincero per mr. Bingley e che sia bella sia dentro che fuori,
infatti secondo noi è la sorella più bella della famiglia. Questo libro è piaciuto a tutte sia per le tematiche
trattate che per la storia affascinante ed appassionante.