Pride and Prejudice article

This is the link to the article I picked. http://www.jstor.org/stable/450251


The name of the article is "Pride and Prejudice: The Limits of Society," and evaluates the society that Austen creates in the novel. The author, James Sherry, looks at the constraints of the society through the actions of the characters, most specifically the Darcy's, the Bennet's and the Bingley's. Through the interactions of these characters among each other and their own singular actions, Sherry proposes, the reader can infer the rules and structure of the society and also how our feelings are supposed to be towards that character. Sherry uses Darcy as the main example by referring to the description of him in respect to Bingley. Darcy, Sherry points out, is never individually introduced. He is always described as being someone's opposite, and therefore Austen sets up the conflict of interest for the reader. Darcy is almost purposefully put in a bad light for the sole purpose of redeeming himself. On the other hand, the Bingley sisters are introduced first through Jane, who only sees good, then through Elizabeth, who believes she can see people's true personalities. Throughout the rest of her interactions with the Bingley sisters, the readers are shown the perceived "class" distinctions and the stereotypes that the Bingley sisters encompass. 


Sherry goes on to describe English society through Lydia's actions and through examining her carelessness. However, he makes sure to do so only through the perspective of Elizabeth after she has read Darcy's letter. The changed Elizabeth recognizes Lydia's faults and weaknesses and worries that she will disgrace her family only after she realizes Darcy's comments about her family are true. Darcy says that the Bennets will never be comfortable in high society and don't know how to act among others and only disgrace and hinder themselves. In Lydia, as Sherry points out, the reader and Elizabeth sees how all this is true. The disgraceful actions of Lydia only shows more of the limits and constraints of the society that she had no concept of, showing what could happen when girls become women too soon. Throughout his essay, Sherry uses the characters in Pride and Prejudice to provide examples and analysis of English society in the 1800s and the rules that governed it.