Pride & Prejudice

Prideful

The institution of marriage is one of the primary themes of Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice. The emphasis placed upon marriage by the vast majority of the characters in the novel, however, is largely due to the fact that most of them see a successful marriage as a principle means of achieving happiness. However, the specific conditions of an individual marriage account for the degree of happiness its participants will be afforded, and Austen spends a good deal of the novel illustrating the fact that virtue is an integral component of a happy marriage. She presents this idea to the reader by showing acts of commission of virtuous qualities and acts of omission of virtuous qualities, and indicating their effects on a marriage largely through the perceptions of Elizabeth Bennett.

The marriage of Elizabeth's best friend, Charlotte Lucas, with Mr. Collins is one which largely...
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