Please consult the blog rubric below. Use at least one direct quotation from the text. Try to come up with something fresh. Engage with each other. Be personal. Use your voices. Be brilliant!
Complete Audiobook:
Chapter I - 04:44
Chapter II - 04:23
Chapter III - 08:51
Chapter II - 04:23
Chapter III - 08:51
Chapter IV - 05:46
Chapter V - 05:14
Chapter VI - 12:21
Chapter VII - 10:12
Chapter VIII - 10:10
Chapter IX - 09:24
Chapter X - 11:49
Chapter XI - 08:45
Chapter XII - 03:49
Chapter XIII - 08:42
Chapter XIV - 06:50
Chapter XV - 09:02
Chapter XVI - 17:58
Chapter XVII - 06:57
Chapter XVIII - 27:15
Chapter XIX - 11:25
Chapter XX - 09:19
Chapter XXI - 10:37
Chapter XXII - 09:26
Chapter XXIII - 08:26
Chapter XXIV - 10:09
Chapter XXV - 07:50
Chapter XXVI - 12:01
Chapter XXVII - 06:44
Chapter XXVIII - 07:53
Chapter XXIX - 13:25
Chapter XXX - 06:20
Chapter XXXI - 08:16
Chapter XXXII - 08:07
Chapter XXXIII - 09:31
Chapter XXXIV - 11:22
Chapter XXXV - 16:01
Chapter XXXVI - 11:09
Chapter XXXVII - 08:23
Chapter XXXVIII - 06:34
Chapter XXXIX - 07:54
Chapter XL - 09:01
Chapter XLI - 12:27
Chapter XLII - 09:57
Chapter XLIII - 24:58
Chapter XLIV - 12:06
Chapter XLV - 09:09
Chapter XLVI - 15:59
Chapter XLVII - 20:28
Chapter XLVIII - 12:29
Chapter XLIX - 11:24
Chapter L - 11:01
Chapter LI - 10:09
Chapter LII - 15:13
Chapter LIII - 14:55
Chapter LIV - 08:11
Chapter LV - 11:40
Chapter LVI - 14:44
Chapter LVII - 09:11
Chapter LVIII - 12:42
Chapter LIX - 12:49
Chapter LX - 07:56
Chapter LXI - 06:33
The classic miniseries (1995) with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle
The major release update (2005) with Keira Knightley and Rosamund Pike
Coming out February 5th: Film adaptation of Pride & Prejudice and Zombies (2016)
Blog
Criteria
Directions:
This is your space to read and discuss ideas about the material we read
in class. You will notice that these
blog responses are intensive, but it will allow you to speak your mind and
obtain immediate feedback. These
homework assignments will count substantially, and the rubric below will help
guide you. I will show some examples in
class, and you are always free to discuss your work with me in class or after
school.
A range has the following qualities:
Ø
Well written
Ø
Personal voice is present
Ø
Thoughtful, meaningful, and there is always evidence that the
student read the text closely
Ø
Responses do not merely agree but challenge fellow students to
think critically
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At least 3-4 well chosen direct quotations from a text
Ø
Responds to fellow classmates so that a dialogue is going on
Ø
Takes risks
Ø
Returns to add comments to have a conversation
B range may exhibit some of the above
qualities, BUT:
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Too formal, little personal engagement
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1-2 direct quotations, may not be well chosen or framed
Ø
A thinner response than the A range
Ø
A super long technical response that could be more concise
C range may exhibit some of the above
qualities, BUT:
Ø
Responds to the prompt in a general manner
Ø
Repeats what someone else wrote, as the student obviously did
not read through the other responses
Ø
There is a voice, but little evidence that the student read
closely
Ø
There are no direct quotations, but there are some concrete
examples
D and F range may exhibit some of the above
qualities, BUT:
Ø
Late responses that could be high quality but only completed to
avoid a zero
Ø
A few sentences and comments, but little to no analysis
Ø
Little engagement
Ø
Is openly cruel to a classmate
Ø
Knowingly inappropriate
Hello.
ReplyDeleteIn Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen writes with a playful and satirical voice, pointing out little mannerisms from her time period, and then poking fun at them through her sophisticated writing. Her narrative is littered with such references, such as the very first line of Chapter 1: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” Here, Austen takes the common thought of mothers with daughters in her era, and halts the reader in thought. Is this truly what all single men solely think about when coming to town? Now that you read this aloud, it seems not to be so. She continues to poke fun at this common misconception, and writes that it matters not what the man has to think, but he shall marry one of the daughters in the town. Her satire is cleverly crafted and well placed, and she doesn’t let up after the first few sentences. When Mr. Darcy is criticized for his prideful demeanor on page 12, Austen writes through the voice of Mary that “Pride… is a very common failing I believe… that human nature is particularly prone to it, and that there are very few of us who do not cherish a feeling of self-complacency…” In doing so, she turns the general outlook on pride on its head, saying that we are all afflicted with some sort of it, and, in my take, that it’s quite hypocritical to be talking about his exhibited pride when they all have their own. Through a character’s voice, Austen is able to correct a public view. Altogether, Jane Austen has a wonderful sense of humor as she writes, which brings insight into her time period.
ReplyDelete- Brianna Preston
So far my impression of Pride and Prejudice has been that I really like it - an awful lot more than I thought I would. After getting over the intricate and deliberately complex wording that Austen uses, I was able to begin to enjoy the wittiness and thoughtfulness of it. I’ve found that I like Elizabeth as the narrator; she’s insightful and critical and apt to pay attention, and it really comes through whenever the chapter is angled from her perspective. Her attentiveness is also shown in generally how she behaves as a character, like when she decides to pay careful attention to Jane and Mr. Bingley in Chapter 6, page 15, to further satisfy her previous assumptions that it would be very obvious to anyone, and to each other, how much they both admired one another. Through Elizabeth’s eyes I’ve also picked up on something gender related, which is something I’m finding is a very recurring theme in this book. I’ve noticed how in light of finding a husband, the girls not only scrutinize each other harshly, but also very unrealistically. How in depth Elizabeth goes to reflect poorly on Mary and the specificity of where she thinks Mary goes wrong in her character on page 16 shows how strictly women were held to high standards. There doesn’t seem to be much support and empowerment among the women, and they only ever talk about men when they converse. The last thing I’ll point out about the book so far is the amount of odd spelling choices Austen uses, such as “teazed” (pg 15), “chuses” (pg 14), and “shewn” (pg 21). I’m assuming it’s the old English aspect of her writing, but I’ve found it pretty funny. Overall, I’m having a good time reading Pride and Prejudice, since it’s not only interesting plot wise, but a fun challenge to decipher the meaning of every other sentence.
ReplyDelete- Jenna Shorey
Unlike Brianna, before reading the novel Pride and Prejudice, my understanding of Jane Austen was incredibly limited. Albeit I never read any of her works, when her name was mentioned, visuals of flowery language, old English dialogue, and ostentatious houses and clothing poured into my mind. As I began Pride and Prejudice, I soon found that my vague understanding of Jane Austen was very true. Though her writing style was a bit flowery (as predicted), she wrote with such eloquence and imagery as well. I could almost envision the scenes in my head--particularly the one about the ball, where the language was especially rich and vivid. Also, like Brianna mentioned, she does incorporate many (typically sarcastic) jokes and mannerisms regarding that time period. Oftentimes, the jokes are involving the absurdity of their ideals, which include marrying someone for money over love ("It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." P. 1). To me, the book seems more dialogue-based, which gives a more indirect idea of the different personalities of the characters. From his boastful and dry statements, I immediately got a sense of Mr. Darcy's proud character. This is most evident in the scene of the ball, where he makes the prideful remark, "She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me" (P. 7) when refusing to dance with Elizabeth. The same goes for Elizabeth and how different she is compared to her sisters, who often talk more of love and wealth. In the scene where Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley are discussing their idea of a "perfect" lady, both Elizabeth's traits and Mr. Bingley's ignorance are shown ("They all paint tables, cover skreens and net purses. I scarcely know any one who cannot do all this...", "I never saw such a woman. I never saw such capacity, and taste, and application, and elegance..." P. 26). Of course, her remarks tend to be more intelligent and substantial, revealing more of her character.
ReplyDelete-Jill Schuck
I, like Jenna, was pretty surprised by my initial positive impressions of Pride and Prejudice. I went into the book thinking it would be something like A Tale of Two Cities. Thinking it would be something like Dickens’s long, dense and overly descriptive work. But it wasn’t. Something about the way Jane Austen just moves the book along, as a reader I can only describe myself as floating through the text. Yes, I had a small adjustment period, it took a few pages to get into the rhythm of the book but after that, I just floated through. Austen’s transitions are easy, partial interactions between characters are highlighted but parts are also summarized to keep the novel moving. Characters just seem to pop in and out of scenes. One moment it is just Mrs. Bennett, Jane, Elizabeth, Mary and Charlotte Lucas involved in conversation and then, suddenly a young Lucas is speaking. It should be disconcerting, but it’s not. All Austen writes is that, the young Lucas had come “with his sisters” and the transition is complete. All these characters just moving in and out of the spotlight should be disconcerting, but somehow it’s not, it just keeps the reader engaged. The chapters themselves are brief. Each frequent chapter break provides Austen with the opportunity to start new conversations and situations resulting in the engagement of the reader once more! How could you not be engaged? If you blinked you miss half the book.
ReplyDelete-Ellie Yates
Jane Austen begins her novel by stating “it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want a wife”. The wit and satire that reside in this single sentence are present in each chapter, and the way in which Ms. Austen displays her humor is extremely enjoyable to read, making Pride and Prejudice exceed my initial expectations. After making this bold statement, we are introduced to our first two characters, who also make the first of many foil pairs which are present in the novel. Mrs. Bennett is a woman of “mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper”, or, to put it in more modern terms, stubborn and close-minded. She takes the statement made in the first sentence as fact, and unrelentingly pursues the wealthy newcomer, Mr. Bingley, as a potential husband to one of her five daughters. Mr. Bennet, on the other hand, is a reserved, quick witted man, who Jane uses to accentuate the nervous persistence of his wife. Here Ms. Austen uses foil pairs to emphasize one attribute of a character, and she does this again with Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley. They are both described rich and handsome, but the similarities between the two men end there. While Bingley was well mannered and good humored, Mr. Darcy came to be regarded as “the proudest, most disagreeable man in the world”. Here she emphasizes the pride and rudeness of Mr. Darcy. What theses foils showcase are important characteristics, ones which ultimately shape the course of the novel.
ReplyDelete-Ethan Coyle
As of chapter 8 of Pride & Prejudice Jane Austen seems to write with a sort of casual tone. I think that her writing style is very unique as it maintains that playful tone while still being compact and fast-paced. Her style can be described as “less is more”. One such example of this is the first couple of lines in the book “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife“. This quote pokes fun at the attitudes towards marriage at the time making fun of the parents who lob their daughters at the wealthy single men, hoping that one of them would be chosen as a bride. Another example of this is “Elizabeth looked archly, and turned away. Her resistance had not injured her with the gentleman, and he was thinking of her with some complacency, when thus accosted by Miss Bingley”. I feel like this passage was a great example of how to transition and lose no momentum between the conversations. It uses the empty space that most authors leave blank and uses it to characterize Darcy even more without leaving any redundancies. Overall I think that Jane Austen has a nice writing style that is fun to read and decipher. What do you people think about her writing style?
ReplyDelete-Josh Tao
I also had no prior knowledge of Jane Austen. From what I’ve read so far it seems like the setup for a romantic comedy or soap opera. It's mostly dialogue without tags of who's speaking which reminds me of a manga with the pictures taken out. This makes it hard for me to keep track of who's speaking. I guess this kind of dialogue would make it easy to adapt to a play or a movie. If I am reading this correctly I noticed that they tend to value women by their beauty and disposition. Like “Miss Bennet he acknowledged to be pretty, but she smiled too much.”(10) or “Lizzy is not a bit better than the others; and I am sure she is not half so handsome as Jane, nor half so good humoured as Lydia.”(2) These are only a couple of the many descriptions of the woman focusing only on their looks and assumed personality.
ReplyDeleteI’ll be honest, when beginning this book I had low expectations for it to be a gooey novel along the lines of “Eat Pray Love” for the pre-Victorian England, fortunately I was quickly proven wrong. Thus far the book has shown to be a dry and witty read with themes that apply universally, consisting of well rounded characters and social commentary in an unexpected form. Austen comments, not only on the scrutinizing social standards of the early 1800s, but also on the true character of a human being, a precedent for the time, commenting on, not so ironically, pride-- “Pride … is a very common failing, I believe. By all that I have ever read, I am convinced that it is very common indeed; that human nature is particularly prone to it.”(12) I also agree with Brianna here, and finding Austen’s statements about pride to be very hypocritical, yet intentional to poke fun at this eras ideas about pride. Austen seems to make fun of her very characters and writing by adding in the bit about Mary, “… who piqued herself upon the solidity of her reflections,”(12) showing how very common a failing pride is. From the beginning we are presented with a diverse cast of characters each inherently human and well rounded, something I wouldn't have expected. For example, I think it’s impossible to not related to Elizabeth, who seems the most sensible of the lot, and route for her as she strikes down the standards for being a lady that she is meant to follow, like when rejecting Mr. Darcy, as undeterred as he may be. Particularly, when in the Bigley house, you can easily empathise with her as Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley gossip incessantly about her, and feel Elizabeth’s satisfaction as she drop the mic by saying “I never saw such a woman, I never saw such capacity, and taste, and application, and elegance, as you describe, united.”(26) Elizabeth proved to be very refreshing amongst the incessant propriety that Austen mocks by example. Overall I’m excited to continue reading.
ReplyDelete-Eileen O’Farrell
Honestly, I am also enjoying the novel, especially Jane Austen’s sarcasm and writing pace. A lot of characters are introduced very quickly, and yet it doesn't feel to heavy with exposition. We get to see character’s motivations and relationships develop without suffering through long introductions. Also, since the first chapter Austen has woven in this theme of marriage for love vs. marriage for benefit. We see it with the mismatched Bennets, and again when everyone talking about Mr. Bingley and Jane. The character Charlotte summed this mentality about marriage up, saying, “Happiness in marriage is entirely a matter of chance (14).” Many thought that people should marry for an advantage and sort out their feelings after. I know this idea was pretty common at the time, but it feels so wrong to me. As Josh pointed out, Austen has already poked fun at this idea with the very first sentence, so hopefully it will continue to be challenged.
ReplyDeleteI’m having a little trouble with following who is speaking too, Ayla. We get to meet quite a few characters very quickly, and I think that Austen introduced them well, but there are a lot of people to keep track of, not mentioning when they are called by nicknames or last names. That plus the fact that sometimes there are no dialogue tags makes it hard to follow who is speaking sometimes. Hopefully as we read more we’ll get used to it.
When I first saw the book Pride and Prejudice and saw the cover with colorful peacocks and the quality of the book was bad I thought that it was going to be a boring book. I then remembered my mom talking about this book and she said that it was going to be a good book. After reading the first eight chapters I understood why it was a great book. The book was fast paced and kept you on your feet. Mr. Darcy was a person that stuck out the most in the book. “She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; and I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men” I thought this was interesting because all the men want to make themselves look gentlemen like, with lots of manners but Mr. Darcy isn’t, he was rude to Elizabeth and later on he admires Elizabeth. Mary who is the youngest in family thinks that pride and vanity is something that you are stuck with and it is a person’s behavior toward something.“Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us”. Elizabeth on the other hand thinks that she can break out of this and can go outside the social classes and break the norms. So far the book is a fast-paced great novel.
ReplyDelete-George Joseph.
Similarly to George's entry, I too would have thought the book to be more boring as the use of older english sometimes intimidates me and the use of longer outdated words bores me. However, after the first eight chapters the story progresses quite quickly. One character that I find interesting in particular is Mr. Darcy whose self-centered point of view changes throughout the chapters, which possibly indicates towards early signs of character development. In chapter 3 Mr. Darcy responds to Mr. Bingley’s offer to dance with Elizabeth, “She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me;...” (7). One thing that I notice throughout the text is that Jane Austen uses italicization to express sarcasm or a certain tone in the dialogue of the characters. Later on in chapter 6, Jane Austen narrates that Mr. Darcy is beginning to show more of an interest in Elizabeth. Austen writes, “... to her he was the only man who made himself agreeable no where, and who had not thought her handsome enough to dance with. He began to wish to know more of her, and as a step towards conversing with her himself, attended to her conversations with others” (15). After only 8 pages, Mr. Darcy the man who was insulted by being spoken to, now shows an interest in Elizabeth, while Elizabeth does not think well of him anymore after his bad first impression and egoistic character. This, to me, shows character development from Mr. Darcy, the fast pace of the book, as well as irony in a way that the rich handsome guy who is too good for anyone is now disliked by the average Elizabeth who happens to be the girl that he is interested in. After Elizabeth denies him a dance, Miss Bingley tries to relate to Mr. Darcy by basically calling the party trashy. Mr. Darcy disagrees, “‘Your conjecture is totally wrong, I assure you. My mind was more agreeably engaged. I have been meditating on the very great pleasure which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can bestow.’ Miss Bingley immediately fixed her eyes on his face, and desired he would tell her what a lady had the credit of inspiring such reflections. Mr. Darcy replied with great intrepidity, ‘Miss Elizabeth Bennet’” (17-18). This again shows Mr. Darcy’s definite interest in Elizabeth and the irony of Elizabeth denying Mr. Darcy a dance only 9 pages after he called her “tolerable” and refused to dance with her. I think the book has had a very fast pace so far and I am excited to read more of Austen’s work.
ReplyDelete-Alex Wessel.
When I began reading this book in class, I thought to myself that this was going to be a pretty boring one. I've never heard of Jane Austen before, so the only reason why I would read this book would be that I am told to. As I began reading further, I was proven wrong. This book consists of well rounded characters that you just want to learn more about. Mrs. Bennet is a stubborn and selfish person and Mr. Bennet, in contrast, is a timid, selfless, quick witted man with 5 daughters who he really cares about. Jane Austen does a good job at expressing characters traits early on in the story by using dialogue. Overall I enjoy Jane's writing style so far as it makes me want to learn more about the characters as I read on.
ReplyDelete-Alan Lee
Jane Austen’s writing style is a little difficult to read in my opinion, it is different from what we are used to hearing a lot of the time. I find it funny that there is a contrast between Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s personalities as shown in the first chapter. “Mr. Bennet made no answer” (1) This is in response of Mrs. Bennet’s enthusiasm about the possibility of one of their daughters marrying a rich man. As you can see, Mrs. Bennet is very excited and Mr. Bennet could not care less. Something I found interesting was Mr. Darcy’s character. He seems to be disliked by many people because of his antisocial tendencies. He also seems to be very uptight and hard to talk to. “replied Darcy, to whom this remark was chiefly addressed, ‘there is meanness in all the arts which ladies sometimes condescend to employ for captivation.’” As seen by this statement, Mr. Darcy isn’t a very polite man and can sometimes be too honest. The book has made a good first impression on me and I’m looking forward to reading more of Pride and Prejudice. (Isaac Mezher)
ReplyDeleteI am so far pleased with the Novel, despite my early trepidations. I am normally less than impressed with stories that focus on nothing but social relations. I have however identified exactly what I abhor about them, I cannot stand listening to first person narratives about the narrator’s feelings. Quite frankly, I don’t Care… what makes this story so tolerable, is that it is told from a 3rd perspective. The Narrator does an excellent job of translating the character’s feelings into plain English, a language I can understand.
ReplyDeleteJason Vitale
When Mr Pellerin began reading to us in class I wasn't so sure about the book as I followed along with Jane's old style of writing. I noticed that she tends to drag on a little bit in her sentences kind of like Charles Dickens, but definitely not as difficult to understand. I am now starting to get the hang of her wording after having to reread sentences a few times to fully understand what she was saying. I am enjoying the book so far and enjoy Jane's 3rd person writing style and the way she will describe a situation beforehand and then use dialogue to enunciate. When Mr Bingley refers to Jane as "...the most beautiful creature..." (7) I just found it amusing how they use the word creature. Mr Darcy's personality irritates me but I know that Jane is just setting up the perfect story structure to write about a troubled man falling in love and breaking down his walls. I look forward to finishing the book with the class.
ReplyDeleteCara Richardson
When we first got this book in class I assumed that it was going to just be another one of those books you read in school and forget what happens instantly. I thought it was going to be one of the books that you just spark note to get the jist of what happens because actually reading it is such a bore but pride and prejudice is interesting and doesn't feel like a chore to read. All of the characters are interesting so far even if they haven't been fully fleshed out, each one haveing their own personalities. The writing style takes a little getting used to but after a while of reading it becomes easier to read. I am happy with pride and prejudice so far and I am excited to continue with more of the novel.
ReplyDeleteOver the past few times I have read this novel, I am never surprised that I continue to enjoy the plot. Austen's dry, sarcastic sense of humor highlights the reality of this situation. It is true to have been thought in this era that "... a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife," and this, as well as the focus on social occurrences, guides the reader in a relatable and satirically entertaining story. Although I find this book incredibly relatable for a piece of Austen's time, my attention is frequently drawn to the foil characters. The fact that these people have an incredible contrast only heightens the hilarity of her story. Mr and Mrs Bennet are always a joy when included in a scene because their opposing characteristics compliment each other in a way that arises comedic instances. However, I particularly find the dynamic between Jane, Lizzy, Darcy and Bingley the most amusing. The sisters are exactly the opposite, but despite this, somehow mesh well together, as do Darcy and Bingley. The couples, Darcy and Lizzy, and, Bingley and Jane, make the text work extraordinarily well, through their similarities and the way they each compliment each other's personalities. Had I not read this before, I would have felt similarly to the other students, but with a significantly increased enthusiasm for this specific work of Jane Austen's.
ReplyDelete-Victoria Slayton
My first impression when I read this book was that it was definitely going to be a challenging read. I caught myself reading a couple of sentences at once and then stopping just to make sure I could comprehend and follow along with everything that happened. One of the first details I noticed was that Jane frequently uses the word "handsome" as a female connotation. This surprised me because in todays culture the word is more commonly used as a male trait. The first time this caught my eye was as early as the first chapter when Mr.Bennet was joking with Mrs.Bennet about visiting Mr.Bingley and teased, "You and the girls may go, or you may send them by themselves, which perhaps will still be better, for as you are as handsome as any of them"(page 2). This detail also brought it to my attention that Jane can be repetitive with some of her vocabulary. The reason for this could possibly be that old English had word choice that was quite popular in British literature. Right now this book seems to begin to have some depth in it and I am excited to see where it goes!
ReplyDeleteThe first time I started reading Pride & Prejudice in another language, I did not understand the meaning of this book and why I was advised to read it, I could not even read up to chapter 3. But now I understand why my friends advised me to read it in the original. Me with its simplicity and at the same time hidden sarcasm. The author put his soul into this book and it can be seen through the lines of the book. I'm going to read this before the planned plan.
ReplyDeleteAs I read this novel and as the plot continues to thicken, I am very indulged in the unique way the characters introduce each other and the vividness of Mrs. Bennett's personality.I love how Mr. Bennett is the only male in the house and he is able to go on with his day with all the constant nagging in the house..."they attacked him in various ways; with barefaced questions , ingenious suppositions, and distant surmises"..I love the words they used in this quote, such as attack and barefaced questions to show the dreaded suffering Mr. Bennett has to go through.-Tikweze
ReplyDeleteWhile reading the Pride and the Prejudice from chapter 1-8, Mrs. Bennett seems to be very controlling and has more thought on having her daughters marrying someone with money than falling in love. While on the other hand Mr. Bennett is chill and relaxed, he doesn't have an interest on what his wife is saying to him. I ask myself, how are two completely opposite characters get married to each other? Was the marriage set up? Were Mr and Mrs. Bennett different before they had their 5 daughters? In Chapter 3 we meet new character like Mr. Bingley's sister and brother-in law and the character that sticks out to me is Darcy his best friend that have a steady friendship with. Darcy just seems to be a character that doesn't have a filter and just speaks his opinions even if it's hurtful, when Darcy said to Elizabeth “she is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me.” (7) She immediately disliked Darcy and so would I because he seems to put people down and be a bully. When Darcy was being rude to Elizabeth at the party, it might be a dramatic irony to his rudeness because when men are rude to women and make fun of them it might mean that they might have feelings for them or that she is very pretty. Darcy might be scared to let go of his feelings because he doesn't know how the other companion might react to that situation. We learn that in chapter 5 that Darcy starts to show more affection to Elizabeth. But Elizabeth turns him down because of how he introduced himself at the party. (Bethany Yeung)
ReplyDeleteI usually don't enjoy reading books, but because of the fast pace and constant humor, reading this actually is enjoyable rather than it feeling like a chore. I enjoy Mr. Bennet's sarcastic tone towards his wife. They make the perfect duality with Mr. Bennet being nonchalant and sarcastic, while Mrs. Bennet is serious and easily stressed. The best example of this is when Mrs. Bennet argues that it would be best that Jane or Lydia try to fall in love with Mr. Bingley, rather than Lizzy, saying "Lizzy is not a bit better than the others; and I am sure she is not so half handsome as Jane, nor half so good humored as Lydia." When he calls the girls "silly and ignorant" and that Lizzy is quicker than them, Mrs. Bennet replies with "You take delight in vexing me. You have no compassion on my poor nerves." As always Mr. Bennet manages to strike back with a witty response. Later into the chapters I got to see Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy's duality. At the ball, Bingley danced with people, and was enjoying himself. Darcy barely interacted with anyone, and was uninterested in dancing and falling in love. So far this book has been a good read, and I can't wait to see what happens from here.
ReplyDeleteWhen I heard we were reading a Jane Austen novel, I knew it would likely be about romance, but I didn’t know what else to expect, and was pleasantly surprised by the sarcasm and wit present in the book. One thing I noticed is that the dialogue frequently lacks dialogue tags, making it sometimes difficult to tell which character is speaking. Additionally, Jane Austen uses many foil characters, including Mr. Darcy and Mr.Bingley, Mr. and Ms.Bennett, Jane and Eliza, and so on. One thing that caught my attention was Eliza’s proclamation that “I believe, Ma’am, that I may safely promise you never to dance with [Mr.Darcy].”(12) To me it seems like this may be foreshadowing of a time when she will dance with Mr.Darcy, and a potential romance between them.
ReplyDelete-Sara Earl
I find it funny that Miss Bingley constantly kept making attempts at capturing Darcy's attention, but Darcy wouldn't budge. “'You write uncommonly fast’ ‘You are mistaken. I write rather slowly.’” (31) Jane Austen is once again putting opposite characters together with Darcy and Miss Bingley. I feel like the chapters focused less on Jane and Mr. Bingley (even though thats more or less the reason Elizabeth and Jane were in Netherfield Park) and more on Darcy and his interactions with Elizabeth and Miss Bingley. I also find it odd how Darcy reacts to Elizabeths presence, he seems to pretend to not care about her even though he actually is attracted to her. “To Mr. Darcy it was welcome intelligence -Elizabeth had been at Netherfield long enough. She attracted him more than he liked” (40). I’m looking forward to seeing how Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth will possibly meet again in the future.
ReplyDeleteI found it some what irritating but also quite funny that Mrs.Bennet assured the room that she was not fond of bragging about her daughters beauty however she went on about it anyways. The irony Mrs.Bennet was showing began at the beginning of their visit. Mrs.Bennet honored Jane's looks and announced "I do not like to boast of my own child, but to be sure, Jane-one does not often see any body better looking. It is what everybody says"(page 30). This excerpt shows a lot about Mrs.Bennet's character. We saw at the beginning of the story that she is a very driven woman. She only wants it to be done her way and when something doesn't go her way she will never let it go. For example, when Mr.Bennet said he did not want to visit Mr.Bingley she made a huge fuss about it. In group discussions it is always about her or her daughters and if the conversation is focused on someone else it is about what they can give to her family. It is also noted that somehow that trait was not passed down to her daughters. It has been made evident that Elizabeth and the rest of the girls aren't as self centered. The love triangle that started to form in chapters 9-12 with Miss Bingley, Mr.Darcy and Elizabeth has to be my favorite part. It was amusing to watch Miss Bingley fawn over Mr.Darcy all night while he couldn't help but admire Elizabeth. I am eager to see how this conflict between the three of them increases and unfolds within the next few chapters.
ReplyDeleteI personally have never read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen even though it is one of the most renowned books in the country. In the beginning It started out a tiny bit slow and very confusing, but as the chapters continued it became much easier to understand the language. I knew Who Jane Austen was before I started this book, but I had only known about her because my grandmother was obsessed with this book. The characters in this book are much more complex than I initially thought. The Bennet family for example I assumed was a chaotic family with an annoying high maintenance mother and a non caring father. I was proven wrong for as I read through the first 8 chapters I saw different sides of Mr & Mrs.Bennett. When Mrs. Bennett was telling Mr.Bennet about Mr.Bingley dancing with their daughter it was obvious she really cared about her daughters and their futures. A character I CAN NOT STAND AT THIS MOMENT IS MR. DARCY! “She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me” (pg7). The fact that he said this with in earshot of Elizabeth is so unbelievably rude and made me furious. All though his comment made me furious beyond imagine, I am curious to see how his character changes further into the book. -Madeline Bronder
ReplyDeleteI feel like the chapters were overwhelming and had a lot of information to take in, this is partly because we haven’t read this many pages at once and three new characters were introduced. As Mr. Collins character was introduced it seems like he takes his connection to Lady Catherine de Bourgh as a part of his own identity. He is very proud of it and talks about it quite a few times throughout the chapters. In the first letter that introduced him he even mentioned “I have been so fortunate to be distinguished by the patronage of the Right Honourable Lady Catherine de Bourgh” This makes me wonder if maybe once he inherits the Longbourn estate that he will flaunt it just as he does with his relationship to Lady Catherine. (Isaac Mezher)
ReplyDeleteAs I read this novel and as the plot continues to thicken, I am very indulged in the unique way the characters introduce each other and the vividness of Mrs. Bennett's personality. I love how Mr. Bennett is the only male in the house and he is able to go on with his day with all the constant nagging in the house..."they attacked him in various ways; with barefaced questions , ingenious suppositions, and distant surmises"( 5)..I love the words they used in this quote, such as attack and barefaced questions to show the dreaded suffering Mr. Bennett has to go through. Mr and Mrs Bennet don’t seem like the type of people to be in love with each other so I assume that maybe these two married because of money and not out of love, I can sense this because Mrs Bennet wants one of her daughters to be married off to a rich family. The strange situation going on with Mr. Darcy and Lizzy is really entertaining because he says “ She is perfectly tolerable, I daresay, but not handsome enough to tempt me.” (7) and later on he gives her a look to show her that he is interested. I feel like something will go on with these two and they will add more drama to the story.
ReplyDeleteAs the book goes on, it is becoming increasingly tiring to read. There is still much to read and I have no idea how this book could end, It could introduce aliens for all i know. I feel bad that Elizabeth had to be born in this world where marriage is less about happiness and more of a deal. I also feel bad because she’s being really emotional about Mr. Wickham and I feel like she is repressing her emotions a bit for Mrs. Gardiner because she thinks about what could have been when saying “Her heart had been slightly touched, and her vanity was satisfied with believing that she would have been his only choice, had fortune permitted it” (102) I feel like she may be projecting some remorse despite her response to Mrs. Gardiner. (Isaac Mezher)
ReplyDeleteChapter 1-8
ReplyDeleteIn the book, "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen, we learn that a quite wealthy gentleman named Mr.Bingley is visiting town. One of the biggest things I've noticed was that gender plays a very large role in the chapters. The men that Mrs.Bennet wants the woman to date are all based of wealth, not anything else. One of the over arching statements throughout these chapters have been that a single woman must be in want of a husband, especially a wealthy one. Later in the chapters we also get to meet Mr.Bingleys wealthy friend named Mr.Darcy. Mr. Darcy seems very rude and just not very likeable throughout the whole dance. And as we see between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth is a mutual dislike of one another. -Zachary Mola
9-12: For chapters 9-12 we notice how not nice of a man Darcy is and how much Miss Bennett wants her daughters to marry. Miss Bingley spends the her night, trying to attract Darcy’s attention. She asks Elizabeth to walk with her, and Darcy does look up, and then the two women discuss the possibility of finding something to talk about in his character. Elizabeth writes to her mother to say that she and Jane are ready to return home. Mrs. Bennett wishes Jane to stay longer with Bingley, and she refuses to send the carriage. Later on we see that once again Miss Bingley's strategy to get Darcy and Elizabeth to flirt again fails. I guess you could say they truly do dislike each other.
ReplyDelete-Zachary Mola