Post by Save Your Karma on Jul 27, 2007 14:58:19 GMT -5
Deana Kalcich
English 211
Professor Wilson
February 20, 2007
Power in Pride and Prejudice
“It is a truth universally acknowledge that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife…this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families that he is considered as the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters” (Austen 5). It is obvious from the very first line of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice that wealth and marriage are two social constructs essential to the characters within the novel. That emphasis also implies the all powerful wealthy male reigns supreme. Despite the novel’s opening, Judith Lowder Newton writer of “’Pride and Prejudice‘: Power, Fantasy, and Subversion in Jane Austen” disagrees that wealth dictates who is truly powerful in the world of Pride and Prejudice.
Newton argues that even though the opening of Pride and Prejudice emphasizes the distinction between the privileges gentry men enjoy and the limitations placed upon gentry women the novel does not focus on equating monetary control with personal power.
Men in the novel, despite their inheritance and estates, are seen as objects which women toy with and bend to their will. Men also posses a mobility that women do not and this makes them feel autonomous (Newton 31).This attitude makes men feel as if they can control women but as Newton puts it “ Their sense of power and their real pomposity are at base, a setup, a preparation for poetic justice, a license to enjoy the spectacle of men witlessly betraying their legacy of power, of men demonstrating impressive capacities for turning potential control into ineffective action and submission to the power of others” (Newton 32). A strong point to back up this assertion is the significant fact that the proposals of marriage that the reader actually witnesses are all unsuccessful because the man proposing gets caught up within his own power and ends up offending the woman he seeks to marry. Newton also points out that male power as a whole is undercut by the how some men like Mr. Collins and Sir Lucas bend in submission to others. “Men in Pride and Prejudice are essentially set up - to surrender, to misuse, to fail to realize the power that is their cultural legacy” (Newton 32)
Women have far less potential for power and wealth as marrying a wealthy man is an absolute necessity. Woman have no preconceived notions of power, in fact most of their time is spend scheming and finding ways to manipulate men. Despite this lack of power Newton points out that we as readers “are never allowed to feel that woman’s lack of privilege must result in powerlessness”(Newton 33). For example the reader sees the constant worrying of Mrs. Bennet about her daughter’s financial future is undermined by comic commentary of other characters and even the narrator. Though the novel contains woman who are completely governed by social decorum, Charlotte Lucas to name one, however they seem to be a side note as the reader is focused on Elizabeth Bennet.
Real power in Pride and Prejudice lies within the intelligence and wit of Elizabeth. Elizabeth is critical of women’s eagerness to please men and puts herself as far as she can away from such behavior. If money really equated power within the novel, Elizabeth Bennet’s refusal to marry the suitable man proposing would be viewed as reckless. “It is Austen’s subversion of economic realities and of male power that permits us to enjoy the rebellious exuberance and energy of Elizabeth because it is principally this subversion which limits, from the onset, the extent to which we feel Elizabeth is in conflict with the forces of her society” (Newton 35). Though Elizabeth has the ability to rebel against the notion that she should eagerly please men without challenging their social privilege, Elizabeth’s real power according to Newton is Elizabeth’s ability to criticize her own vulnerability to male approval.
Newton’s argument holds true when examining the men within Pride and Prejudice . The most obvious example of the type of powerful façade but in reality a submissive interior is Mr. Collins. In Mr. Collins’ proposal to Elizabeth he can’t possibly understand her refusal.
”You must give me leave to flatter myself, my dear cousin, that your refusal of my addresses is merely words of course. My reasons for believing it are briefly these: It does not appear to me that my hand is unworthy your acceptance, or that the establishment I can offer would be any other than highly desirable. My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you” (Austen 94).
Mr. Collins sees his power, and yet he willfully gives it away by allowing the wishes of Lady Catherine to give his life meaning. She is his patroness so his compliance with her wishes is mandatory. However, Mr. Collins gives away his male privilege in his ecstatic pleasure in every word that comes out of her mouth. Mr. Collins gives his power away almost gleefully. At least Mr. Bennet attempts to regain some sort of control. Mr. Bennet does give into Mrs. Bennet’s wishes, but at the very least he gives the illusion that he can ignore her will. This can be seen in the beginning of the novel, Mrs. Bennet insists Mr. Bennet call upon Mr. Bingley. Mr. Bennet verbally refuses her adamantly, though in the end he does go, information he only shares with her when he chooses to. Though he does bend to Mrs. Bennet he retains some power in the way he withholds information.
Women do seem to have more power than one would expect given their social proscriptions. Mrs. Bennet’s control of Mr. Bennet and her success in forcing him into hiding, even if through annoyance, has given her power to do and spend her time pretty much the way she chooses, within the household. Lady Catherine, while she has a somewhat elevated status, tells everyone everything, and anything she wants; men and women alike. Men in particular are in awe of her and her household. For example, during Elizabeth’s visit, Elizabeth seems the only one, though she is still awed, able to look upon Lady Catherine with composure. Mr. Collins talks of her house and her opinions as though she is a goddess. “Sir William was so completely awed by the grandeur surrounding him, that he had but just courage enough to make a very low bow, and take his seat without saying a word; and his daughter, frightened almost out of her senses, sat on the edge of her chair, not knowing which way to look’ (Austen 138).
Contrary, or rather in addition to Newton’s analysis, Elizabeth’s power comes from her intelligence and her ability to know just how far she can stretch her limits. The is exemplified best in her dealings with Mr. Darcy. While Elizabeth does not accept Darcy’s criticism of her family, she does not deny that he has the status and ability to do so. Elizabeth’s ability to assess a situation above and beyond the moment and social stigma gives her the most power she could ever hope to gain.
Newton is correct in her analysis of power within Pride and Prejudice. Monetary power is not the ultimate means to be powerful. Knowing how to assess a situation and make decisions that will in the end be the best for you both financially and emotionally gives characters like Elizabeth power. Elizabeth knows how to get what she wants. She is intelligent enough to understand that being happy is not only about money, power is not about money. Happiness, intelligence, personal growth, lead the way to power.
Works Cited
Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. New York: New American Library, 1996
Lowder Newton, Judith. “’Pride and Prejudice’. Power, Fantasy, and Subversion in Jane Austen.” Feminist Studies 4.1 (Feb. 1978). JSTOR. JSTOR. 17 Feb 2007 <http://www.jstor.org/view/00463663/sp040006/04x0144n/0>
English 211
Professor Wilson
February 20, 2007
Power in Pride and Prejudice
“It is a truth universally acknowledge that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife…this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families that he is considered as the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters” (Austen 5). It is obvious from the very first line of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice that wealth and marriage are two social constructs essential to the characters within the novel. That emphasis also implies the all powerful wealthy male reigns supreme. Despite the novel’s opening, Judith Lowder Newton writer of “’Pride and Prejudice‘: Power, Fantasy, and Subversion in Jane Austen” disagrees that wealth dictates who is truly powerful in the world of Pride and Prejudice.
Newton argues that even though the opening of Pride and Prejudice emphasizes the distinction between the privileges gentry men enjoy and the limitations placed upon gentry women the novel does not focus on equating monetary control with personal power.
Men in the novel, despite their inheritance and estates, are seen as objects which women toy with and bend to their will. Men also posses a mobility that women do not and this makes them feel autonomous (Newton 31).This attitude makes men feel as if they can control women but as Newton puts it “ Their sense of power and their real pomposity are at base, a setup, a preparation for poetic justice, a license to enjoy the spectacle of men witlessly betraying their legacy of power, of men demonstrating impressive capacities for turning potential control into ineffective action and submission to the power of others” (Newton 32). A strong point to back up this assertion is the significant fact that the proposals of marriage that the reader actually witnesses are all unsuccessful because the man proposing gets caught up within his own power and ends up offending the woman he seeks to marry. Newton also points out that male power as a whole is undercut by the how some men like Mr. Collins and Sir Lucas bend in submission to others. “Men in Pride and Prejudice are essentially set up - to surrender, to misuse, to fail to realize the power that is their cultural legacy” (Newton 32)
Women have far less potential for power and wealth as marrying a wealthy man is an absolute necessity. Woman have no preconceived notions of power, in fact most of their time is spend scheming and finding ways to manipulate men. Despite this lack of power Newton points out that we as readers “are never allowed to feel that woman’s lack of privilege must result in powerlessness”(Newton 33). For example the reader sees the constant worrying of Mrs. Bennet about her daughter’s financial future is undermined by comic commentary of other characters and even the narrator. Though the novel contains woman who are completely governed by social decorum, Charlotte Lucas to name one, however they seem to be a side note as the reader is focused on Elizabeth Bennet.
Real power in Pride and Prejudice lies within the intelligence and wit of Elizabeth. Elizabeth is critical of women’s eagerness to please men and puts herself as far as she can away from such behavior. If money really equated power within the novel, Elizabeth Bennet’s refusal to marry the suitable man proposing would be viewed as reckless. “It is Austen’s subversion of economic realities and of male power that permits us to enjoy the rebellious exuberance and energy of Elizabeth because it is principally this subversion which limits, from the onset, the extent to which we feel Elizabeth is in conflict with the forces of her society” (Newton 35). Though Elizabeth has the ability to rebel against the notion that she should eagerly please men without challenging their social privilege, Elizabeth’s real power according to Newton is Elizabeth’s ability to criticize her own vulnerability to male approval.
Newton’s argument holds true when examining the men within Pride and Prejudice . The most obvious example of the type of powerful façade but in reality a submissive interior is Mr. Collins. In Mr. Collins’ proposal to Elizabeth he can’t possibly understand her refusal.
”You must give me leave to flatter myself, my dear cousin, that your refusal of my addresses is merely words of course. My reasons for believing it are briefly these: It does not appear to me that my hand is unworthy your acceptance, or that the establishment I can offer would be any other than highly desirable. My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you” (Austen 94).
Mr. Collins sees his power, and yet he willfully gives it away by allowing the wishes of Lady Catherine to give his life meaning. She is his patroness so his compliance with her wishes is mandatory. However, Mr. Collins gives away his male privilege in his ecstatic pleasure in every word that comes out of her mouth. Mr. Collins gives his power away almost gleefully. At least Mr. Bennet attempts to regain some sort of control. Mr. Bennet does give into Mrs. Bennet’s wishes, but at the very least he gives the illusion that he can ignore her will. This can be seen in the beginning of the novel, Mrs. Bennet insists Mr. Bennet call upon Mr. Bingley. Mr. Bennet verbally refuses her adamantly, though in the end he does go, information he only shares with her when he chooses to. Though he does bend to Mrs. Bennet he retains some power in the way he withholds information.
Women do seem to have more power than one would expect given their social proscriptions. Mrs. Bennet’s control of Mr. Bennet and her success in forcing him into hiding, even if through annoyance, has given her power to do and spend her time pretty much the way she chooses, within the household. Lady Catherine, while she has a somewhat elevated status, tells everyone everything, and anything she wants; men and women alike. Men in particular are in awe of her and her household. For example, during Elizabeth’s visit, Elizabeth seems the only one, though she is still awed, able to look upon Lady Catherine with composure. Mr. Collins talks of her house and her opinions as though she is a goddess. “Sir William was so completely awed by the grandeur surrounding him, that he had but just courage enough to make a very low bow, and take his seat without saying a word; and his daughter, frightened almost out of her senses, sat on the edge of her chair, not knowing which way to look’ (Austen 138).
Contrary, or rather in addition to Newton’s analysis, Elizabeth’s power comes from her intelligence and her ability to know just how far she can stretch her limits. The is exemplified best in her dealings with Mr. Darcy. While Elizabeth does not accept Darcy’s criticism of her family, she does not deny that he has the status and ability to do so. Elizabeth’s ability to assess a situation above and beyond the moment and social stigma gives her the most power she could ever hope to gain.
Newton is correct in her analysis of power within Pride and Prejudice. Monetary power is not the ultimate means to be powerful. Knowing how to assess a situation and make decisions that will in the end be the best for you both financially and emotionally gives characters like Elizabeth power. Elizabeth knows how to get what she wants. She is intelligent enough to understand that being happy is not only about money, power is not about money. Happiness, intelligence, personal growth, lead the way to power.
Works Cited
Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. New York: New American Library, 1996
Lowder Newton, Judith. “’Pride and Prejudice’. Power, Fantasy, and Subversion in Jane Austen.” Feminist Studies 4.1 (Feb. 1978). JSTOR. JSTOR. 17 Feb 2007 <http://www.jstor.org/view/00463663/sp040006/04x0144n/0>
