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Pride and Prejudice Essay
Essay about Mrs Bennett's mothering skills as well as the relationship with her daughter Elizabeth compared to Jane
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Pride and Prejudice EssayThroughout Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice, Mrs Bennet is often displayed as an
overbearing mother who wants nothing more than to secure her daughters a rich husband.
She does not appear to be concerned about any of their genuine happiness. Mrs Bennet
also has very different relationships with all her daughters and this is most clearly shown
through her relationship with Elizabeth compared to the one with youngest daughter Lydia.
Lydia and Elizabeth are very different to one another themselves. Lydia can be described as
the wildest and most reckless Bennet daughter and is said to have “high animal spirits” but
at the same time is her mother’s favourite. They spend most of their time together
gossiping, socializing and much to Mrs Bennet’s delight speaking about men allowing them
to form a strong bond. Mrs Bennet appears to be oblivious to Lydia’s impulsive behaviour
such as her decision to marry Wickham, a man she does not know much about. However
she chooses to follow through because that is what is expected from her mother. This in
turn helps to grow their relationship. Mrs Bennet is the only person who fully accepts and
supports the marriage as the “business of her life was to get her daughters married.” This
also proves that there is a lack of parental guidance as well as discipline for the youngest
child due to favouritism. It is also fair to say that Lydia is too young to make her own
decisions and therefore she follows her mother’s guidance, unlike Elizabeth does, making
her the favourite child.
On the other hand Elizabeth Bennet, the second oldest daughter appears to be the most
intelligent and strong minded sister and this could be one of the many reasons her mother
and her do not get along. They do not have much in common, if anything at all and unlike
her mother her first priority is definitely not marriage. Throughout the course of the novel
she proves that her many admirable qualities allow her to rise above the society she is living
in as well as above her mother. She describes herself as having “a stubbornness about me
that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others”. Many of the other Bennet
daughters follow their mothers command but this is not the case with Elizabeth. One may
say that this is the reason Mrs Bennet does not show the same concern for Elizabeth as she
does for Lydia. This is proven as she shows very little support for Darcy and Elizabeth’s
relationship compared to what she did for Lydia and Wickham’s. Overall Elizabeth and her
mother have very contradicting personalities and views on life which make the relationship
between them incredibly difficult, especially in the society they lived in during that time.
It is also evident throughout the novel that Elizabeth shares a close and connected bond
with Mr Bennet whereas Lydia with Mrs Bennet. The parents themselves do not appear
particularly close and are very different in the way they think and go about life. Much like
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