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Pride and Prejudice is a romance novel set in the regency era of Britain. Accordingly, the characters are bound to strict social conventions. The story follows the lives of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy as they realize their own flawed natures and learn to love each other despite societal norms holding them back. Pride and Prejudice is full of literary devices and nuances that make it appealing to readers centuries later. I’m going to go through events in Pride and Prejudice with the lens of a literature professor, so you can start noticing these literary patterns as well.

Every Trip is a Quest

Pride and Prejudice repeatedly emphasizes trips that become quests. What if I told you that every single novel follows the very same formula: the protagonist goes on a quest (this can be as simple as a trip to the grocery store or as convoluted as a mission to save the planet). Nine times out of ten, the point of the quest is not what it seems, but rather it is self-knowledge. For example, in the novel, the protagonist Elizabeth visits Netherfield Park when she hears that her sister is ill. Her sister Jane had walked there in the rain, had fallen sick, and had to be cared for by the Bingley family who lived at Netherfield. While it may seem like a simple journey completed by a thoughtful and caring sister, it is actually the author’s way of introducing the antagonist further than previously. Elizabeth meets Mr. Darcy again at Netherfield, and the tensions quickly grow between the two of them. This quest is the first step in the hero’s journey plot line; Elizabeth – the hero – meets Mr. Darcy – the villain. Their opposing personalities and belief systems clash, stimulating the rising action of the book. Later in the novel, Elizabeth Bennet travels to spend some time with her best friend Charlotte who was recently married. In that particular trip, Elizabeth gains an enormous amount of self-knowledge – the most likely purpose of any quest. Over the time Elizabeth had spent at Netherfield and her friend Charlotte’s house, Mr. Darcy had begun to value Elizabeth over everyone else. Initially, he had searched for every single flaw in her to feign a feeling of hatred, but later he realized how mistaken he was and what a wonderful person Elizabeth truly was. He fell for her liveliness, quick wit, and honesty. Mr. Darcy proposed to Elizabeth revealing his intense feelings for her. Elizabeth was completely oblivious to Darcy’s feelings beforehand. Mr. Wickham – the worst villain in the story – had also spread lies about Mr. Darcy to make people hate him, which led to Elizabeth shutting down Darcy’s proposal. After her rude rejection, he offers her a letter explaining his side of the story. Elizabeth Bennet, who had formerly prided herself on accurately judging people, becomes increasingly guilty as she realizes that she was completely mistaken about Mr. Darcy’s personality. She only viewed him as an arrogant, snobbish man before, and the revealing of the truth also opened her eyes to her own flaws. Elizabeth realized her unfair prejudices towards Mr. Darcy and personally vows to never again judge someone so cruelly and pessimistically. In Elizabeth Bennet’s very last journey in this novel, she gains even more self-knowledge. She at last becomes aware of her own feelings for Mr. Darcy. Touring estates was a popular pastime in regency era England. Elizabeth only agreed to tour Mr. Darcy’s Pemberley Estate because she was assured that he would not be there; after her rude treatment of him, she feared another interaction would be painful for them both. While touring Pemberley, all of Darcy’s servants praise him graciously. They spoke of his kindness towards the help, his caring nature towards his sister, and his overall thoughtfulness. Elizabeth was once again struck with guilt for rejecting such a man and even imagined what would’ve happened if she had not as she looks fondly upon his beautiful estate. When Elizabeth and her family members were just about to leave, Mr. Darcy shows up. Much to Elizabeth’s surprise, he treated them with the utmost respect leaving Elizabeth with the realization that Darcy still had feelings for her. Pride and Prejudice is full of trips and journeys that result in the protagonist gaining wisdom.

Vampires

Secondly, the evil villain Wickham was a vampire. (No, not the blood-sucking type). The vampire archetype/character which is commonly seen in literature is any character who preys on the innocent maliciously. In Darcy’s letter to Elizabeth redeeming his character after his failed proposal, he reveals the details why Wickham resented Darcy. Wickham was raised by Darcy’s father, and the two of them grew up together. When Darcy’s father died, he left Wickham a couple thousand pounds. Wickham – being the gambler and greedy person he is – spent it all soon after, and had to beg Darcy for money. Darcy obviously refused knowing that Wickham would just spend it again, so Wickham came up with a plan to seduce Darcy’s younger sister. Wickham was very much older than the young Miss Darcy, and he used that to his advantage as he tried to coerce her into an elopement. Wickham assumed that if Miss Darcy married him, he would have a part in the family fortune. Luckily, Mr. Darcy managed to stop him before anything irreversible happened. In this situation, Wickham the Vampire is preying on the innocence of Miss Darcy the Victim. Also, later in the story, Wickham runs off with Lydia Bennet – Elizabeth’s younger sister. The event is a tragedy to the entire Bennet family, and they believe their entire name and worth tarnished because of it. Society’s constraints are again seen in this chapter. The Bennet family works as hard as possible to try and find the runaway pair and force them to marry, so the people of England don’t shun them (premarital affections were viewed as horribly disgraceful). Once again, Mr. Darcy comes to the rescue and pays Wickham to marry Lydia because he cares deeply for Elizabeth and the wellbeing of her entire family. Wickham’s predatory actions towards not only one but two young women characterize him as a vampire. This characterization also serves in improving Mr. Darcy in the eyes of Elizabeth because he contrasts so very starkly with Wickham. Previously, Mr. Darcy was the only antagonist because he was viewed as snobbish. After the elopements, Wickham became the most hated in all the town because there is nothing more vile than someone who manipulates other people’s innocence to further his own goals. Jane Austen builds the character of Wickham in such a way that it fits perfectly with the archetype of a vampire.

Symbolism

Additionally, Pride and Prejudice nicely portrays the importance of symbols. One such symbol in the novel is Pemberley Estate which is owned by Darcy. The estate represents Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth’s feelings for him. Pemberley symbolizes the possibility of a perfect marriage and life with Mr. Darcy for Elizabeth; it is obvious through Austen’s descriptions that Elizabeth considers the estate to be absolutely picturesque. Although initially in the story the estate was viewed as intimidating in richness while Elizabeth resented Darcy’s pride, she views it as stunningly beautiful the moment she grows affectionate towards its owner. Another significant symbol in the novel is the outdoors. Jane Austen often sets scenes of realization and honesty in the outdoors because nature represents clarity. For example, Elizabeth receives the letter revealing Wickham’s cruel nature and Darcy’s good character in a park, Darcy realizes Elizabeth’s beauty after her long walk outdoors, and Darcy proposes for the second time and is met with success while walking in gardens with Elizabeth. Being connected with nature often brought out the best of each of the characters. Their previous misconceptions were proven wrong just as Elizabeth began to find Darcy a good man, and Darcy began to find Elizabeth beautiful – despite him calling her barely tolerable at a ball. All of these events prove the idea that the outdoors in Pride and Prejudice are a symbol of clarity.

Conclusion

Pride and Prejudice is the perfect example of three main literary devices. Every trip is a quest, there is an archetypal character similar to a vampire, and objects and places symbolize deeper meanings. When reading deeper, all of these literary devices contribute to the theme of the novel: people are not always what they seem, and it often takes a crisis to learn the truth about them.