Book Review: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Age Group/Genre: Romance, Classic, Fiction

Publication date: First published January 28th, 1813

Settings: Heartfordshire (England), Derbyshire (England)

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How I rate it: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Synopsis

Since its immediate success in 1813, Pride and Prejudice has remained one of the most popular novels in the English language. Jane Austen called this brilliant work "her own darling child" and its vivacious heroine, Elizabeth Bennet, "as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print." The romantic clash between the opinionated Elizabeth and her proud beau, Mr. Darcy, is a splendid performance of civilized sparring. And Jane Austen's radiant wit sparkles as her characters dance a delicate quadrille of flirtation and intrigue, making this book the most superb comedy of manners of Regency England (via Goodreads).

My thoughts

Pride and Prejudice is a classic that everyone should, at least, try to read. It talks about a different reality from ours, in which women were still very dependent on men and where th aim of the young women was antagonistic to most young women today: they sought marriage instead of college. Their life depended on a man's fortune, and the richer he was, the better. When I started reading this novel, I thought that it was a bit boring and confusing, specially due to the amount of names that where mentioned (there are 5 Bennet sisters). However, I ended up enjoying reading about all of the characters, and I felt like a mixture of Jane with Elizabeth and Darcy. From the beggining you can almost tell what the ending will be: a love story. So if you like to read books that have a suspense to it, I don't think this one will be good for your taste.

One thing that I did not enjoy was the fact that it was really stuck in the present moment and it didn't go to the future, so I was left dreaming about what will happen to all the characters (which I guess it can also be a good thing). But overall, I ended up enjoying the book and I believe that it provided me with some good life reflexions. Now all that I have to do is watch the movies.

Quotes

"I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! -- When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library." ― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

"I am the happiest creature in the world. Perhaps other people have said so before, but not one with such justice. I am happier even than Jane; she only smiles, I laugh." ― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice