Troy University @ Phenix City

Pride and Prejudice:
Should One Marry for Love or Money

Kimberly Smith
English 1102: Composition and Modern English
Professor Owens
12 December 2014

In reading Jane Austen’s, Pride and Prejudice we are faced with various types of marriages and how they came to be. In my research of marriage I have learned that life lessons are far from prefect and yet one needs or wants to be married at some point in his or her life. Whether one chooses to marry for financial stability, convenience or love is one of the age old questions of time. Marriage is a bond between a man and a woman who have chosen each other to share and live their lives together in holy matrimony. Well, that is how we have been raised to think about marriage, but what if one was thinking of various games to play in the process of how to get a husband, what social status they must have, what kind of education and schooling they have had, what is their cultural background and how it will play a part in the type of neighborhood they will live in or even if they will experience true love at all. All of these are things to think about when searching for that perfect mate well at least this is how author Jane Austen has addressed it in her book Pride and Prejudice. First, we must discuss the opening of the book and the very first marriage that is really mention in the book and that is the marriage of the Bennett’s. The Bennett’s marriage consist of five daughters and each one more beautiful than the other one with their own personal charm that made the men notice them. Now, Mrs. Bennett was the mouthpiece of this marriage and she wanted to see her eldest daughter Jane married off first to a man of great status and very rich. Within the book Mrs. Bennett stated, “If I can see one of my daughters happily settled at Netherfield….and the others equally married, I shall have nothing to wish for.” From this one line one can clearly see that Mrs. Bennett is passionate about her daughters marrying for money. It is not important that they marry for love only wealth. Mrs. Bennett seem to have her mind all maid up on how she would like to see things take place when it concerns her daughter’s and marriage. Their father on the other hand is a mild mannered man, who is very passionate about his quietness, his books and his daughter’s well-being. The Bennett’s marriage seem as if they only married for convenience because their does not seem to be any real connection between the couple. They are so proper with each other and on the other hand they do not seem to like each other as a husband and wife should as for the view Austen had place on marriage. The second marriage is the marriage of Mr. Collins and Charlotte Lucas. This marriage was far from what I would call a marriage of love. Charlotte and Mr. Collins is another marriage of convenience. Here is where I see a young lady who is playing the game of getting a husband. Charlotte knows that she is not blessed with the beauty of the Bennett sisters but she has her mind set to marry at any cost. Charlotte states, “I only ask a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins character, connections, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as most people can boast…”everyone knows that Mr. Collins is not a rich man, but Charlotte feels with all his connections he can afford to give her what she desire. Chwe makes mention in his book Game Theory, “how people truly believe in the first impression of you is what they carry with them for the rest of their lives.” With life brings various theories of how one perceives you on the social chart of life. Money brings happiness but does it necessarily brings love. This is a true example of how Charlotte sees Mr. Collins and she is therefore seen as being weak and petty in the eyes of Austen. The third marriage in this book that I will discuss will be about Elizabeth and Darcy.