There are many people who believe in the importance of first impressions. Even in the first 10 seconds of meeting someone, we psychologically have already made many assumptions about them just with that very first impression. Jane Austen, however, in Pride and Prejudice continuously demonstrates how first impressions tend to never be right and those initial judgements made have little accuracy. Pride and Prejudice was also originally titled “First Impressions” showing how this theme is evident throughout the novel. How come Austen decides to go against what many others believe in saying first impressions don’t matter as much as we often think?
I believe Austen really cares more about biases and stereotypes as she herself was a women writing in the early 1800s which was not very common. She faced a lot of prejudice and wanted others to see her as a great writer before they saw her as a women and assumed things about her because of her gender. She focuses on Elizabeth making two very wrong first impressions that shape her view and opinion of many things until she learns better and is able to change her view like Austen urges others to do.
Upon the first meeting Elizabeth has with Mr. Wickham she immediately trusts him and all that he says because they both have a shared dislike of Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth doesn’t question anything Mr. Wickham says regarding Mr. Darcy and she “honoured him for such feelings, and thought him handsomer than ever as he expressed them” (58). It isn’t until much later Elizabeth learns about Mr. Wickham’s bad intentions and deceptions and Mr. Darcy’s sincerity and charm. She is extremely wrong about her first impressions with Mr. Darcy and through much more experiences with him and being more open she begins to fall in love with him and see who he really is and agrees to marry him. When talking about the proposal to her father who is surprised after knowing how much Elizabeth hated Mr. Darcy she wishes “that her former opinions had been more reasonable, her expressions more moderate! It would have spared her from explanations...but they were now necessary” (257). Elizabeth learned how wrong her first impressions of others were and sees the trouble they have caused and all the unhappiness she could have put herself through if she continued to believe Mr. Wickham and disregard Mr. Darcy all together.
I really think this underlying theme of first impressions shows how Austen believes them to be insignificant and instead emphasizes the need to truly understand others and not form initial judgements or have prejudices.
While Elizabeth misjudged Darcy and Wickham, she correctly judged Mr. Bingley and his sisters, and Mr. Collins. Elizabeth and Jane have a sister debrief after the first ball, during which Elizabeth describes Bingley as, “’He could not help seeing that you were more than five times as pretty as every other woman in the room. No thanks to his gallantry for that. Well, he certainly is very agreeable, and I give you leave to like him’” (16). Elizabeth can very easily sense his gentlemanly nature, and sees no flaws in him. Throughout the novel, the reader is never informed of any major character flaws which should cause concern towards Bingley, just as Elizabeth judged.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, Elizabeth was able to see the evils of the sisters, particularly Miss Bingley. While talking about Mr. Bingley’s leaving Netherfield, Elizabeth explains Caroline to Jane saying, “’She is not such a simpleton. Could she have seen half as much love in Mr. Darcy for herself, she would have ordered her wedding clothes’” (116). While Elizabeth is speaking under the assumption that Caroline was responsible for taking Bingley away, she is still able to correctly judge Miss Bingley’s character.
Finally, she judges Mr. Collins correctly, a task that seems to be not too hard to do well. Elizabeth describes Collins as, “’a conceited, pompous, narrow-minded, silly man’” (133). While this observation may be a little harsh, it is close to the truth.
Even though Elizabeth cannot properly judge the character of Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham, she is still perceptive enough to judge other characters in the story more accurately.
The first impressions that the author gives from one character to another are often changed, especially in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but from an authors point of view, the impression of one character to the reader often remains unchanged throughout the novel. For example, Mr. Bennet is described as, “so odd a mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve, and caprice, that the experience of three and twenty years has been insufficient to make his wife understand his character,” (7). Sure enough, later in the novel Mr. Bennet retains his good nature and wit late into the book when speaking to Elizabeth, “but I think I shall like your husband quite as well as Jane’s,” (358). Similarly, Mrs. Bennet’s is described as, “The business of her life was to get her daughters married,” (7). In the same section as with Mr. Bennet, Mrs. Bennet says, “I can think of nothing else! Ten thousand a year, and very likely more!” (358). Even from the same locations in the book, one can tell that the Bennet parents retain their character.
ReplyDeleteI believe this comes from the method of writing which Austen implements: she develops the relationship between characters while keeping the relationship between character and reader the same. The only character that receives great advancements in the eyes of the reader is Darcy, but his change is indicative of one of the main points of the novel, that class difference has no meaning in matters of love. I think that Austen employs this method to ensure that the reader can accurately remember each character and their interactions, rather than overwhelming the reader with even more ever-changing details about the characters.
I believe Austen uses the inaccuracy of first impressions to differentiate Elizabeth from the other characters. The novel makes it apparent, from its title to Elizabeth’s misjudgements of Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham, that Elizabeth’s central flaw is her prejudice. Although her preconceptions often accurately reflect their subjects, such as with the Bingley sisters, Elizabeth’s quickly formed opinions prevent her from allowing an individual’s words and actions to characterize them rather than their social position. In this way, Austen uses Elizabeth’s character to show that just as the Bingley sisters judge Elizabeth and the Bennet family for their lack of money, Elizabeth is simultaneously judging them for their abundance of it. Where Elizabeth and the Bingley sisters differ is Elizabeth’s development and willingness to alter her judgements when she realizes her mistake which happens in both cases of Darcy and Wickham. The case of Mr. Wickham illustrates that prejudices can cause first impressions to overvalue a person’s character. Elizabeth later realizes her folly in thinking Mr. Wickham an honest man because of his polite manners and reflects, “As to his real character, had information been in her power, she had never felt a wish of inquiring. His countenance, voice, and manner had established him at once in the possession of every virtue” (176). In contrast, the Bingley sisters maintain their disgust for the Bennets and particularly Elizabeth, especially when they see Darcy’s growing admiration for her because they use their judgements to diminish the status of others rather than as a tool to form accurate perceptions.
ReplyDeleteAlthough first impressions may not be accurate, people use them to form long-lasting opinions about others. Even when their views are challenged, some people continue to hold onto these initial impressions. For example, although Mrs. Gardiner describes Darcy as “a very proud, ill-natured boy”, Elizabeth upholds her negative attitude toward him (85). Additionally, Bingley warns Elizabeth of Wickham’s “infamous manner”, but she continues to defend his name (57). Similarly, when Wickham’s true character is revealed, Elizabeth first classifies it as the “grossest falsehood” (119). Even when disputed, Elizabeth continues to value her first impressions of each man. Contrary to your argument, I believe Austen emphasizes the importance of first impressions as they remain relevant throughout most of the novel. However, I agree that she also challenges people to dismiss these thoughts since they’re often proven wrong. By the end of the novel, Elizabeth explains her original impressions of Darcy as “inexpressibly painful” when she falls in love with him (213). Furthermore, she claims that she was “wretchedly blind” to Wickham’s true character after receiving the letter from Darcy. Since Elizabeth allows her impressions to change, she avoids an unhappy marriage with Wickham and finds love with Darcy. Although her first impressions prove incorrect by the end of the novel, they remain significant for a majority of the book.
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