Pride+and+Prejudice+EP

​ **Pride and Prejudice** Jane Austen



**​ Author Biography ** Jane Austen was born in Hampshire England on December 16th in 1775, the 5th of 7 children. Jane had only one sister, Cassandra, and when Jane was 8 they were both sent off to boarding school to get a more formal education. After returning home from school, Jane continued to learn through her father and brothers, as well as through the great supply of books she had access to. Jane spent much of her time reading and writing, as well as acting out and writing plays with her family. By 1787, Jane was keeping notebooks full of her poems and stories and in 1789 Jane began to write seriously. By this time she had already written the comedy //Love and Friendship//, and four years later she began to write her first play, //Sir Charles Grandison Or the Happy Man//. Soon she abandoned the play for another piece, the novel that eventually would become //Susan//. Jane also finished a piece called //Elinor and Marianne// sometime before 1796.

In December 1795, Jane and a man named Tom Lefroy began spending a lot of their time together. Tom was the nephew of the Austen's neighbors, who had begun to take frequent visits to town. Both families noticed the interest Jane and Tom showed in eachother, and unfortunatly Tom's family decided that any impending engagment wouldn't be fit. His family intervened, and Tom was sent away, never to be seen by Jane again.

Jane now set out to work on a new piece of writing entitled //First Impressions//, which would later become the novel //Pride and Prejudice//. She also returned to //Elinor and Marianne//, finishing it's final draft in 1798, as well as finishing //Pride and Prejudice//'s first draft in 1799. After this, Jane continued to work on //Susan//, later to be titled //Northanger Abbey//, and hopped back to her play, //Sir Charles Grandison Or the Happy Man// too, soon finishing both works.

With December 1800 came surprising news to the Austen family. Jane's father announced that he was retiring, which meant that the family was going to move. At the age of 27, Jane was now leaving the only home she'd ever known, and moving to the town of Bath with her entire family. December 1802 brought another big event to Jane's world: Harris Bigg-Wither, a family and childhood friend, proposes. This is the only known proposal Jane ever recieved, and initially Jane accepted. But she didn't have any affection towards him, and the very next day Jane revoked her acceptance.

In 1803, Jane's brother Henry brought her novel //Susan// to publisher Benjiman Crosby in order for it to be published. He sold the copyright to Crosby for 10 pounds, after being promised it would get published. But Crosby never fullfilled his end of the deal, and thus began a battle over the copyright, that continued on for sometime.

January 1805 throws the Austen family into a crisis, after the death of Jane's father. Jane's brothers agree to help support her and her sister and mother, and eventually Jane, Cassandra, and Mrs. Austen are situated in a cabin near brother Frank's house. This turned out to be the ideal place for Jane, now 33 years old, to continue her writing. As she did so, Henry continued to search for people to publish his sisters books. He is successful, and in October 1811, //Sense and Sensebility// comes out to good reviews, as published by Thomas Egerton. In 1813, //Pride and Prejudice// is published, and soon Egerton has also published //Mansfield Park//. Eventually Jane switched publishers, anticipating more success for her books with the well known publisher John Murray. Emma, Northanger Abbey, and Persuasion are all published by Murray. At this time, Henry is finally able to by back the copyright of //Susan,// which was then retitled //Catherine//.

In 1816, Jane's health was seeming poor, but she ignored the changes and continued working on her writing. In January 1817, Jane finishes her novel //The Elliots//, and starts a new piece called //The Brothers,// but when she is only 12 chapters into it, her sickness becomes much worse. In April, at age 42, Jane was restricted to her bed. Henry and Cassandra sought medical help for their sister, but despite their efforts, Jane Austen died on July 18th, 1817.

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//Pride and Prejudice// follows Elizabeth Bennet, an itelligent young woman as love develops between her and the proud and wealthy Darcy. Elizabeth forms a great dislike for Darcy when she overhears him insulting her. As Darcy sees her more often though, his opinion of Elizabeth changes and he begins to admire her. But Elizabeth's detest for Darcy only deepens when she finds out that he is the cause for the man her sister loves leaving town without a word. This, along with other charges against him, gives Elizabeth a firm yead ad adsl; s. However, Darcy and Elizabeth's paths continue to cross, and she finds herself having to spend much more time in his company than she'd like. One day, to Elizabeth's shock, Darcy proposes to her. Elizabeth fervently turns him down, accusing him of all the things he has done wrong to her and her family. The next day, Darcy silently gives Elizabeth a letter with an explanation of his actions, and information that might clear his name. The letter has an effect on Elizabeth, and in a few months when she runs into Darcy, his character seems quite changed and Elizabeth's feelings towards him begin to soften. Will Elizabeth and Darcy ever be together? Or has Elizabeth turned him down forever?
 * Plot Synopsis **

** Literary Information ** Pride and Prejudice is of the romance genre, as it revolves around two people falling in love. It was written in formal diction, using elevated and sophisticated language.

**Literary Analysis** The tone in //Pride and Prejudice// is one of tenacity. A key component that makes it feel this way is the narrator's point of view. The narrator has a third person point of view, but mainly follows Elizabeth. Elizabeth is a very headstrong and tenacious character, who always follows her heart without allowing others to sway her. When Mr. Collins proposes marrige to her, Elizabeth refuses, despite her mother's threats and the convenience of the match (94, 98). By following a character with a personality as such, the reader feels a sense of tenacity throughout the entire story. Another element that adds to the tone is diction. The diction in //Pride and Prejudice// is formal, and when characters speak they use elevated and proper language. Characters using proper language make them sound intelligent, with a grip on their surroundings, not easily swayed. Jane Austen has a tenacious tone in //Pride and Prejudice//.

I greatly enjoyed the book Pride and Prejudice. It is an interesting read, because so many big events make up the plot. There is never a spot of boredom, and there is always something happening. If you like books about romance and love, you will surely adore Pride and Prejudice. Although it may not be for everyone, so if you're looking for a book full of high-adrenaline action, you might want to look elsewhere.
 * Criticism**

If you liked Pride and Prejudice, you may also enjoy...
 * Jane Eyre
 * Emma