Pride And Prejudice

The novel opens with the line, "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." The arrival of such a man in the neighbourhood greatly excites Mrs Bennet, whose sole interest in life is to see her five daughters married. The wealthy young man in question, Mr Bingley, has leased the Netherfield estate and plans to settle for a while with his two sisters and his brother-in-law.

The newcomers excite great interest locally, particularly amongst mothers of marriageable daughters. They attend a public ball in the village of Meryton, where Mr Bingley shows himself to be amiable and unpretentious, dancing with many young ladies and showing his decided admiration for Jane Bennet. His friend Mr Darcy, however, makes himself unpopular despite his fine figure and income of Ð'Ј10,000 a year, being proud and disagreeable. Of Elizabeth Bennet he is heard to say, "She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me." Following the ball, Jane is invited for an evening to Netherfield, but catches a bad cold and is forced to stay for some days. Elizabeth comes to nurse her, engaging Darcy's guarded attention and the not-so-guarded hostility of Miss Bingley, who appears to have in interest in Darcy herself.

Mr Collins, a cousin who will inherit the Bennet estate as Mr Bennet's nearest male relative, arrives for a visit. He is also "in want of a wife", and intends to marry one of his cousins, thus atoning for his position as entailed heir and healing the breach in the family. A pompous buffoon of a clergyman, he has been ordered by his imperious patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh (who is also Darcy's aunt), to find himself a suitable wife. Finding that Jane appears destined for Bingley he switches his sights to Elizabeth, who refuses him absolutely despite the threats and entreaties of her mother. Eventually, to Elizabeth's surprise, he is accepted by her friend Charlotte Lucas, who neither loves nor respects him, but wishes to escape the fate of becoming an old maid. Elizabeth does not regret the loss of her suitor, but is disppointed in Charlotte and unsure how happy she will be as Mrs. Collins.

For some time Meryton has been home to a regiment of soldiers, delighting the giddy, young Bennet sisters Kitty and Lydia. Elizabeth is introduced to a pleasant young officer, Mr Wickham, who tells her that he has known Mr Darcy from childhood, and has been cheated by him of a bequest by Darcy's late father. This reinforces Elizabeth's growing dislike of Darcy and she is relieved when he leaves the neighbourhood, although Bingley and his party also leave, dashing the hopes of Jane, who has fallen very much in love with him. However, Elizabeth encounters Darcy again on a visit to the newlywed Mr and Mrs Collins, as he arrives to visit Lady Catherine at Rosings Park, the estate to which Mr Collins's living is attached. She tolerates him, unaware of his growing admiration, and is astounded when he suddenly proposes to her. His offer is high-handed and condescending вЂ" he does so, he says, "against his own will" and in spite of her objectionable family. He is stunned and mortified to be rejected in no uncertain terms: Elizabeth tells him he is "the last man in the world whom [she] could ever be prevailed on to marry." She has recently learnt that it was Darcy who persuaded Mr Bingley to sever ties with Jane, increasing her dislike for him, and also cites his treatment of Wickham, his arrogance and his ungentlemanly conduct as reasons for her refusal.

The next day, Mr Darcy intercepts Elizabeth on her morning walk and hands her a letter before coldly taking his leave. In it, he justifies his actions over Bingley and Jane, and reveals the true nature of Wickham, who