Pride and Prejudice Chapters 11-16

Austen utilizes the same words with different meanings within Pride and Prejudice. This occurs particularly often with the word "pride." Sometime the word has a positive connotation, sometimes a negative connotation. Mr. Wickham describes Mr. Darcy's pride as a quality that "has often been [Mr. Darcy's] best friend. It has connected him nearer with virtue than any other feeling" (61). Elizabeth questions, "Can such abominable pride pride such as his have ever done him good?" (61). I think this shows a point that Austen is trying to make: there are different types of pride. Mr Darcy's pride "has often led him to be very liberal and generous--to give his money freely, to display hospitality, to assist his tenants, and relieve the poor" (61-62). Darcy's pride has helped him very positively and yet his sister "is too much like her brother--very, very proud" (62). This time, "pride" has a negative connotation. Austen uses repetition of the words "amiable" which is clearly positive and "vain" which is clearly negative. No character is described as both of these, but characters like Mr. Darcy are sometimes described as one of these as well as "proud." I think pride can fall somewhere in between these words, depending on how one handles the quality.

The introduction of the two new male characters, Mr. Collins and Mr Wickham, is making the story much more complex. Mr. Darcy now must not only win Elizabeth's love, he must do so with the competition of Mr. Wickham. On the other hand, Elizabeth of "nothing but Mr. Wickham, and of what he told her" (64). If Elizabeth wants to marry Mr. Wickham, she will have to do so with the competition of just about every girl in Meryton, since so many girls desire him. However, because she is also thinking about "what he told her," which was mainly things about Mr. Darcy, I wonder if Elizabeth is a little intrigued by Mr. Darcy. I do not think Elizabeth has her sights set only on Mr. Wickham yet. Although Darcy was awful to Wickham, I think the peculiar way in which Darcy's pride affects his actions makes him of interest to Elizabeth. I think she will end up having feelings for both men later in the story.