This One’s My Favorite
No matter how many books I read, none will surpass Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Yes, I know many will say that it is cliche and played out but it’s still my favorite. When I first picked it up sometime in middle school, my English teacher approached me and jokingly said, “Well there’s a Michelle book.” She’s also the person who told me you could tell a lot about a person by what’s on their bookshelf, so I guess I’m a Pride and Prejudice kind of gal. Jane Austen is one of few authors who can be absolutely hilarious while telling a seemingly absolutely serious story. Every moment she captures is just so genuine and so true to human nature. In chapter 58 of Pride and Prejudice she confirms the change her heroine, Elizabeth, feels in her emotions towards a man she once hated. She writes:
Elizabeth, feeling all the more than common awkwardness and anxiety of his situation, now forced herself to speak; and immediately, though not very fluently, gave him to understand that her sentiments had undergone so material a change since the period to which he alluded, as to make her receive with gratitude and pleasure his present assurances. The happiness which this reply produced was such as he had probably never felt before, and he expressed himself on the occasion as sensibly and as warmly as a man violently in love can be supposed to do. Had Elizabeth been able to encounter his eyes, she might have seen how well the expression of heartfelt delight diffused over his face became him; but, though she could not look, she could listen, and he told her of feelings which, in proving of what importance she was to him, made his affection every moment more valuable.
There is no dialogue here. There is no extremely descriptive language, no abundance of adjectives or adverbs to describe how the characters look and feel or what they say and how they say it. But even so, Austen says just enough to give us the full picture. You can almost feel yourself blush as Elizabeth would. You can almost feel the shyness and awkwardness of the situation. Austen makes it so easy for you to project yourself into the situation, to become part of the story. I think one of the main reasons Austen is so successful is that her writing is so seemingly natural. She does not try to use fancy words or to create beautiful sentences–they just flow. It’s also her choice to use semi-colons and to finish entire thoughts in one sentence the create such an elegant flow in her writing. This is simply a testament to the fact that sometimes it’s better to break away from conventions.
3 responses so far
I’m so happy you chose to quote Jane Austen. I love her too. And Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite novels- such a classic! I like how you point out that Austen’s language flows so smoothly and elegantly. I remember finding all of her novels, especially this one, subtly humorous and overall enjoyable.
I love that you chose Pride and Prejudice. I remember reading it and thinking, “she knows her characters so well.” Austen reels you into their world in such a subtle way. I agree with you that her writing seems completely effortless. Her novels were intended to be read aloud, so her style of writing is really smooth and natural.
I was late in doing this assignment and I must say i regret that a lot. You just happened to choose the passage that I felt was also one of my favorites. You beat me to it! I absolutely love your choice and you’re right, even though she is cliche she is still the great Jane Austen.