So is marriage really a result of love or can it be possible that it is simply just a business contract? Marriage during the Victorian Era, for the Aristocrats that is, required intense interrogation of the potential husbands before any consideration was made. It was viewed as a way to better one’s social status. In order to do that, a proper husband required a good and steady income as well as some kind of title. No aristocrat wanted to marry below themselves.
These oppositions of values offer the reader a chance to balance their own views on the sanctity of marriage. They also have the chance to empathise with Elizabeth as she declines Collins' offer, which could seem selfish as it not only risks her future security but that of her families as well. Austen has already made the reader aware of Darcy's affection towards Elizabeth however. “Elizabeth could not help observing... how often Mr. Darcy's eyes were fixed on hers” (p45)3 making their relationship inevitable from early on in the novel. Austen introduces the character of Elizabeth indirectly through her father.
Lydia is outspoken and completely self-absorbed, even though she is the youngest of the sisters, which foreshadows the trouble she will get into later on in the story. This contrasts hugely with Elizabeth, who is responsible, grounded and far more reserved. This is shown after the ball at Netherfield, when Jane is displaying her gratification of the admiration she received, and Lizzie “felt Jane’s pleasure” – although Elizabeth is not directly concerned with finding a suitable husband, she is able to empathise with Jane. The main plot is that of Elizabeth and Darcy – there were many prejudices between the two; without Darcy stepping in and forcing Wickham to marry Lydia, they would have remained apart. Lydia is incapable of seeing the shame she brings on the family through running away to be married, as shown in her letter to Harriet; “I can hardly write for laughing.” Her thoughtless attitude to marriage is highlighted here – although she is motivated by love, she hasn’t thought about the consequences of what she’s doing.
It seems as if women are plentiful and men are rare. The man has freedom and the option to choose any girl that he wants, while the women are desperate and fight for whichever man they can get. Jane Austen points this out and shows how dependent the woman is on a man in her English society. This dependence is viewed as a necessary part of upper class England by most and was not criticized. If Jane Austen had written a book simply about English society, these sentiments would not have showed up.
Elizabeth is also often upset and embarrassed by the behaviour of her mother and of her younger sisters. Her father is a landowner, but his estate, Longbourn, is entailed away under English law from his children because he does not have a son, and upon his death, Longbourn will be inherited by his cousin, Mr. Collins, a clergyman. Within her neighbourhood, Elizabeth is considered a beauty and a charming young woman, with "fine eyes" to which Mr. Darcy is first drawn. He is later attracted more particularly to her "light and pleasing" figure, the "easy playfulness" of her manners, her mind and personality, and eventually considers her "one of the handsomest women" in his acquaintance. Pride and Prejudice primarily focuses on Elizabeth and her experiences with Mr. Darcy, a wealthy, proud man who, on their first meeting, snubs her at a public dance in her home
She is the second daughter of a country gentleman who risks poverty if she does not find a husband who can provide for her as her father cannot pass on his estate or the house to her. Getting a job and supporting herself is not really an option for a proper young lady at that time. However, as being highly independent and intelligent, Elizabeth opts to make her own marriage decision in looking for love and companionate marriage. Undoubtedly, it is being in opposition to the common reality during the early 19th-century England that women who lack of fortune need to marry ‘well.’ By ‘well,’ it means wealthy. For example, turning down Mr. Collins may demonstrateher as a no-brainer woman among the society at that time.
Finally the men didn’t think much of women for doing things that they could. Most men married women for their inheritance, childbirth, appearance, housekeeping and were expected to be married by their families. I think the suffragists campaigns were important but not as important as what happened during WW1. Source one shows Joyce’s opinion so it’s not a solid fact so it might not be reliable as she could be bias to the suffragists. But I believe that the suffragists did help women win the vote by showing they can do it in a calm and peaceful way.
In a way this moral and legal discrimination is equally a big issue in the 21st century. Often it is harder for woman to find a job than a man and there is still a big issue with woman experiencing the ‘glass ceiling’. This shows that even the changes done in the Victorian era to help woman are still not enough and that adjustments need to be made. Although I do believe that the new laws had great impact in helping woman be considered more human and were very beneficial. The changes included that in 1857 if men were violent, wives could divorce; in 1870 woman could keep their own money; in 1891 wives were no longer forced to stay with their husband as they
Does Love Belong In Marriage? In the essay “The Radical Idea of Marrying for Love” the author, Stephanie Coontz, looks at the traditions of love in marriage across many different cultures throughout the years and compares them to the Western world’s idea of marrying for love. Historically there have been many different reasons for marriage though the main reason was not usually for love but instead political or economical gain for the family. In cultures like India, Greece, and China, love was actually considered a distraction, even a hazard, and not usually a desirable emotion in a marriage. The Chinese believed that love in a marriage could disrupt the loyalty that a man was supposed to have to his family above all else.
A professional career was almost impossible, and despite Britain’s ruler being female for most of the nineteenth century until 1901 when Queen Elizabeth died, women were second class citizens. In 1870, Queen Victoria had written, ‘let women be what God intended, a helpmate for man, but with totally different duties and vocations.’ Trint, S. History Learning Site 2010-2011. Women’s Rights. www.historylearningsite.co.uk [accessed 07122011] Women’s subordination to men meant that their prime duty was domestic. Children were an economic responsibility for women - providing food, housing and clothing until the child was independent and could go out to work to provide for the family themselves.