“IT is a truth universally acknowledged that every single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” This first sentence of the book “Pride and Prejudice” shows a social satire. In that era, women didn’t have much right, and they needed marriage to gain a higher social status, respect, and a better life. Men were strong, independent, and they weren’t in need of a woman to help them gain power. In fact, the reality is that every young poor woman is in need of a man with good fortune.
In their conversation, Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Bennet shows social satire about marriage. Marriage usually happens when two people fall in love with each other. They would build up their relationship from time to time, and then eventually, they would marry. However, marriage in their conversation is not love, but money, power and social status. It sounds urgent and it’s some kind of access to a higher social level. For example, when Mr. Bingley, a rich and handsome young man arrives, Mrs. Bennet is in a rush to marry her daughters. The author mentions in the end of the chapter that Mrs. Bennet’s business of life was to get her daughters married. It’s a social satire here, showing us how women in that era are in need of marriage to climb to a higher and better life. In the conversation, Mrs. Bennet says to Mr Bennet, “ Design? Nonsense, how can you talk so! But it is very likely that he may fall in love with one of them, and therefore you must visit him as soon as he comes.” We can tell from her conversation that she sees the marriage of her daughter with a good man as the last step to a woman's existence and nothing more. On the contrary, Mr. Bennet doesn’t find the marriage of his daughters compelling. This shows the lack of female involvement in society, all she could think of to improve her social status is marriage.
Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Bennet’s conversation shows very different perspectives. Mrs. Bennet is trying to convince her husband to meet Mr. Bingley. She wants her daughters have a good and wealthy life through marriage, and Mr. Bingley would be a very good choice. On the contrary, Mr. Bennet is not viewing marriage as something crucial. He is responding to his wife casually and doesn’t seem to be interested.
The husband and wife’s viewpoint are obviously different, and their gender and their role in the society are the main factors that influence their opinion on marriage. Being a man, they don’t really need to care a lot about their own marriage. They are the ones that choose who to marry and whether to marry or not. The men work outside and communicate with others, they have a job to support them and friends to accompany them. On the contrary, women rely on men from the day they are born. They rely on their father when they aren’t married and rely on their husband after the marriage. This makes their opinions change. The separate spheres of men and women cause the women to believe that marriage means a lot. For women, marriage can change their status, while on the other hand, men mostly marry the woman that is most suitable for themselves. The banter between Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Bennet reveals that the marriage between them is not about love. Mrs. Bennet married Mr. Bennet to gain more respect and to get a better life, while Mr. Bennet married a suitable woman that looked nice and took care of him. I suppose they did not marry for love and romance.
Jane Austen showed the role of women and men and the necessity of marriage for a woman in the Victorian era. She demonstrates the absurd time when women, who couldn’t think of any other ways to live, were desiring to marry wealthy men for a better life. From the author’s writing, I can infer from the chapter that Jane Austen’s point of view about marriage isn’t the same as Mrs. Bennet. She disagrees with the ideology of women in the Victorian era. She doesn't want a marriage for money or power, but for happiness and love. Marrying a man due to his money and social status is wrong, and wealth shouldn’t be in connection with marriage. She writes how Mrs. Bennet says that Mr. Bingley may fall in love with one of her daughters. However, we can tell from the passage that Mrs. Bennet doesn’t marry her daughters for love, but for the social pressure of women at that time. In the Victorian era, many women couldn’t marry the person they wanted, and were often valued by their class and value.
Jane Austen wrote “Pride and Prejudice” to show us the issues of the Victorian era: the separate spheres of men and women, the women’s position in that era, the distinction between classes, and the marriage for wealth. The social satire of marriage in chapter one and the dialogues of Mrs and Mr. Bennet reflects the lack of female involvement in the society, the different gender roles of wife and husband, and how marrying for money was nearly the only way for poor women to live a better life. Of course, Jane Austen wants a real marriage, where two people fall in love with each other and take time to improve their mistakes. I believe as the story goes on, true marriage will come true and not all daughters are going to marry just for money.
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