In most stories with female characters as the lead, they are either wise or very foolish. Both Bathsheba and Elizabeth Bennet are smart in the sense that they make pretty good choices. Elizabeth, from Pride and Prejudice, is the wisest person in the book and is also good at making decisions in public. Bathsheba, from Far From a Madding Crowd, is rather bold, and she believes that women can do things just as well as men, if not better. Both of them act irrationally in some situations, but act better than others in different situations. Although they both are very well-informed, I believe that one of them is more educated than the other.
Elizabeth Bennet is a sensible woman, and she proves this many times. She understands that etiquette is important in her society and does her best to follow the rules. When her mother and sisters act idiotically in front of people during a ball, she is mortified and tries to stop them. Elizabeth believes in true love, and doesn’t just marry for riches or social status. This shows that she is respectable in my eyes, even though it might not have been normal to do this in the past. Elizabeth doesn’t really care about what others think of her, and I find this very admirable. She walks alone all the way to Bingley’s estate and ruins her dress, but she doesn’t really pay any mind to how the others react. Even Darcy finds this kind of praiseworthy. However, Elizabeth is rather prejudiced against Darcy at the beginning of the story. Though this is not completely her fault, she should have gotten both sides of the story before making judgement. Although Elizabeth is not as smart or beautiful as the other girls, she is more kind-hearted and sagacious.
Bathsheba is rather commendable, though she does have some bad qualities. She is rash in her decision making. She doesn’t think before doing something. For example, she is jealous of the fact that Boldwood doesn’t seem interested in her even though she doesn’t like him. She also sends him a Valentine’s card as a joke and rejects him when he proposes. However, she is meritable because she also doesn’t marry for riches and instead wants to actually love someone before she marries. What I don’t like about her is that she is very unreasonable. She is very haughty and vain, and just because Boldwood never showed any major interest in her, she wanted to make him jealous. Bathsheba is conceited, but I admire her for not wanting to marry just for riches.
My opinion is that Elizabeth is a person with more intelligence and quicker mind. Elizabeth might be prejudiced, but at least she isn’t cocky and believes that everyone should like her. Bathsheba also fires Gabriel just he told her the truth about how sending the Valentine was a bad thing to do. Elizabeth listens to Mr. Darcy’s explanation on why he acted that way and tries to change him to become less prideful. Bathsheba foolishly marries Troy even though he was known to be a playboy. Even after he admits that he doesn’t love her anymore, Bathsheba still mourns him and wants him to come back. Bathsheba may believe that she can be better than men, but even she starts to feel envious of other women because she never had a lover. Elizabeth doesn’t care about what others think and Bathsheba cares too much. Because of this, I believe that Elizabeth is more decent than Bathsheba.
Both women have major flaws. However, Elizabeth is superior to Bathsheba; consequently, Bathsheba is caught in a love square and makes foolish decisions. In modern society, women are often considered inferior to men. People shouldn’t judge others by their gender, but rather with their morals and values. Hence, we shouldn't evaluate others by their background, race, or gender. Women’s status in general has straggled behind men; even though it has slightly improved. They, to this day, face discrimination, sexism, and rape, earn a significantly lower income across the world , and come in contact with injurious health problems. Additionally, political offices are being underrepresented which is only the least of problems. We read the feminine novels to enrich our awareness of women and their value and importance to families, their commitment and role in society; therefore, we should show our respect and protect their deserved rights. “You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” These were wise words said by Brigham Young.
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