What Makes a Good Marriage in Jane Austens Pride and...

What makes a good marriage? Comprise, love, sacrifice, and humbleness are some of the words able to describe the factors of a good marriageJane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is a light-hearted novel that follows the love story of two very different characters: Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy. They are so blinded by their opinions of each other that they do not realize that they are very good for one another. Throughout the novel, they overcome their errors in judgment to leave the reader with the anticipation of their matrimony. Pride and Prejudice includes examples of both good and bad marriages to measure against the prospects of success for Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy’s union. Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy have their weaknesses, as seen with†¦show more content†¦Although his love for Elizabeth overrules his reluctance and he asks for her hand in marriage, his arrogance shows through in the demeaning manner in which he proposes. â€Å"But his pride, his abominable pride , his shameless avowal of what he had done with respect to Jane† (128). Darcy feels as though, as he was born into the aristocracy, marrying someone of a lower class would negatively alter his social status. Though he wants Elizabeth to be his wife, Darcy shows his doubts toward the idea and she feeds into them by acting impudently. Darcy’s lofty behavior and apparent callousness come from his upbringing, which prevents him from being able to express himself correctly during proposal, as he does not really know another way to speak his mind. He cares for Elizabeth, but he asks for hand when he does not have the best intentions. All these characteristics play into the idea that his pride is a hindrance and holds him back from all the things he could experience with Elizabeth. Together, Elizabeth and Darcy exemplify what a good marriage is supposed to look like. Even though the two are at odds most of the book, at the end, they lay aside their differences and the negativity and attempt to successfully form a more perfect union. After Elizabeth finally accepts Darcy proposal, she teases him about how he fell in love with her and he remembers, â€Å"I cannot fix on the