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Class, Rank and Status in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice

Söderström, Kajsa LU (2021) ENGK03 20202
English Studies
Abstract
Pride and Prejudice, published in 1813, is one of Jane Austen’s best known novels but there is much hidden from a modern reader when encountering the text. Being unfamiliar with the class system of early 19th-century England and its complexities will diminish the impact of the novel that would be apparent to an early reader of Austen. In this essay, I discuss class, rank and status by taking into consideration the historical background as well as the biographical background of Jane Austen. Based on these aspects, I have located where Jane Austen has placed important characters within the class system as well as examined how this affects the characters’ own perception of class and the resulting impact on the events of the novel. I conclude... (More)
Pride and Prejudice, published in 1813, is one of Jane Austen’s best known novels but there is much hidden from a modern reader when encountering the text. Being unfamiliar with the class system of early 19th-century England and its complexities will diminish the impact of the novel that would be apparent to an early reader of Austen. In this essay, I discuss class, rank and status by taking into consideration the historical background as well as the biographical background of Jane Austen. Based on these aspects, I have located where Jane Austen has placed important characters within the class system as well as examined how this affects the characters’ own perception of class and the resulting impact on the events of the novel. I conclude that notions of class and rank most significantly influenced marriage and are therefore used to drive the plot. I also found that through exploring class and marriage, Jane Austen’s commentary on early 19th-century English society is more easily discerned. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Söderström, Kajsa LU
supervisor
organization
course
ENGK03 20202
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, social class, social rank, social status, historical background, biographical background, social criticism, early 19th century
language
English
id
9038731
date added to LUP
2021-01-29 08:35:25
date last changed
2021-01-29 08:35:25
@misc{9038731,
  abstract     = {{Pride and Prejudice, published in 1813, is one of Jane Austen’s best known novels but there is much hidden from a modern reader when encountering the text. Being unfamiliar with the class system of early 19th-century England and its complexities will diminish the impact of the novel that would be apparent to an early reader of Austen. In this essay, I discuss class, rank and status by taking into consideration the historical background as well as the biographical background of Jane Austen. Based on these aspects, I have located where Jane Austen has placed important characters within the class system as well as examined how this affects the characters’ own perception of class and the resulting impact on the events of the novel. I conclude that notions of class and rank most significantly influenced marriage and are therefore used to drive the plot. I also found that through exploring class and marriage, Jane Austen’s commentary on early 19th-century English society is more easily discerned.}},
  author       = {{Söderström, Kajsa}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Class, Rank and Status in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}