*** ELIZABETH BENNET
- Second daughter in the Bennet family.
- Most intelligent and quick witted.
- Elizabeth is the protagonist of Pride and Prejudice.
- One of the most well known characters in English literature.
- She is lovely, clever and in a novel defined by dialogue, she converses as brilliantly as anyone.
- Her honesty, virtue and lively wit enable her to rise above the nonsense and bad behavior that pervade her class bound and often spiteful society: her sharp tongue and tendency to make hasty judgments often lead her astray.
- Hopeless mother, a distant father, two badly behaved younger siblings.
- Over came her own mistaken impression of Darcy.
- Her charms are sufficient to keep him interested.
- Even though she rejected Darcy's proposal earlier.
- She realizes the error of her initial prejudice against him.
*** FITZWILLIAM DARCY
- Wealthy, well established family.
- Master of the great estate of Pemberly.
- Intelligent and forthright, he too has a tendency to judge too hastily and harshly.
- High birth and wealth make him overly proud and overly conscious of his social status.
- Her rejection of his advances builds a kind of humility in him.
- Darcy demonstrates his continued devotion to Elizabeth.
- He rescues Lydia and the entire Bennet family from disgrace.
- Darcy proves himself worthy of Elizabeth.
*** BENNET / BINGLEY
- Jane and Bingley engage in a courtship that occupies a central place in the novel.
- They can be described together: both are cheerful, friendly and good natured, always ready to think the best of others.
- They lack entirely the prickly egotism of Elizabeth and Darcy.
- Their principal characteristics are goodwill and compatibility.
*** Mrs. BENNET
- Miraculously tiresome character.
- Noisy and foolish (weak understanding, little information and uncertain temper).
- She is a woman consumed by the desire to see her daughters married and seems to care for nothing else in the world.
- Austen uses her continually to highlight the necessity of marriage for young women.
- Serves as a middle class counterpoint to upper class snobs demonstrating that foolishness can be found at every level of society.
- Vulgar, mean and narrow minded - unrefined and coarse.
*** Mr. BENNET
- Patriarch of the Bennet household.
- Driven to exasperation by his ridiculous wife and difficult daughters.
- Closest to Elizabeth - they are the two most intelligent Bennets.
- He is a weak father and at critical moments fails his family.
- His foolish indulgence of Lydia's immature behavior.
- Mr. Bennet would rather withdraw from the world than getting caught with it.
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