Pride and Prejudice

In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen describes Mrs. Bennet as “a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper”. Her preoccupation with her daughters’ marriages, multifaceted disposition, and gossip ability distinguish her as the typical woman of her time. The principal objective of Mrs. Bennet’s life is to get her daughters married and she pursues it through deceptive contrivance. When Jane is invited to dinner at the Bingley’s, she advises her, “…you …

…replies, “No. It would have been strange if they had. But I make no doubt, they often talk of it between themselves” (pg.166). This conjecture is made with no evidence or credibility. She speaks about it as though she heard it first-hand, but in actuality, she is only assuming. She speaks through jealousy and attacks Charlotte Lucas’s character only because of her engagement to Mr. Collins and her entailment to the Bennet’s estate.