Fraiman asserts that Mr. Bennet fulfills his duty as a good father simply by being present in his girls lives as a tight-lipped father figure. Her assertion is based on his use of language and information, or rather the lack thereof, to control and rule his family. Unfortunately, it takes more than tight lips and a penchant for books to run a family of seven, as we will see.

Mr. Bennet does little physically for his family and seems content to sit by the sidelines as his daughters pursue their prospective husbands. Fraiman argues that this is sufficient and that his leadership, though not iron handed or tight fisted, is equally as effective as any other style of parenting. The first example of Mr. Bennet's attempt to contr

While Mr. Bennet is successful in "marrying off" three of his daughters it is not due in any part to actions taken by him. In fact, not only does he seldom interact with his younger daughters, but also when he does, he is rude and abusive. The first time we hear him address Mary (who receives the worst of his temper because she is youngest) is in the presence of the entire family (7) and at the Netherfield ball (101) where he is subtly mocking and disagreeable.

Not only is Mr. Bennet careless of the probable social cost for them; even his keen insight that the older girls' suitors are being driven away by the younger girls' behavior does not make him change his lazy and irresponsible parenting practices (231). Without showing the slightest awareness of his part in the development of their characters, he dismisses Kitty, Lydia, and Mary as "three very silly sisters" (232).

In his dealings with the older sisters (not oldest mind you), Mr. Bennet is equally closed to any genuine communication. For Lydia, this hole is filled by her mother, from whom she has learned everything. This is not enough however, as she and Catherine seem to be caught up in a web of flirtation and reckless behavior that go against the moral proprieties of the time.

Elizabeth and Jane, though not as adversely affected as their sisters, are constantly forced to put up with the sarcastic indifference of their father. Even when Elizabeth tells her father not to allow Lydia to go to Brighton, he ignores her because he thinks it would be too difficult to deal with Lydia's complaining. And as a result, Lydia elopes with Wickham, disgracing the whole family.

As the novel closes, three of the girls have found husbands and things seem to have generally wrapped up happily but problems for Mary and Mrs. Bennet still exist. They are now forced to live out the rest of their days in the company of Mr. Bennet, who, while

Some common words found in the essay are:
Darcy Fraiman, Susan Fraiman, Luckily Mary, Elizabeth Jane, Moreover Bennet, Mary Bennet, Inevitably Mary, Pride Prejudice, Netherfield Mary, Lydia Brighton, daughters due, netherfield ball, elizabeth jane, failed father,
Approximate Word count = 1284
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)