Pride and Prejudice: Appearance vs. Reality
In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice the theme of appearance versus reality is a recurring one. Austen seeks to prove that often one's appearance hides one's true character. This concept is clearly evident in the case of Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham and how they appear to Elizabeth Bennet. From her first impressions of both Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham, Elizabeth comes to misguided conclusions about their true character. She later comes to realize that her judgments of Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham are inaccurate and incorrect. Throughout the entire novel, Austen demonstrates that the reality of an individual's true character can often be hidden by their appearance. Elizabeth's first impressions of Mr. Darcy are based on an appearance of his character rather than a realistic assessment of his decorum, background, and history. The first time Elizabeth meets Mr. Darcy at the Meryton Assembly she becomes prejudiced toward him. She perceives his behavior as
Bennet. By the end of this novel the true character of these two men is obvious to all. Elizabeth learns that you do not judge a book by it's cover. Through Elizabeth's realizations, Jane Austen offers a universal theme that can be related to any society: judging by first impressions will more often than not create a misconception of someone's true personality. In Pride and Prejudice, Austen effectively shows that reality can often be hidden by appearance. As opposed to Elizabeth's first impression of Mr. Darcy, she had a very favorable initial meeting with Mr. Wickham. Mr. Wickham differs from Darcy in many ways. Wickham is outgoing, lively, and eager to fall into conversation. Wickham's friendly and polite mannerisms are quite the opposite of Darcy's, and Elizabeth takes an immediate interest to him. She believes him to be "far beyond" the other officers in the militia, "in person, countenance, air, and walk." Compared to Darcy, Wickham appears to Elizabeth as
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 661
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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