1. OPINION
After all difficulties their love triumphs at the end
Lady Catherine is the last of the many obstacles facing the romance between
Darcy and Elizabeth, and Elizabeth’s confrontation with her marks the heroine’s
finest moment. This encounter carries out the tensions that their difference in
social status has created. All of the qualities that Elizabeth has represented thus
far her lack of pretense, and resistance to affectation of knowledge are evident in
her dialogue. Lady Catherine, with the weight of birth and money on her side,
responds to Elizabeth’s cynicism with a pedantry that reflects her preoccupation
with social concerns and demonstrates her lack of appreciation for the richness
ofElizabeth’s character. Elizabeth, of course, has notyet received a new proposal
of marriage from Darcy and has no way of knowing if one is future, but her pride
in herself and her love ofDarcy allow her to stand up to the bossy LadyCatherine.
With the expression of her beliefs, Elizabeth demonstrates the enduring strength
of her will and self-respect.
After the dynamic confrontation between these two troublemakers, Darcy’s
proposal, theoretically the climax of the novel, is almost a letdown. As noted
previously, Austen rarely stages successful proposals in full; accordingly, the
narrator summarizes Elizabeth’s affirmative response to Darcy’s offer in a brief
paragraph. Some critics argue that the novel becomes straightforward in this third
final part that Darcy’s character changes too drastically from the arrogant figure
of the opening chapters. One can also argue, however, that his initial pride feeds
to some extent of Elizabeth’s initial prejudice, and that as one dissolves as its
bearer matures, so does the other.
Their romance wins out over all of the obstacles, whether social or personal
issues, that it faces. Just as love triumphs over pride in social status for Darcy, it
triumphs over prejudice for Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s friends and family think that
she does notlike Darcy, asking her if she is marrying for love. At the end, despite
the relevant social issues of class and money their relationship blossomed.
