Literary Elements in Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen's novel, Pride and Prejudice is centered on the flawed values and lifestyles of rural England during the nineteenth century. The protagonist is Elizabeth Bennet, a young woman growing up in a family of five girls whose mother is desperate to marry them all off. The story follows as Elizabeth's older sister, Jane, falls in love, and she herself finds love in a most unexpected place. Throughout the novel, Austen utilizes several literary devices such as tone, irony and foreshadowing to develop the theme of the story.

Austen's use of foreshadowing in Pride and Prejudice is found only on one major occasion: Elizabeth's visit to Pemberley, Mr. Darcy's estate, with her aunt and uncle, the Gardiners. As soon as she arrives, Elizabeth falls in love with the estate, and from what she sees and hears during her visit greatly helps to change her view on Mr. Darcy. Unexpectedly, he arrives home early and treats Elizabeth and her family with kindness and attentiveness. This event foreshadows Elizabeth's realization of her love for Mr. Darcy.

Another literary device that Austen uses throughout the novel is irony. An early example of it begins with Mr. Darcy's reaction to Mr. Bingley suggesting that he dance with Elizabeth at the ball. Mr. Darcy remarks, "She is tolerable but not handsome enough to tempt me," and he completely dismisses her. Soon after, Mr. Darcy begins to find Elizabeth rather appealing and eventually falls in love with her. Just as ironic, Elizabeth quickly forms a nasty opinion of Mr. Darcy as an arrogant and evil man. However, after she rejects his first proposal, he proves to be a true gentleman and she eagerly accepts his second proposal. Therefore, there is irony in that Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth both detested each other from the start, and then accidentally fell in love.

For nearly the entirety of the novel, Austen writes with a comical and satirical tone. The purpose behind this use of satire is to mock the pompousness and absurdity of the values and behavior displayed by the English upper class of the early nineteenth century. Such values were based firmly upon wealth and prestige, giving virtually all of the characters an air of pride bordering on arrogance. Characters such as Mr. Collins, Mrs. Bennet and Lady Catherine de Bourgh are evidence of this behavior, as although they are esteemed by most, a few characters such as Elizabeth and Mr. Bennet