Analysis of Female Rebellion in Pride and Prejudice

【Abstract】The paper aims to analyze how female rebellion is reflected in Pride and Prejudice， exploring Jane Austens ration and independence towards marriage through the perspective of the heroine Elizabeth. Many scholars and experts have been working out the feminism in Pride and Prejudice. Furthermore some others begin to hammer at the female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice. This paper will try to dig out the deep implication of female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice on the basis of these former researchers study results.

【Key words】female consciousness； self-independence； female rebellion

1. Introduction

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife （Jane Austen， 2004）.” This is the first sentence of the very beginning of Pride and Prejudice. Many scholars and experts have been working out the feminism in Pride and Prejudice. Furthermore some others begin to hammer at the female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice. This paper will try to dig out the deep implication of female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice on the basis of these former researchers study results. All of those writers and scholars discuss a lot about the female consciousness. Based on this， the paper would like to make some further analysis about the female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice.

2. Female Rebellion Reflected in Pride and Prejudice

In Pride and Prejudice， feminism is first well talked about and illustrated， as the paper has mentioned before. This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women in education and employment.

As mentioned before， seeing from Pride and Prejudice， it is clear that most characters are well designed and especially Elizabeth who owns unique characteristics——that is female rebellion， different from other characters in other works. Some may insist that it is just what female consciousness reflected in the novel. Furthermore， female rebellion is an extension of female consciousness， a strong form of female actions.

2.1 Elizabeths Views of Marriage

In the 19th century， the essential condition of marriage is not love but material requirement——money， social status and other aspects. Many women in the middle-class or in the lower-class are inclined to marrying for material instead of true love. Elizabeth is characterized as such a young clever unique woman at her age that Darcy who owns great conditions and fine appearance also gets fascinated about her special glamour. Even though Darcy is marvelous in many aspects， Elizabeths independence and choice for love made her refuse his first proposal because of his pride and arrogance for the first time they met each other. Elizabeth wants love on the basis of mutual respect. This is how her female rebellion works， to be more specific， this behavior is a reflection of Jane Austens inner female rebellion against the tradition.endprint

2.2 Elizabeths Contempt for the Strict Feudal Rules for Women

Throughout the creation of Pride and Prejudice， Elizabeth has deep contempt for the strict feudal morale set for women， and she is rebellious against such unfair rules. Once her sister Jane got ill at a distance， she took great efforts to cross a three-mile-long muddy field covered to get to where her sister stayed with her dressing stained； when she was invited to a ball， everyone were flattering Mrs. Catherine while she went straight to point out Mrs. Catherines mistakes.

When asked to show in front of all people present， Elizabeth played a song without any concentration. These traditional people viewed her as a failure， but she didnt care about that because that was not where her interest lied in. These are only some short episodes， but Elizabeths unique rebellion against traditional feudal morale set for women. It is obvious that Elizabeth is not fond of feudal morale， and she doesnt care about those so-called rules to behave herself well in a traditional way but she lives her freestyle life.

3. Reasons for Female Rebellion in Pride and Prejudice

As is known to us all， art comes from life and goes beyond life. All great artistic works are related to our daily life， Pride and Prejudice included. Authors always get inspired from the ordinary things in life， so does Jane Austen， her Pride and Prejudice is regarded as a real reflection of her life in countryside.

Pride and Prejudice is greatly successful in many aspects， and it is closely related to the development of society and changes of family and many other factors.. One important point is the female rebellion advocated in Pride and Prejudice， which is not an accident or the authors imaginary production. Many aspects together are attributed to female rebellion， and the following will be a brief analysis of these factors.

3.1 Social Factors

From the late 18th century to the early 19th century， a series of big events took place continuously and some of them changed Britain a lot.

Because of the industrial revolution， people are crazy about chasing material economy， to some extent， ignoring females rights of receiving formal education and at that time wealth and social status are the main factors that influence a marriage most， and so Jane Austen tries to illustrate the real basis of a happy marriage discussed in Pride and Prejudice—love. She views Pride and Prejudice as a good novel which tells a story about love and marriage and is just like a mirror to reflect life of the middle class in England （Wang Juan， 2013， p121）.endprint

Most of them didnt have chance to receive normal school education， ridiculously， the intellectual women were for a long time regarded as superior in intelligence， dangerous in politics， fragile in morality， useless in everything （Xie Rencheng， 2014， p29-34）.

3.2 Individual Factors

Jane Austen was born in a middle-class clergyman family in Hampshire， Britain. In her family there were eight siblings， and she was tutored in family by her strict father. So it was not that strange Elizabeths family background was similar to Jane Austens. Both of them had a big family and their complicated family structure made them special in individual pursuits and characteristics. At that time， daughters didnt have rights to inherit their fathers possessions， only son was obliged to this priority. The influence of family plays a crucial role in female rebellion and it is undeniable the restrictions of family arouse female consciousness of rebellion.

4. Impacts of Female Rebellion in Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice， as one of the most influential novels for female readers in the 19th century has made great breakthroughs in English literature and it is also regarded the top one that influences women most and even changes their views of world.

Jane Austen with her sharp and intensive insight uncovered the dark side of the essence of middle-class marriage was the combination of money and material. Due to her putting special understanding and advocating for female rebellion on the heroine Elizabeth， Pride and Prejudice broadened womens sights， the spirit and appeal triggered womens awakening female consciousness as well as helped a lot of them get to reshape their views of marriage. Half of Austens works are filmed as TV series and movies such as Sense and Sensibility directed by Ann Lee， two different versions of Emma， the film Persuasion and so on.

It is not only about love and marriage， but also related to female independence and freedom in choosing their own career and the way they would like to live. Jane Austens impact and appealing really do mean a lot. Because of her pioneering in literature and voicing for the female has been making great differences.

5. Conclusion

Although Austen was only at her early twenties when she wrote Pride and Prejudice for the first time， her sharp observation and insight of social life makes the style of this book surprisingly mature and lively.

The female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice triggers us to think deeply and thoroughly， and the impact it has brought doesnt fade away but still goes on and on. No matter the impact is on the development of world literature or on peoples views of marriage， Pride and Prejudice is forever worth reading and studying. By analyzing and studying the female rebellion in Pride and Prejudice， we may get better understanding of female changes and the development of female literature.endprint

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作者简介：周红喜，女，汉族，贵州水城人，研究生在读，专业：英语语言文学，研究方向：英美文学。endprint