Overwhelming Emotions, a Love for Nature, and the Rustic Appeal:
Romanticism Overpowers Neoclassicism, Regency, and Victorianism
Throughout the decades, literary critics have been going back and forth over how to categorize Jane Austen’s novels. Although she is a contemporary of many Romantic authors and poets, her style and ideas have caused her to often be completely left out of a period. William H. Galperin, according to Michael Scrivener in the article “Inside and Outside Romanticism,” “locates Austen in a now no longer anomalous Romantic context” (153), while Mary Favret, in her article “Jane Austen’s Periods,” claims that “[s]he may never have had a period. She may have had a period and then stopped having it. She may have missed some periods but not others. She may simply have had a regular series of periods” (373). Roger Sales, author of Jane Austen and Representations of Regency England, on the other hand, firmly believes that Jane Austen’s works are neither Romantic nor Victorian, but Regency (xvii).
Considering Jane Austen’s vast variety of themes and the issues she addresses, one can hardly dispute with the fact of the matter that her works are difficult to put in a box. Favret concludes her article by saying that “Austen writes periods upon periods” where “the sentences of [her] fiction find ways to turn periods into less defining, more heterogeneous temporal situations in which the claims of past, present, and future tangle, compete, and sometimes open onto one another” (379). This being said, although many of the themes or ideas that can be found in Pride and Prejudice have traces or even an abundance of Neoclassicism, Regency, or Victorianism, it can be argued that the heart of this novel is very Romantic, and that the characters, although immersed in a culture almost completely removed from the age of Romanticism, are themselves very Romantic in nature. The most prominent Romantic elements that can be found in this novel are the raw emotions that are expressed throughout the novel, the innate love for nature which is particularly depicted by the main character, Elizabeth Bennet, and the rustic lifestyle which is celebrated by Romantics. All of these Romantic elements reflect on the main theme of this novel, which is love, particularly the love shared between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy.
The emotions displayed in this novel range from extremely loud and obnoxious to overly suppressed and almost unnoticeable. Nevertheless, the way of expression does not in any way affect the intensity of feelings. From the very beginning of the book, readers are introduced to Mrs. Bennet who is a true representation of a flamboyant and unrestrained emotional creature. She never hesitates to blatantly speak of her feelings, and often exaggerates when relating a certain event. This can especially be seen on two occasions. The first is found right after the ball at Netherfield in which Mrs. Bennet, still wired from the energy she obtained from the evening, with great gusto and exuberance, describes how Mr. Bingley “danced with Jane twice!” Mr. Bennet, not quite in the mood to listen to her rattle on and on about dance partners gives an impatient retort, but Mrs. Bennet, unfazed, goes on to talk about dresses and lace where she is once again implored to change the subject (11). The other account which most accurately shows Mrs. Bennet’s uncontained emotion is when she hears that her youngest daughter was soon to be wed:
As soon as Jane had read Mr. Gardiner’s hope of Lydia’s being soon married, her (Mrs. Bennet) joy burst forth, and every following sentence added to its exuberance. She was now in an irritation as violent from delight, as she had never been fidgety from alarm and vexation. She was disturbed by no fear for her felicity, nor humbled by any remembrance of her misconduct. (249) All Mrs. Bennet cared about at that moment was that her worries were in the past and that she could now celebrate her new found joy.
The other extreme display of (or lack of) emotion can be seen in Jane, the eldest among the Bennet sisters. Although she is greatly affected by Mr. Bingley’s unexpected departure from Netherfield, she takes it all in stride, attempts to suppress her feelings, and endeavors to go on as if nothing ever happened. Immediately after reading the letter from Caroline Bingley, she puts it aside and “trie[s] to join with her usual cheerfulness in the general conversation” (98). However, this does not in any way mean that Jane does not feel, for she most certainly does. After holding in her feelings for an extended period of time, Jane finally confides in Elizabeth, saying how she wishes that her “dear mother had more command over herself!” (112). She goes on to speak of how “[Mrs. Bennet] can have no idea of the pain she gives [Jane] by her continual reflections of him (Mr. Bingley) (112). Nevertheless, this does not drive her to any action whatsoever. She promptly declares that she “will not repine,” for she says, “It cannot last long. He will be forgot, and we shall all be as we were before” (112). Her inaction causes her to suffer in silent torment for months, and the readers are soon given Mr. Darcy’s account of how he had, upon observing her reactions to Mr. Bingley, thought that she did not return his deep affections for her (163).
While it is sorely tempting to blame Jane herself for her own misery, one can hardly stay unaffected by her grief. In her article “Jane Austen and the Happy Fall,” Stefanie Markovits criticizes Jane’s “passivity,” commenting on how she “must depend upon the actions of Elizabeth and Darcy to persuade Bingley to renew his advances” (784). However, she also brings up the fact that “Jane’s passivity seems to be the byproduct of her goodness” (784), which causes her to be loved by everyone she knows. For this very reason, Jane can be viewed as a Romantic. Although the people surrounding Jane are unable to recognize her true feelings, Austen here reveals her raw and heartfelt emotion to her readers and they are able to relate with Jane on a very deep level. In the a similar way in which the Romantic poets would withdraw into solitude and express themselves through poetry in order to reveal their deepest emotions, Austen’s revelation of Jane’s inner turmoil to her audience reflects on the pouring out of strong, unspoken emotions that is shared only between Jane, Elizabeth, and the reader.
The third kind of emotion that deserves to be addressed and is probably most likely to be seen as unromantic is displayed by Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. It is the underlying kind of emotion that is somehow made obvious despite their apparent sensibilities, logical thought processes, and their supposed abilities to regulate their emotional expressions. Although they seem to be among the most rational characters in the novel, most of their cognitive activities are highly influenced by their emotional responses. From the very beginning, Mr. Darcy’s opinion of Elizabeth is driven by his emotions in which he declares to Mr. Bingley, “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me” (10). His opinion is not long after changed, however, when he goes as far as to tell Miss Bingley: “My mind was more agreeably engaged. I have been meditating on the very great pleasure which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can bestow” (23).
Susan Greenfield writes in her article “The Absent Minded Heroine: Or, Elizabeth Bennet has a Thought” that “[a]s soon as Mr. Darcy falls entirely in love – as soon as what he perceives of Elizabeth’s body begins to correspond with her delightful character – all passages from his consciousness vanish” (343). This claim is made evident in Mr. Darcy’s first proposal when he tells Elizabeth: “In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you” (156). The battle between Darcy’s better judgment and his emotions are obvious, and in that very declaration, one is able to sense his reluctance as well as his desperation to tell her of his feelings. Needless to say, his emotions get the better of him. As the conversation develops farther, one can observe that both Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth go through a progression of different emotions that they fight to maintain control over. Nevertheless, although they do not go off into hysterics, their emotions still become rather heightened, and the conversation ends with Mr. Darcy leaving with damaged pride, and Elizabeth feeling utterly drained to the point where she breaks down and cries (159-160).
Elizabeth is also constantly seen to be reacting emotionally to the situations she faces, albeit in a controlled manner. Her very prejudice for Mr. Darcy from the start was an emotional reaction to his pride, which was then later fanned into flame by Mr. Wickham’s story of Mr. Darcy. It was only through a series of run-ins with Mr. Darcy, a letter from him over which she pores over, and finally, a separation from him that she learns more about him in his absence that her feelings for him begin to grow. In the article “Committing Freedom: The Cultivation of Judgment in Rousseau's Emile and Austen's Pride and Prejudice” by Vivasvan Soni, Elizabeth’s judgment is praised when “she reads, and indeed rereads, the letter from Darcy which explains his actions” (372). According to Soni, Austen is making a statement here by saying that “to judge well, it will always be necessary to read again” (372). Soni goes on to explain Elizabeth’s thought process as she reads the letter for the first time but is not truly convinced, or her mind not fully changed, until the second reading (373).
While this shows good judgment and impressive cognitive skills, there is also a development of emotions that come into play as she realizes how wrongly she had initially judged Mr. Darcy and how foolish she had been to believe Mr. Wickham. Greenfield, on the other hand, calls to attention the thoughts that Elizabeth was made to confront during the course of Mr. Darcy’s absence, and how “she learns that her own thoughts can be as deceptive and inaccessible as Wickham and Darcy, that, like the external reality, they so easily misinterpret, thoughts can misread themselves” (344), once again making it clear that Elizabeth is very much in tune with her emotions and that they have a heavy influence over her thoughts. It is through all of this emotional rationale, however, that Mr. Darcy’s love for Elizabeth becomes increasingly strengthened as he gets to know her more and that Elizabeth is able to transition her feelings for Mr. Darcy from that of complete abhorrence to one of love and respect. Without all the mental battling and struggles, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth would possibly never have reached the point in their relationship where they are able to share mutual love for one another.
Another Romantic characteristic that is found throughout this novel is the love for nature that is wonderfully demonstrated by Elizabeth. On more than one occasion, Elizabeth can be found running off into nature to think, read a letter, or just to get away from the crowd of people at home. During her stay at Hunsford, she would go for long walks everyday down to a grove so much so that Mr. Darcy knew precisely where he would be able to find her (161). While Elizabeth does express a good deal of emotion through the course of the plot, the only time she actually gives in to an outburst is when she is invited by Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner to accompany them on their trip to Northern England. Her response is unlike any other, and for once, she actually sounds more like her mother or Lydia than clear-headed Elizabeth:
“My dear, dear aunt,” she rapturously cried, “what delight! what felicity! You give me a fresh light and vigour. Adieu to disappointment and spleen. What are men to rocks and mountains? Oh! What hours of transport we shall spend! And when we do return, it shall not be like other travellers, without being able to give one accurate idea of anything. We will know where we have gone – we will recollect what we have seen. Lakes, mountains, and rivers shall not be jumbled together in our imaginations; nor when we attempt to describe any particular scene, will we begin quarrelling about its relative situation. Let our first effusions be less insupportable than those of the generality of travellers.” (129) Elizabeth’s fervor fascination for nature seems almost religious, revealing a side of her that is truly Romantic. Markovits writes of how Elizabeth longs for “pleasures to look forward to,” and how “[h]er tour to the Lakes was now the object of her happiest (783).
Furthermore, her walk to Netherfield results in Mr. Bingley’s sisters’ disgust, but Mr. Darcy, as Greenfield puts it, is “so smitten when she enters Bingley’s home” (342). In the description of Pemberly, which is rather extensive, it is revealed, based on the nature of the place and how it lacks “artificial appearance” (199), that Mr. Darcy – considering how estates usually reflect on its master – and Elizabeth share a common love for the natural. It is no wonder that her countenance, “glowing with the warmth of exercise” (28) when she arrives at Netherfield should have had the effect on Mr. Darcy the way it did.
Finally, the rustic lifestyle that is especially dear to the hearts of the Romantics is given much credit in this novel. Although it is looked upon with scorn by people like Mr. Bingley’s sisters who criticize Elizabeth for walking in the mud for several miles by herself (30), or Lady Catherine de Bourgh who does not hesitate in telling Elizabeth that they “have a very small park” (289), Elizabeth’s carefree and simple ways, along with her occasional disregard for proper manners seems to be one of the main factors that caught Mr. Darcy’s attention. This can be seen in one of the final conversations of the novel that takes place between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth soon after they proclaimed their love for one another:
“Now, be sincere; did you admire me for my impertinence?
“For the liveliness of your mind, I did.”
“You may as well call it impertinence at once. It was very little less. The fact is, that you were sick of civility, of difference, of officious attention. You were disgusted with the women who were always speaking and looking and thinking for your approbation alone. I roused and interested you, because I was so unlike them. Had you not been really amiable, you would have hated me for it; but, in spite of the pains you took to disguise yourself, your feelings were always noble and just; and, in your heart, you thoroughly despised the persons who so assiduously courted you. There – I have saved you the trouble of accounting for it; and really, all things considered, I begin to think it perfectly reasonable.” (313) Based on Elizabeth’s claim that Mr. Darcy was sick of civility and was disgusted by women (like Caroline Bingley, as Elizabeth seems to be implying), it can be said that it was the natural and sincere attributes that Mr. Darcy found in Elizabeth and lacking in other women that caused her to be so dear to him.
In conclusion, despite the fact that Pride and Prejudice may not particularly exude Romanticism the way other typical Romantic novels may, there are plenty of Romantic characteristics that can be found embedded within the text. Since the main storyline is carried along by the seemingly mismatched couple of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth and the love that they eventually discover for each other through these Romantic elements, one can be led to believe that Jane Austen is indeed advocating these Romantic ideas, and one could even go so far as to say that Jane Austen herself, based on her descriptions of nature and her expressed partiality for Elizabeth Bennet above her other characters, is herself, a true Romantic at heart.
Works Cited
Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. New York: Random House, Inc., 1950. Print.
Favret, Mary. “Jane Austen’s Periods.” Novel 42.3. (2009): 337-339. Web. 24 Mar. 2012.
Roger, Sales. Jane Austen and Representations of Regency England. London and New York: Routledge, 1994. Print.
Greenfield, Susan. C. “The Absent-Minded Heroine: Or, Elizabeth Bennet has a Thought.” Eighteenth-Century Studies 39.3. (2006): 337-350. Web. 24 Mar. 2012.
Markovits, Stefanie. “Jane Austen and the Happy Fall.” SEL Studies in English Literature 47.4. (2007): 779-797. Web. 24 Mar. 2012.
Scrivener, Michael. “Inside and Outside Romanticism.” Criticism 46.1. (2004): 151-165. Web. 24 Mar. 2012.
Soni, Vivasvan. “Committing Freedom: The Cultivation of Judgment in Rousseau’s Emile and Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.” Eighteenth-Century Studies 51.3. (2010): 364-387. Web. 24 Mar. 2012.