Rating Pride and Prejudice Characters

So, I just finished reading Pride and Prejudice by the amazing Jane Austen for the second or third time. I recently purchased an illustrated version of Pride and Prejudice and was excited to reread. I took note of my favorite illustrations and thought rather than reviewing the book as a whole, which seems redundant for me as all Jane Austen novels automatically receive an 11/10 because of my infatuation with Jane Austen herself, I would review individual characters.

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  Reading in Hawaii

The exact copy I read was Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, illustrated by Shiei. The illustrations were so much fun and added an interesting visual aid to the plot and characters of the story. If you are not someone who is interested in classic literature but wants to be, I really recommend finding an illustrated version of the book you wish to read.

Elizabeth Bennet 9/10

I often find that main characters have the most or at least a lot of flaws. Elizabeth is extremely stubborn and well obstinate and headstrong! Her stubbornness really affects Mr. Darcy the most as she swears him off after her first impression of him. This swearing off of Mr. Darcy is actually, in my opinion, reasonable considering he literally said she is not as pretty as her sister. This comment was really hard for me to get past as it is so blatantly offensive so I do not blame Elizabeth for being stubborn in that regard. However, I love that Elizabeth eventually realizes and recognizes her flaws and courageously admits she is wrong (regarding Mr. Darcy). Elizabeth has a really great relationship with Jane and I love how her sincerity and kindness shows through that relationship. Overall, Elizabeth is a really well rounded and likeable character with flaws that are relatable.

Jane Bennet- 100/10

Jane Bennett is the best character in the whole novel and maybe the best possible person to exist, although I suppose her existence is limited to the realm of imagination for she is a character within a book. Jane’s best attributes are her kindness, sensibility and optimism. I strive to be as sweet as Jane Bennett. I love that she always sees the good in people even though people view her as naive because of it. She is a great friend/sister to Elizabeth and provided adequate and sensible advice upon several occasions throughout the novel.

Mary Bennet- 5/10

Mary Bennett is extremely average. She always seems to be inserting herself into random conversations with random words of wisdom which sort of gives me “pick me” energy. I love that she so deeply enjoys reading and furthering her education which is refreshing as women during this time were not always able to focus on their educational merits. Other than this, she is, in my opinion, the most irrelevant sister and seems to be there to just add philosophical aid to the reader’s analysis to the entirety of the novel.

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  Elizabeth

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  Jane

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  Mary

Kitty Bennett- 4/10

I mean, Kitty is a cool character. She seems fun and spunky. However, her obvious attempts to please and impress others is slightly annoying and her attempts often fail leaving me with second hand embarrassment. I also find it strange that she follows and copies her younger sister. This is problematic as her maturity is clearly skewed as her constant desire to be like Lydia rapidly develops. Despite this, I feel sort of sorry for her which is why I gave her some points. It is clear that Kitty’s actions reflect inner insecurity.

Lydia Bennett- 7/10

Lydia Bennett is the perfect definition of a girlboss. I love how she bought a random ugly bonnet? That part always makes me LOL! I think I really resonate with her because she is very commonly described as silly and sort of immature and carefree. This was a weakness for her, especially considering the times, but I think it adds a comedic relief within the novel that is completely necessary. I also love how she is sort of a trendsetter for her older sister Kitty. Furthermore, I took off points because she seems slightly controlling and manipulative to Kitty. However I do believe this could be a reflection of her young age. If Lydia existed in the present, I believe her personality would be described in a brighter light because of her confidence and humour.

Mr. Darcy- 9/10

I love Mr. Darcy for he is kind and romantic. However, unlike a lot of people, I can not get past his character as he was portrayed for the first part of the novel. I understand he is sensitive and shy and his rudeness can be excused by those characteristics, but his blatant insults to Elizabeth and his first proposal are inexcusable in my opinion which is why I took a point off. Furthermore, his positive attributes are incredibly abundant as he ends up re proposing to Elizabeth and treating her extremely well.

Mrs. Bennet- 4/10

Mrs. Bennett’s existence seem almost completely reliant on criticizing and gossiping. I don’t really like her because of her extremely conservative views on marriage. At some points, it is as if that is the most important thing in life for her- to have all her daughters get married off to rich men. Although, I do admire that her intentions are good as she just wants her daughters to have a good life when she and her husband are unable to provide for them. She just needs to chill out.

Mr. Bennet- 46748912784362721027578/10

Mr. Bennett is my favorite character. I love his relationship with Elizabeth. Unlike Mrs. Bennett, both Mr. Bennett’s intentions and outward actions toward his daughters reflect goodness. I love that he is always on his daughter’s sides. He reminds me a bit of my own father which I think is why I love Mr. Bennett so much!

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Caroline Bingley- 1/10

I seriously do not like her, she exists to be mean and put down others and I do not like her constant attempts to humiliate Elizabeth. I reluctantly gave her a point as she is most likely insecure and therefore I feel a little bit of empathy toward her.

Charlotte Lucas- 3/10

At first, I liked Charlotte Lucas. She seemed like a nice friend to Elizabeth and an overall harmless character. Yet with further analysis, I concluded that she seems rather two faced and the type of person to change her opinion based on who is around her.

Lady Catherine De Bourgh- 4/10

This character is annoying yet received a fairly high ranking as she provides familiar characteristics of people I know which makes the novel more relatable. I love Elizabeth’s interactions with her as she demonstrates an awkward and resented sense of politeness as she tries to navigate through Catherine’s rudeness, need for the spotlight and overall general nosiness. Lady Catherine is the very definition of a foil in literature and provides great insight into certain aspects of the plot and other characters.

Mr. William Collins- 0/10

Total incestual CREEP weirdo. No points because he gives me predator vibes. I know the times were different but still…

George Wickham- 0/10

I feel so betrayed by Wickham. I genuinely thoroughly enjoyed his character at one point. He had sense and charisma at his introduction. However, his backstabbing tendencies that ruined Elizabeth’s perspective on Darcy had detrimental impact on the timeline on Elizabeth and Darcy’s love story. I do not like how he played the victim and was so condescending and confident in his lies to Elizabeth.

Charles Bingley- 8/10

Charles Bingley is a good natured man who is too easily persuaded by the opinions of others, resulting in self sabotage; we see this in his relationship with Jane and his inclination to leave her at the suggestions of his sisters. Without this desire to please everyone, Charles Bingley would be a perfect man as he is charismatic, kind and obviously caring toward Jane.