Katrina Sorensen
For my final COVE build, I thought it would be interesting to look more into Pride and Prejudice and Austens effect on the romantic period and the regency period. Pride and Prejudice was written in 1796 and published in 1813 and to this day it is considered to be Austen’s most popular novel. When it was initially published in 1796, it was originally called First Impressions but was changed when it was officially published. Pride and Prejudice sits right at the beginning of the regency period which is mostly identifiable by the development of arts and sciences that were prominent in that time period. This period and the growth of industrialism and other historical changes that were happening made an impact on Austen's writings and shows in Pride and Prejudice with the military presence and the examination of gender roles. Literature and the printing of literature was also expanding in this time which made Austen even more successful.
One of the more prominent ideas in Pride and Prejudice is the continued discussion of social rank throughout the novel. Mr. Darcy specifically shows the regency period idea of a “perfect gentleman.” Not only does he have good social standing and good social rank, but he has some of the other qualities looked for in the romantic/ regency era. Throughout the story, Mr. Darcy chooses to pursue Elizabeth even though Miss Bingley is trying to attract Darcy’s interest. Mr. Darcy recognizes this and chooses Elizabeth anyway because he finds her intelligence more attractive than the ability to be socially “accomplished” which until this time was very important for women.
While Pride and Prejudice is an amazing story that had a great impact on the regency period and culture, it is also important to discuss Austen as a person and her relationships with other writers at the time. A lot of Austen's characters, specifically her male heroes are often considered to be very similar to the byronic heros of Lord Byron. In an article discussing the byronic in Austen’s writings, it says “Although Austen and Byron are often considered to be irreconcilable opposites, in this article I argue that Austen engaged closely with Byron's poetry and drew inspiration from some of his most popular poems” (Wootton 1). The article continues later talking about the many ways that Byron and Austen differ especially in their writing styles and personal lives. However, the author does want to point out that, “Austen was responding to the same cultural stimuli as Byron; more specifically, that Austen was responding to the same cultural stimuli as Byron; more specifically, Austen’s familiarity with a number of the Byronic hero’s literary predecessors, from Milton’s Satan and Shakespeare’s Hamlet to Richardson’s Lovelace, suggests an indirect connection through shared sources” (Wootton 2). Both Byron and Austen would have been influenced by the same literary culture that would have influenced them to write their own literature. While it is very possible that Austen would have been influenced by some of Byron’s poems, this time period was full of a lot of change that was happening because of the culture created from the “shared sources.”
Jane Austen and the writing of Pride and Prejudice mark a very important part of the romantic period and the regency era. Her writings have been and will continue to be a section of literature loved by all who love romance and feminist ideas that are presented in her novels.
Works Cited:
Wootton, Sarah. “The Byronic in Jane Austen’s ‘Persuasion’ and ‘Pride and Prejudice.’” The Modern Language Review, vol. 102, no. 1, 2007, pp. 26–39, https://doi.org/10.2307/20467150. Accessed 25 Apr. 2022.