Women’s Lives Back in the 20’s it was normal for a woman to marry a wealthy man for his money. Most middle class women threw themselves at wealthy men just so they would have a chance at marriage. In Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice, the main character, Elizabeth Bennet, is different from all the other women of this time. She believes that you should marry because you love someone, not because they will be able to give you the most expensive gifts. There are more women like Elizabeth Bennet now than there was in the 20’s, because women have many more rights and advantages now a day’s then they would back in the 20’s. Women in the 20’s didn’t have many options for money other than marrying a wealthy man. The women came in second in most aspects of their lives. They were expected to stay at home and clean or cook. In Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Collins is going to inherit Mr. Bennet’s property because the Bennet women are unable to inherit it because they are females. Women now are able to own just as many things as men can. We could run our own company, buy our own home, or have our own land. Since women have these kinds of rights, we are able to make our own money and pay for our own things, instead of having to stay home to clean and cook. Women now are also able to look for a man they actually love instead of feeling the need to marry for money. Women in the 20’s could not make their own money very well. If you were not born into wealth, you would have to marry into wealth to become wealthy. Women like the character Charlotte, in Pride and Prejudice, who got married to Mr. Collins, marry into wealth because they are scared of what might happen in their future if they do not. Charlotte was scared of being stuck at home, being a burden to her parents, for the rest of her life because she would not have enough money to go live on her own or if she found a man that she did love that he would not be wealthy enough to have a happy life together. In the 20’s people got married quicker and divorced less. Most of the men back then were always searching for a wife, and most the women were ready to be proposed to. Women married into the wealth and once they were in they stopped worrying because divorce was much less common and more difficult to do back in the 20’s. Once you got married, you normally stayed married to that person for the rest of your life. Divorce is a very common thing in this day in age, and women feel less obligated to stay married because they know they would be able to make it on their own. In the 20’s the women needed the men and their money. Today women can make just as much or even more money than men. Jane Austen was never married and only had one serious romance.
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Austen was reflecting her feelings toward marriage through Pride and Prejudice. She shows through the book that she doesn’t think women should be forced into marriages with someone that they don’t really love, just for money. Elizabeth Bennet is the main character because she actually finds love and he just so happens to be a wealthy man. Elizabeth in the end gets married to a man, Mr. Darcy. Darcy’s character changes drastically throughout the novel. He does not want to fall in love with Elizabeth because of her social class; he believes it would put a damper on his reputation. But, in the end Darcy cannot ignore his feelings and finally gives into them. Elizabeth, being the strong independent woman that Austen thought there wasn’t enough of, didn’t make it easy for Mr. Darcy to just marry her. She had more pride than to just give in to a man who had insulted her for her little wealth. Jane Austen was proposed to and accepted the proposal because the man was wealthy and she thought it could benefit her family, but once she
Austen was reflecting her feelings toward marriage through Pride and Prejudice. She shows through the book that she doesn’t think women should be forced into marriages with someone that they don’t really love, just for money. Elizabeth Bennet is the main character because she actually finds love and he just so happens to be a wealthy man. Elizabeth in the end gets married to a man, Mr. Darcy. Darcy’s character changes drastically throughout the novel. He does not want to fall in love with Elizabeth because of her social class; he believes it would put a damper on his reputation. But, in the end Darcy cannot ignore his feelings and finally gives into them. Elizabeth, being the strong independent woman that Austen thought there wasn’t enough of, didn’t make it easy for Mr. Darcy to just marry her. She had more pride than to just give in to a man who had insulted her for her little wealth. Jane Austen was proposed to and accepted the proposal because the man was wealthy and she thought it could benefit her family, but once she