The Social Institution Of Marriage In Jane Austen’s Society Essay examp

The Social Institution Of Marriage In Jane Austens Society In the following essay I am going to closely examine the proposals ofmarriage Elizabeth by her cousin Mr Collins, and aristocrat Mr Darcy.I am also going to compare and contrast the events of each proposal.In Jane Austens sustenancetime a womens status in society came firstlyfrom her parents and secondly when she married. Jane Austen shows themarked differences in class frequently, as this was a study feature ofeveryday life in the 19th century. Men were seen as being far superiorto women as they were able to work and thus pull a small, and in rarecases a large fortune. Pride and Prejudice in some ways mirrors JaneAustens own life, as her heart was low-down at a tender age. JaneAusten gave her undying love to her hero tom Lefroy, however the matchproved incompatible as neither Jane or Tom had a sufficient income toallow them to live as man and wife. At only twenty Jane Austens reallove had come and gone and she never we nt on to love anyone else.Pride and Prejudice portrays the struggle for women to find compatiblemen, that not only satisfied their own need for love and adoration, alone also suitors that meet their families best wagers.In chapter nineteen it becomes clear to the reader that Mr Collins isinterested in Mrs Bennets daughters. He firstly questions theavailability of Jane but is told that she is soon to be engaged to MrBingley. After this set back Mr Collins inquires about Elizabeth (thesecond eldest daughter of Mrs Bennet.) May I hope madam, for yourinterest with your fair daughter Elizabeth, when I solicit for thehonour of a private audience with her in the course of this morning.Elizabeth tried to inte... ...)within a family could have heartrending consequences on daughters and theireligibility for marriage. Many would remain spinsters or they wouldmarry outside their usual social circle. It was not unusual forcouples to become engaged in their late teens (with the lifeexpectancy at this time of approximately forty years it is perhaps notsurprising that couples married young). Today many couples aremarrying in their thirty-something and marriage is not as fashionable orsocially vital. In the Bennets case as there was no son and heirthere was the faithfulness of entailment whereby property was left to a malerelative. Therefore there was a real pressure for a daughter to marrythe inheritor so that property and wealth could remain within thefamily. Of course laws like this do not generally exist today, andmarriages are a union of love sort of than a business proposition.