Jane Austen's emphasis in Pride and
Prejudice illustrates the close, indeed inextricably close, connection
between culture and behavior. Darcy has the manners he has--that of a gentleman, but one
who has never had his deportment questioned--because of the culture of his times. He was
a man of privilege and great wealth, and everyone around him knew this to be so, even
headmasters, masters, and professors at his schools would know his privileged state and
act accordingly. As a point of comparison, such manners as Darcy had would look
ridiculous to us in today's culture in almost any country effected by Western
civilization.
Elizabeth's secluded life as a country
gentleman's daughter surrounded her culturally with the freedom to develop her own mind
and mental traits without the guidance or influence of more formalized urban aspects of
the culture of the era. As a result, she learned to quickly form her own mind--with or
without due reflection and consideration--and thereby expressed the strength of mind the
culture valued, though valued usually in men!
These two examples show how
culture influences the characters on the personal level; Charlotte and Wickham show how
culture influences characters on the social level. Charlotte is strongly influenced by
the culture--one which requires women to be married for various reason, including
independence and income--in her choice to marry Collins. She says of
him:
I ask
only a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins' character, connections, and
situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as
most people can boast on entering the marriage
state.
The narrator has
prepared for Charlotte's sentiments by explaining the cultural influences that led to
Charlotte's social choice. The narrator explains that for women who do not have enough
wealth to attract men of higher caliber than Collins, marriage is the most, or "only
honorable," social choice for happiness and for income for a "well-educated”
woman:
[M]atrimony, marriage had always been
[Charlotte's] object; it was the only honourable provision for well-educated young women
of small fortune, and however uncertain of giving happiness, must be their pleasantest
preservative from want. [And] Miss Lucas, ... accepted him solely from the pure and
disinterested desire of an establishment [independent home of her own],
....
Wickham's social choices
are similarly influenced by the culture of the times. He must have an income so that he
can continue to live the life that being the privileged son of the steward of the
Pemberley estate had accustomed him to--this meant he must have an income of
significance and one that comes with status, not with work. Hence, Darcy senior's
provision for Wickham to become a clergyman and, hence, Darcy's provisions for him to
buy an officer's commission in the Regimental Army. Wickham's other option, one which he
pursued ardently, was to marry a lovely young lady of wealth and charm; thus he turned
his attention first to Elizabeth, then to the much wealthier young heiress with ten
thousand pounds.
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