The Absolute Truth

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” (pg.1)

This is the opening line of Austen’s book, Pride and Prejudice. It represents the way of thinking in the 18th century regarding young men and marriage. During this time period, men were often sought after because of their social environment rather than individual traits. This quote in the beginning of the novel, introduces the arrival of Mr. Bingley. This quote also embodies Mrs. Bennet, the main characters mother’s, “life goal.” She is obsessed with attempting to get her daughters married and does not seem to care about her daughter’s happiness as long as they are married to a man with a substantial property and large sum of money. There are many occasions in the novel where Mrs. Bennet’s goal overshadows an issue of greater importance. Such as, Jane, her eldest daughter, becomes ill after her mother forced her to ride horseback to Mr. Bingley’s house in the pouring rain. And later on in the novel, Mrs. Bennet was overjoyed when she heard that Lydia had been married. And she was oblivious to see the pain that this marriage caused her family, and was not able to understand the amount of work and effort by her sister’s husband, that went into the marriage of Wickham and Lydia.