Justification of The Title Of Pride and Prejudice

Significance of The Title Pride and Prejudice pdf

             A title is one of the important aspects of a novel. A good title should hint at the general theme of the novel and at the same time should carry a deeper meaning. For example, in R.K. Narayan's The Guide, the title is not only hinting at Raju's profession, but it is also hinting at his seeming guidance as a saint to the people of the village which is highly ironic.


So, What does the title Pride and Prejudice mean? What does title indicate figuratively? Here we have commented briefly on the title of Pride and Prejudice. Read on.

         The title of Pride and Prejudice is unique- it is not the original title of the novel. The original title of the novel is First Impressions. It was later revised to Pride and Prejudice in 1813. The question now arises is, which of the two title is more apt.



        There is a deep-seated irony in the original title of the novel. It is true that first impression is not always the last impression. The first impression that Elizabeth gets of Darcy at the Meryton Ball is negative. Suggested to take Elizabeth as his partner in dancing, Darcy respond  with pride mixed with arrogance that she is beautiful but not handsome enough to tempt him. Naturally this rude statement hurts Elizabeth's sentiment and she starts thinking of him as a proud, arrogant fellow.



      The title Pride and Prejudice is also relevant in the Merryton episode. The action of the novel weaves itself forward through Darcy's pride and Elizabeth's prejudice until they melt and mellow to mutual liking and happy marriage. After the Merryton incident Elizabeth's attitude towards Darcy gets twisted. Her prejudice against Darcy is further strengthened by a series of incidents happening successively. Elizabeth's meeting with Wickham is one such incident. Wickham, the son of the steward of Darcy's father paints Darcy as black as he can.


        In the initial conversations between Wickham and Elizabeth, the title First Impressions is legitimately relevant. Wickham capitalizes on Elizabeth's dislike of Darcy. He plays the victim card and tells Elizabeth that Darcy cheated on him in the matters relating to property. Thus, Eizabeth's hate for Darcy increases manifold while Wickham is able to create a positive image in the mind of Elizabeth. This impression of Elizabeth in the mind of Elizabeth proves to be wrong after she reads Darcy's letter. Darcy states in his letter that Wickham was indeed given inheritance but he gambled it all away. On top of that, Wickham even tried to elope with Darcy's then fifteen years old sister, for monetary reasons. Thus, first impressions are not always the last impressions.



      Elizabeth's prejudice against Darcy is further  made strong by Colonel Fitzwilliam's statement. The colonel says that Darcy had saved Bingley from an unfortunate marriage. This at once makes Elizabeth realize that Darcy is responsible for the separation of Jane and Bingley.



    When Elizabeth is sticking fast to her hatred and dislike against Darcy, in a meandering circuitous way, Darcy's fondness for her grows upon him until it becomes a consuming passion. The highest point is reached when Darcy all distraught proposes to Elizabeth and she dismisses it outright. That Darcy's pride is rightly humbled by Elizabeth is plainly admitted by himself late in a memorable passage- "By you I was properly humbled. I came to you without doubt of my reception. You showed me how insufficient were all my pretensions to please a woman worthy of being pleased."




     Elizabeth's prejudice slowly lifts like a fog. Ironically enough, Elizabeth comes to know of Darcy's sterling  qualities only after she has rejected his suit. Darcy's letter  the next day shows him in new light. She comes to know of Wickham's wicked nature. He also gives a valid justification of his intention to separate Bingley from Jane. From  Mrs. Gardiner's letter, Elizabeth learns that it was Darcy who took the pains of making wickham marry Lydia thereby saving the Bennet family from social disgrace. Elizabeth's visit to Pemberly, Darcy's beautiful country-house significantly removes her prejudice against Darcy.  She even wonders- " And of this place, I might have been mistress"



      Thus, Darcy's pride and Elizabeth's prejudice play a vital role throughout the novel. Jane Austen does not simplify the study of pride and prejudice in the novel. Elizabeth too seems to be proud of her capability of judging people. Similarly Darcy is prejudiced against any outside the circle of his class and so long held the view that girls of beauty as well as virtue is a monopoly of the aristocracy.



    However the novel is not about Elizabeth and Darcy alone. The meeting of Elizabeth and Wickham is important. The first impression that Wickham produces in the mind of Elizabeth is crucial. Wickham's wickedness is not caught by Elizabeth in the beginning. Wickham also produces wrong first impression in the mind of Lydia and she ends up marrying him. At the end of the novel we get the hint that Lydia is not doing well financially. Lady Catherine at first tries to be civil with Elizabeth but after hearing about the news of Elizabeth's possible marriage with Darcy she can no longer control herself and sheds the skin of civility. The first impression that we get of Darcy's sister is that of a proud, haughty girl. But she turns out to be an innocent, shy girl. Even the first impression that Darcy had of Jane and Bingley turns out to be wrong. He acknowledges later that Jane's affection for Bingley is genuine.





       Thus the title Pride and Prejudice seems to fit the story when we consider that the two main protagonists of the novel are Elizabeth and Darcy. However, if we look at the bigger picture, if we keep in mind all the incidents in the novel, the title First Impressions seems to be more appropriate. The title was changed to two abstract human traits  keeping in mind Austen's successful works- Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion etc. Thus it seems that the second title was nothing but a marketing strategy. Hence when compared side by side, the original title First Impressions comes out as a clear winner.

In Loving Memory of Sir Subhashish Bhattacharya, Department of English, Vivekananda College, Kolkata

- Sk Marifur Rahaman

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