Austen 250 Reader Series: Pride and Prejudice (Chapters 41-47)

Hello and a heartfelt welcome to one and all. This year, in honor of Jane Austen’s 250th birthday celebration, the Jane Austen Summer Program is dedicating blog space to summarizing and reviewing the great works written by one of the world’s most renowned authors. We have now reached the point in our journey when it is time to discuss what some might consider Austen’s most treasured piece: Pride and Prejudice. Published January 28, 1813, this novel’s quick-witted characters and highly quotable dialogue have allowed this classic to become timeless and continually lauded by modern audiences. This week, we will focus on the events that unfold during chapters 41-47.

Synopsis

There is still much talk of taking the entire Bennet family to Brighton, but then, Lydia’s prayers are answered when her friend, Colonel Forster’s wife, invites her to join her own party. Lydia is in raptures. Mrs. Bennet is equally enthused, and Kitty is broken-hearted. Elizabeth takes this opportunity to speak to her father. She begs him to check Lydia’s silliness and cautions that if he does not, she will bring shame on her family and sisters for being such a flirt. He says Lydia will not be easy until she goes to Brighton, and he means to let her do this. Elizabeth persists, saying her father does not know what Lydia’s behavior has already cost them and he makes a bit of a joke out of the matter before he realizes that Lizzy is serious. Ultimately, even though Mr. Bennet hears Elizabeth’s concerns, he determines to allow Lydia the freedom of going to Brighton because he thinks Colonel Forster will watch over her and, in this environment, she might even learn a little humility. Elizabeth, in her final meeting with Mr. Wickham, does not come right out and tell him she knows of his nefarious deeds, but she does make it clear that she no longer despises Mr. Darcy.

Elizabeth learns quite early what she does not want in a marriage. Her father and mother married because, like Lydia, Mrs. Bennet had once been pretty and light-hearted. Now, Mr. Bennet finds her barely tolerable. He enjoys living in the country and reading his books. And delights only in teasing his wife for his own amusement.

Lydia’s time in Brighton passes quickly and thankfully, after a few weeks, Kitty becomes contented once more. She stops complaining--that is to say. It is then that Lizzy hears from her aunt and uncle. Their upcoming trip to the Lakes is cancelled and replaced by a shorter one to Derbyshire. She tries to satisfy herself with this knowledge but is sad to lose the opportunity of traveling farther and for a more extended period. She thinks of Mr. Darcy and his estate Pemberley because in her mind it is connected greatly to Derbyshire, but she concludes that she should be permitted to pass through his town without drawing much attention to herself.

The tour included: Derbyshire, Oxford, Blenheim, Warwick, Kenilworth, Birmingham and Lambton. While in Lambton, Mrs. Gardiner expresses a desire to see Pemberley, but she leaves it to Elizabeth. Immediately, Elizabeth doesn’t want to go because she dreads running into Mr. Darcy again, but she doesn’t want to disappoint her travel companions. She asks about to learn if the owners of Pemberley are currently at home and upon hearing they are away, she settles herself to the notion of visiting the great estate.

Elizabeth is still uneasy about visiting until they are within and the party is introduced to the housekeeper, Mrs. Reynolds. This lady speaks at great length about Mr. Darcy and his fine attributes. As Elizabeth listens, her feelings for Mr. Darcy begin to soften. According to Mrs. Reynolds, Mr. Darcy has a sweet nature and is the best master and brother imaginable. Elizabeth stares for a long moment at a painting of Mr. Darcy and notices the smile gracing his face. She has seldom seen it, except for a few times when she caught him staring at her. She takes several long glances at the portrait before the family exits the house and is introduced to the gardener. Just before they are to set out and explore the grounds, Mr. Darcy himself appears. Elizabeth is struck with embarrassment over their meeting and is wholly mortified, even when he takes his leave.

The party ventures on, exploring the grounds, and when they turn back toward the home once more, they are again joined by Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth endeavors not to embarrass herself further. When Mr. Darcy asks her to introduce her companions, she watches his reaction keenly. While she notes how he seems surprised to find them as her relations, he does not excuse himself but instead makes polite conversation. She triumphs in knowing she has some relatives who are not going to embarrass her.

When Mrs. Gardiner feels fatigued and moves forward to grasp her husband’s arm for support, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy walk together. He asks if he might be permitted to introduce his sister to her. Elizabeth is stunned by this clear compliment. She, of course, agrees to making Miss Darcy’s acquaintance and she cannot help but wonder if Mr. Darcy’s difference in his manners and civility is because of the way she rebuked him back in Hunsford. She doesn’t go so far as to believe he is still truly in love with her, but she does think it might be possible.

The very next day, Mr. Darcy and his sister turn up at the inn so that the introductions might be made. Elizabeth is surprised and she expects to find Miss Darcy just as proud and haughty as she perceived her brother to be at first, but Elizabeth can detect neither of those feelings in young Miss Darcy. She is exceedingly shy. That is the conclusion. Minutes later, Bingley arrives, and Elizabeth is so delighted to see him that she feels even if she still had some resentment toward his behavior, it would all be washed clean. Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner watch all this unfold and determine, together, that love is blooming between Darcy and Elizabeth. They are not fully sure Elizabeth is ensnared, but they do think Darcy is in love with their niece.

Before the trio leave the inn, Mr. Darcy and his sister ask Elizabeth and her companions if they might join them all for dinner at Pemberley before leaving the country. The invitation is happily accepted by Mrs. Gardiner.

The following morning, while Mr. Gardiner does some fishing with the gentlemen at Pemberley, Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner join the ladies for a brief visit. Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst treat Elizabeth coldly and with disdain. Only Georgiana and the woman employed as her companion, Mrs. Annesley, are able to keep the conversation going. It is not until Mr. Darcy enters the room that Miss Bingley sits up and tries to make a spectacle of Elizabeth. She mentions the regiment. But Elizabeth deals with that comment easily, thus alleviating any worries Mr. Darcy might have about Mr. Wickham being mentioned in front of his little sister. When the ladies finally depart from Pemberley, Elizabeth longs to speak of Mr. Darcy and she wants to know what her aunt thinks of him, but she stays quiet on that point.

Elizabeth receives two letters from Jane. In the first, she learns that Lydia has run away from Brighton with Mr. Wickham. They are to be married. In the second letter, Jane says that Colonel Forster came to visit the family because he heard from Mr. Denny that Wickham never intended to marry Lydia at all. Colonel Forster tried to track their progress across the country but lost their trail. So, he came to Longbourn to share the news with the family. Jane begs Elizabeth and her aunt and uncle to return so they can decide what course to take next together.

Elizabeth is distressed and as she moves forward to call a servant to run and fetch Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, Mr. Darcy appears. He can tell she is upset and when he asks after her, she reveals the whole sorry truth to him. He seems grieved by all that happened, but as Elizabeth looks at him, she feels a moment of self-pity. She could’ve loved him. She could. But now, she is certain they will never see each other again. He will not want to have even a flimsy acquaintance with someone like herself or her disgraceful family. Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner return at once and then they dash off for Longbourn.

Upon arriving at Longbourn, Elizabeth soon learns how her mother is behaving. Her mother keeps to her room but spends her days wailing a stream of contradictions. In one breath, she curses her husband for not taking her family to Brighton, then frets over his safety, for she is sure he will try to fight Wickham. Then, she is concerned about Lydia’s wedding clothes. Throughout her speeches, Mr. Gardiner encourages her to try and modulate her feelings and avoid exaggerating, but Mrs. Bennet is inconsolable. Later, when Elizabeth and Jane have a half hour to themselves, Jane shows Elizabeth the letter Lydia wrote to her friend, Mrs. Forster, before she and Wickham left. The only good this does is prove Lydia thought she was leaving with him so they could become married.

Impressions

Things get rather exciting in this section. Just as it seems that Elizabeth could allow herself to form affectionate feelings for Mr. Darcy, all that is swept away by Lydia’s actions. In earlier chapters, whilst at the Netherfield Ball, Elizabeth was mortified by the behavior of her loved ones, so much so that she wondered if they decided together the very best ways to humiliate her. But now, the silliness that was on display before seems like mere trifles compared to this new, fresh torment. Elizabeth understands at once that even if she could have fallen in love with Mr. Darcy, he would no longer associate with her now. Just as she predicted, Lydia’s behavior has ruined not only her own reputation, but that of her sisters’ as well.

It is always a struggle to see the joy conveyed in Elizabeth’s thoughts and words when she encounters Mr. Darcy at Pemberley only to have her happiness dashed several hours later.

Extras

Let us not delay in moving onto the next chapters. Now that we have reached the climax of the story, events will begin to unfold rapidly in chapters 48-52.

And…if you’re interested in reading other articles related to Mr. George Wickham, click on this JASP blog post about the heroes and villains littered throughout the works of Jane Austen and the Bronte Sisters.

Note: There are still a few places left for JASP 2025! This year’s four-day symposium, JASP 2025: Sensibility and Domesticity, will take place June 19-22, 2025, in historic New Bern, North Carolina. We will be focusing on Austen’s first published novel, Sense and Sensibility, and considering the birth of her career as a published author and taking a transatlantic look at the world into which she was born. Program topics include medicine, birth, and domestic arts in Regency England and colonial North Carolina. We’ll be covering the aforementioned topics and celebrating Austen’s 250th birthday through a wide range of activities including workshops, small-group discussions, and workshops. Our Regency Ball is also not an event to be missed! We can’t wait to celebrate Austen’s 250th birthday with you!