Money is a necessary but not sufficient condition for happiness in marriage, a subject addressed in Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice. Through a powerful introduction, the text defines the socioeconomic setting of 19th century England. In a male dominated society, monetary issues are top of mind for women and their families as they make marital choices weighing economic survival and their role in the society. Love and happiness are secondary. However, not everyone thinks alike. Some view financial security as the most important factor, some prioritize true love and meeting of the minds, and others are swayed by shallow romance and totally ignore the monetary aspect. Through the actions of its characters, the key message of the text is that while economic prosperity is an important consideration in a marital decision, it is only a base requirement in a hierarchy of needs such as love, belonging, companionship and self-esteem, and therefore one should neither ignore nor be completely swayed by the financial aspect alone.
However, it is the financial aspect alone that sways Charlotte Lucas in marrying a man whom she herself regards as and by doing so she sacrifices important needs such as love, self-respect and intellectual compatibility in a match. She explains her rationale to Elizabeth as , Through these words, Charlotte is very clear about her preference for a “comfortable home” and the financial security that comes with Mr. Collins connections and position in the society. Love and happiness would be a bonus. Although this is a safe and pragmatic choice for a 27-year girl, who isn’t particularly good looking and faces the prospect of economic insecurity without a marriage, her friend Elizabeth views it differently. In Elizabeth’s opinion, any woman who marries Mr. Collins By marrying , Charlotte lowers her dignity by giving up “every better feeling” for marital advantage. Charlotte makes a conscious choice in compromising needs such as love, happiness and self-respect by attaching disproportionate importance to financial necessities, and ends up with a not so great marriage.
Unlike Charlotte in personality and facing very different kinds of pressures at different stage in life, Mrs. Bennett too attaches disproportionate importance to financial necessities, which creates a negative influence in trying to get her daughters married as well in her relationship with Mr. Bennett. A key pressure point for Mrs. Bennett is the potential impact of entailment on her family. The potential scenario is vividly described by her husband, while reading a letter, These words terrify Mrs. Bennett, reminding her of the economic ruin she and her daughters face, if something were to happen to her husband. Further, she is frustrated that he hasn’t taken proactive steps to safeguard their future. Driven largely by these pressures, she is singularly focussed in avoiding the impact of entailment. However, she is a As a narrow minded woman who isn’t educated and not very thoughtful, she lacks the bigger perspective about a happy marriage. Her fixation is to marry her daughters, irrespective of their emotional well being, to wealthy men. She seems to be treating her daughters as commodities in the marriage market by encouraging them to chase every eligible bachelor. Her husband speaks jokingly to Elizabeth that, These words not only illustrate the wavelength mismatch between Mrs. Bennett and her husband, but also reflect poorly on her judgement in pushing Elizabeth to marry a stupid man like Mr. Collins. Desperate to get her daughters married due to the economic pressures of a prospective entailment, Mrs. Bennett has a very narrow outlook and she is not able to comprehend the big picture about other dimensions important in their long-term happiness.
As a direct contrast to the small-minded thinking of Mrs. Bennett, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, the main characters in the novel, are presented as those who have a long-term outlook and operate at a different intellectual plane. Elizabeth seeks higher level virtues such as true love and respect in a match rather than a feel-good financial guarantee. Darcy wants an authentic and intelligent partner. After Elizabeth tours his estate in Pemberley, she thinks, Through these words, she reiterates that even though she is tempted by Darcy’s riches, she was right in refusing his first marriage proposal. As a woman of tremendous self-esteem, she couldn’t accept the indignity of not being able to invite her relatives to her husband’s estate. She didn’t want to settle for financial prosperity by a marriage to a wealthy contemptuous man, especially if it meant losing her self respect. There is no single event but rather a series of events that make Elizabeth modify her initial judgement about him. The fact that she even considers re-assessing her opinion about Darcy and takes her time over it, speaks a lot about her intellectual honesty and the depth of her character. The process starts with her re-reading the letter Mr. Darcy hands her after she refuses his first proposal, Through Darcy’s revelation in the letter, she learns of Wickham’s unsavory past, such as his attempt to elope with Darcy’s sister to gain her wealth. Elizabeth also notes the consistency between the contents of the letter and her observation about Wickham. Her self reflection gradually turns into love with additional data points. As an example, Mr. Reynolds describes Darcy as Elizabeth’s ultimate change of heart occurs when she learns from her aunt that Darcy saved the Bennett family’s honor by paying off Wickham to marry Lydia. Not only did Darcy, but also risk his personal prestige by associating his name with Bennett family’s reputation. It must be because he truly loves Elizabeth and her heart told her that he had “done it for her.” In his second proposal, Darcy is far more contrite and expressive of his inner feelings towards her, Humbled by the rejection of his first proposal, Darcy realized that money and snobbishness wouldn’t win him authentic women such as Elizabeth. He also detests desperate and superficial women like Caroline Bingley, who have neither the intellectual capacity nor grace that he seeks in a woman. His reaction to Miss Bingley bad-mouthing Elizabeth is In the big picture, both Elizabeth and Darcy are not guided by monetary, materialistic or status considerations but are looking for true love and a meeting of the minds.
In direct contrast to the other characters, who are fully conscious about the need for financial security in a marriage, Lydia completely ignores the monetary aspect as she is obsessed with shallow romanticism, confusing it with true love. Lydia’s mother, in her overeagerness to get her daughters married, did not train her how to judge a man as a good potential husband. Lydia views getting married before her elder sisters as a race or competition. She teases Jane and Elizabeth, In her haste to get married, Lydia runs away with the slick Wickham who has no money and lots of debt. Darcy finds her but couldn’t persuade her to return home as Lydia refuses to listen to reason and is silly enough to believe that a debt ridden Wickham would marry her. In running away with him, without a marriage, not only does she risk her family’s reputation but also naively ignore the necessity of financial security. She is tying her future to a man with a dubious character and a history of trying to gain wealth by luring rich women to marry him. Unable to convince an adamant Lydia to return home, Darcy does the best under the circumstances by persuading Wickham to marry Lydia by paying him off. The foundations of this marriage are weak as they are based on neither economic stability nor true love but on Lydia’s skin-deep romanticism and Wickham’s necessity for instant money to pay off his debts.
Through the choices her characters make and the values they hold, such as financial security, true love or romantic flirtation, it is acknowledged that while money is an important aspect in marriage decisions, the higher level needs such as true love that are priceless. Based on the choices her novel’s characters make, they get exactly what they ask for. Charlotte gets economic security and material comforts but a stupid husband and no love. Mrs. Bennett in her overeagerness to get daughters married, doesn’t prepare young Lydia for the social stage. A hasty immature Lydia gets the worst in a marriage – a deceitful husband and neither true love nor financial stability. Elizabeth avoids the lure of feel good economic security in rejecting Mr. Collins and then at first even Darcy. Only, when she is convinced that Darcy loves her, does she agree to marry him and in the process gets both true love and economic stability. A key takeaway is that those who exercise independence and aspire for higher level needs such as true love and intellectual compatibility, instead of just financial security, end up in a happy place. Although financial security is a necessary building block for a happy marriage, it is hollow without true love, which is priceless.