Jane Austen on the Danger of Prejudice and Certainty
What can a 200-year-old book contribute to our modern life?
A rule of nature states that a creature under threat will protect himself: fight, flight, or freeze. Today, when public opinion is the king’s crown, we are overrun by power-hungry entities that, armed with the latest rhetorical and psychological techniques, hunt for our attention and devotion.
This deluge of seductive covers without essence has numbed our ability to distinguish good from evil, thus manifesting ignorance, ineptitude, uncertainty, and anxiety. As protection from this chaos, we cling to current beliefs and mistake their emotional ferocity for validity. We end up blind to our faults and consequently never reach our potential.
In her novel Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen shares an insight into the accumulation of healthy beliefs in a chaotic, authoritative environment.
As part of gentry in the early 18th century England, Elizabeth Bennet’s life was orbited around leisure and social life. At a ball, she first encounters Mr. Darcy, a young wealthy nobleman. However—perhaps because—of his prominent status, he is cynical, makes snarky remarks about the other guests, and does not dance even though there are women without a companion (a big deal at the time).
Furthermore, when his friend prompts him to dance with Elizabeth, he criticizes her as “tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me.” After that evening, Elizabeth judges Darcy as “the proudest, most disagreeable man in the world.”
An old acquaintance of Darcy, a charming bachelor named Wickham, arrives at the region and wins affection with his good manners and polished wordings. He shares his conflict with Darcy: he did not give Wickham a desirable position in his estate, contradictory to his father’s will; leaving Wickham in poverty. Elizabeth falls for the newcomer’s charisma, and her detest for Darcy grows.
A shared friend causes Elizabeth and Darcy to keep meeting. While her aversion grows — as she translates his actions through her prejudice — Darcy falls in love. Despite her lower status and poor financial situation, Darcy, unable to repress his affection, asks for her hand. Aghast by the offer, Elizabeth not only declines but expresses repugnance. Darcy leaves angry, rejected, and ashamed.
A day later, Elizabeth receives a letter from Darcy. In it, he defends the accusations laid upon him and apologizes for any misconduct. At first, she hesitates to believe in it, but his true generosity and behavior gradually unfold. He helps the poor, he cares for his land tenants, he does not badmouth others, he handles Wickham with gentle justice; even his pride softens.
Her past conviction and misbehavior torment Elizabeth. Love spurs in her, and she becomes obsessed over Darcy’s present opinion of her. She fell prey to social bias and attraction’s myopia.
I would not go any further since I do not wish to spoil the novel more than is necessary for uncovering wisdom.
Austen warns us against the dangers of rush judgments. We can never know whether an individual, a situation, or an idea is bad or good. Ergo, we should make sure we stand on firm ground before vindication.
Usually, we make judgments based on our immediate, intuitive feelings. Those result from countless psychological variables and urges that we cannot trust. Instead, we should employ patience and intellect to find harmony between mind and matter.
Whether we know it or not, we have beliefs about most things in life. Those construct a lens through which we evaluate existence and act upon it. From which pen we like to which romantic partner is most suitable for us. If we are not cautious about the health of our beliefs, we gamble away our potential for prosperity, tranquility, and happiness.
I would like to end with my favorite quotes from Jane Austen:
“It is very often nothing but our own vanity that deceives us.”
Originally published at https://thedeepsphere.com on August 28, 2023.
