Pride and Prejudice, published in January 1813, is Jane Austen's most popular novel. It tells how Elizabeth Bennet, the lively second of five daughters of a country gentleman, and the proud and wealthy Mr Darcy overcome their first impressions of each other. With its sparkling dialogue and irony, it is one of the best-loved novels in English.
The story
The Bennets live at Longbourn, in Hertfordshire. As the estate will pass to a male cousin, Mrs Bennet is anxious to see her daughters married. When the rich and friendly Mr Bingley rents the nearby house of Netherfield, he falls for the eldest daughter, Jane, while his friend Darcy offends Elizabeth by his pride.
Elizabeth's prejudice is strengthened by the charming officer Wickham, who claims Darcy has wronged him. She refuses Darcy's first, condescending proposal; his letter of explanation, a visit to his estate of Pemberley and his help when her youngest sister Lydia elopes with Wickham gradually change her view.
From First Impressions to Pride and Prejudice
Austen wrote the first version between October 1796 and August 1797, when she was in her early twenties, under the title First Impressions. After it was rejected by a publisher, she revised it extensively, probably in 1811–12, after the success of Sense and Sensibility.
The publisher Thomas Egerton brought it out in three volumes on 28 January 1813, signed only as by the author of Sense and Sensibility. The first edition of about 1,500 copies sold out within months, and a second edition followed in the autumn.
A lasting favourite
The novel is admired for its comedy of manners, its memorable characters, such as the pompous clergyman Mr Collins and the overbearing Lady Catherine de Bourgh, and the way Austen lets the reader share Elizabeth's misjudgements before she corrects them.
It has been adapted many times, notably in a 1940 Hollywood film, the 1995 BBC series and the 2005 film, and has inspired many retellings, from Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary to novels that continue the story of the Darcys.
Anecdotes
Sold for £110
Austen sold the copyright of Pride and Prejudice to Thomas Egerton for £110. She wrote to her friend Martha Lloyd that she would have preferred £150, but that both sides could not be pleased. Egerton made a far larger profit from the first two editions.
Looking for Mrs Darcy
In May 1813 Austen visited an exhibition of paintings in London and told Cassandra that she had found a small portrait that looked just like Jane Bennet, now Mrs Bingley. She looked in vain for one of Elizabeth, and guessed that Mr Darcy would not want his wife's picture exhibited in public.
Frequently asked questions
When was Pride and Prejudice published?
On 28 January 1813, in three volumes, by Thomas Egerton in London.
What was the original title of Pride and Prejudice?
First Impressions. Austen wrote that first version in 1796–97.
How many Bennet sisters are there?
Five: Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty and Lydia.