Pride and Prejudice Chapters 1-5
Mr. Charles Bingley, a wealthy, eligible bachelor has moved into Hertfordshire County, an English community where the five Bennet sisters live with their parents. All of the neighborhood residents are excited about Mr. Bingley, but none more so that Mrs. Bennet, who is obsessed with the pastime of ensuring that her daughters are properly married off to worthy men. Shortly after Mr. Bingley’s arrival, Mr. Bennet is sent on a mission to make his acquaintance. He meets Mr. Bingley, but says nothing to his wife or daughters.
The girls, however, do not have the opportunity to meet Mr. Bingley until much later, at a neighborhood ball. There, Mr. Bingley has brought two of his sisters, one of their husbands, and a man named Fitzwilliam Darcy.
At the ball, Mr. Bingley strikes all as being gregarious, personable, and pleasant to socialize with. Mr. Darcy, on the other hand, does not create quite as good of an impression, appearing to be aloof, pompous, and reserved. Elizabeth, in particular, finds Mr. Darcy quite unlikable when she inadvertently overhears Mr. Darcy rebuffing the idea of dancing with her. While Mr. Darcy says that he finds Elizabeth “tolerable,” she is still not good-looking enough for his taste. He also assumes that she is unworthy, as she remains single. Elizabeth is highly offended.
Mr. Bingley dances with Jane twice. Jane and Elizabeth discuss his attentiveness to her, and Jane says that she finds Mr. Bingley to be an attractive and charming man.
While discussing the ball afterward, Jane readily expresses to Elizabeth that she has found Mr. Bingley quite attractive and nice, and both girls agree that he seemed to pay special attention to Jane. Meanwhile, Mr. Bingley’s party discusses their thoughts on the evening, and while varying opinions are held by the members of the group, the one thing they can agree upon is that Jane seemed to be very pleasant and beautiful.
Later, Elizabeth discusses Mr. Darcy’s snub with her close friend and neighbor, Charlotte Lucas. Charlotte is intuitive and kind, and reminds Elizabeth that as a wealthy member of the aristocracy, Mr. Darcy has the right to be a snob. Elizabeth, a student of human nature, acknowledges that his justified pride is what wounded her own pride. This, however, does little to improve her opinion of Mr. Darcy.
Analysis:
The first chapters tell us much about the book. Even the opening line of, "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife," is very revealing. The line is sarcastically humorous, a trademark style found throughout the book. This line also, correctly, implies that marriage might be a major theme of the story.
We’re also introduced to many of the major characters, with an indication of their personalities and qualities. Elizabeth’s parents are quirky, and somewhat mismatched. Elizabeth, the protagonist, is kind and observant, but prejudice based on minimal information might be a flaw. Her most notable prejudice, of course, is towards Mr. Darcy, of whom we know very little about. Jane is also kind, possibly to a fault, rarely seeing anything but good in people.
