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Chapter 28
Here, leading the way through every walk and cross walk, and scarcely allowing them an interval to utter the praises he asked for, every view was pointed out with a minuteness which left beauty entirely behind. He could number the fields in every direction, and could tell how many trees there were in the most distant clump. But of all the views which his garden, or which the country or kingdom could boast, none were to be compared with the prospect of Rosings, afforded by an opening in the trees that bordered the park nearly opposite the front of his house. It was a handsome modern building, well situated on rising ground.
Elizabeth visits Charlotte at her new home with Mr. Collins in Chapter 28. As Mr. Collins gives her a tour, it’s clear he has little interest in the natural beauty of the area, instead elaborating on details such as the number of fields and trees. In fact, his favorite thing about the garden is that it has a view of Rosings, Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s estate. This detail underscores Mr. Collins’s shallowness, and his obsession with his patroness. Read more about this quote in Quotes by Setting: Rosings (the first quote).
‘I like her appearance,’ said Elizabeth, struck with other ideas. ‘She looks sickly and cross. Yes, she will do for him very well. She will make him a very proper wife.’
In Chapter 28, while visiting Charlotte, Elizabeth spies Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s daughter Anna outside the Collins home. This rather uncharitable view of Miss de Bourgh from Elizabeth, addressed to Charlotte’s sister Maria, has less to do with Miss de Bourgh herself than with Darcy, to whom Miss de Bourgh is said to be engaged. Because of her dislike of Darcy, Elizabeth enjoys imagining him married to a woman she has perceived to be unpleasant.
Chapter 29
‘No governess! How was that possible? Five daughters brought up at home without a governess! I never heard of such a thing.’
In Chapter 29, during dinner at Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s estate, Lady Catherine is shocked to learn that Elizabeth and her sisters were raised largely without supervision. Without a governess, they lacked a solid formal education, and the snobbish Lady Catherine considers it a failure of Elizabeth’s parents that she has little musical talent and can’t draw, echoing Darcy’s previously expressed view of what is required to be considered an “accomplished woman.”
Chapter 31
‘There is a stubbornness about me that never can bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises with every attempt to intimidate me.’
In Chapter 31, Darcy’s cousin Colonel Fitzwilliam asks Elizabeth to play the piano after another dinner at Lady Catherine’s house. She does so, and eventually Darcy breaks off his conversation with Lady Catherine to come and sit near Elizabeth as she plays. Elizabeth directs this quote to Darcy, assuming he is attempting to intimidate her into playing poorly. Elizabeth consistently interprets Darcy’s motives less generously than she does anyone else, demonstrating her continued prejudice against him. Read more about this quote in Quotes by Character: Elizabeth Bennet (the third quote).
Chapter 32
‘It must be very agreeable for her to be settled within so easy a distance of her own family and friends.’
‘An easy distance, do you call it? It is nearly fifty miles.’
‘And what is fifty miles of good road? Little more than half a day’s journey. Yes, I call it a very easy distance.’
‘I should never have considered the distance as one of the advantages of the match,” cried Elizabeth. “I should never have said Mrs. Collins was settled near her family.’
‘It is a proof of your own attachment to Hertfordshire. Anything beyond the very neighbourhood of Longbourn, I suppose, would appear far.’
In Chapter 32, Elizabeth and Darcy debate the meaning of fifty miles’ worth of distance. To the well-traveled Darcy, it is an “easy” distance. To Elizabeth, who has spent much of her life in Longbourn and surrounding Hertfordshire, it constitutes more of an obstacle. This conversation is revealing for a number of reasons. For one thing, it reveals Darcy’s lack of understanding of the options available to those not as wealthy as he. For another, it suggests Darcy, who proposes to Elizabeth not long after this conversation takes place, is attempting to determine how she might feel about living away from Longbourn, as he assumes she will soon accept his suit and move with him to Pemberley. Read more about this quote in Quotes by Setting: Rosings (the second quote).
But why Mr. Darcy came so often to the Parsonage, it was more difficult to understand. It could not be for society, as he frequently sat there ten minutes together without opening his lips
In Chapter 32, the narrator describes Elizabeth’s confusion as to why Darcy continues to visit the Collins home while she is there. Though Charlotte suggests it’s because Darcy must be in love with her, ultimately they come to the conclusion that Darcy must simply be bored. This further emphasizes Elizabeth’s unawareness of Darcy’s growing attachment to her.
Chapter 33
…he was the cause, his pride and caprice were the cause, of all that Jane had suffered, and still continued to suffer.
In Chapter 33, after speaking with Colonel Fitzwilliam, Elizabeth realizes she was correct in assuming Bingley abandoned Jane due to outside influence. However, she learns now she was wrong to think Miss Bingley was mostly to blame. Instead, after Colonel Fitzwilliam relays to Elizabeth a story of Darcy saving a dear friend from an unsuitable marriage, she deduces Darcy was the driving force behind the decision.
Chapter 34
‘In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.’ Elizabeth’s astonishment was beyond expression. She stared, coloured, doubted, and was silent. This he considered sufficient encouragement, and the avowal of all that he felt and had long felt for her, immediately followed. He spoke well, but there were feelings besides those of the heart to be detailed, and he was not more eloquent on the subject of tenderness than of pride. His sense of her inferiority—of its being a degradation—of the family obstacles which judgment had always opposed to inclination, were dwelt on with a warmth which seemed due to the consequence he was wounding, but was very unlikely to recommend his suit.
In Chapter 34, Darcy proposes to Elizabeth in one of the most famous passages in the novel. The proposal comes as a shock to Elizabeth, whose animosity toward Darcy, and presumption that the feeling was mutual, has prevented her from realizing he was falling in love with her. She may be prejudiced against him based on their first meeting, but it’s clear here that she’s not wrong about his sense of superiority; he talks at length about her low social standing and unsuitable family connections, one of several reasons Elizabeth ultimately rejects him. Read more about this quote in Famous Quotes Explained.
‘[D]o you think that any consideration would tempt me to accept the man who has been the means of ruining, perhaps for ever, the happiness of a most beloved sister?’
In Chapter 34, Elizabeth rejects Darcy’s proposal, insisting that even if she didn’t already find him unpleasant, she would still refuse to marry him out of loyalty to Jane after Darcy’s influence led to Bingley abandoning their courtship. Elizabeth loves Jane deeply and values her sister’s happiness more than wealth or status. Read more about this quote in Quotes by Theme: Integrity (the second quote).
