P&P #9: 3.1-3.3

                During Book III of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Elizabeth meets Miss Darcy for the first time. Elizabeth expresses her first impression of Miss Darcy: “she had heard that Miss Darcy was exceedingly proud; but the observation of a few minutes convinced her that she was only exceedingly shy” (217). Throughout the novel, society is quick to judge others based on prior knowledge or a first encounter with a person. With such quick judgment, shyness could easily be mistaken for pride. Elizabeth recognizes Miss Darcy’s true personality, and Lizzy is able to look past the false rumors about Georgiana. Although Miss Bennett is able to discern shyness and pride within Miss Darcy, Elizabeth was unable to distinguish the two characteristics when she first met Mr. Darcy. Although Lizzy has a right to be angry with Mr. Darcy due to his insult toward Elizabeth, she has held a negative propensity against him for a long time. Through Miss Bennett’s interpretation of Miss Darcy, the audience can see that Elizabeth can look past the seemingly haughty surface of a person and determine the person’s personality. However, Lizzy still bases her opinion of Mr. Darcy on their first encounter. Thus, Elizabeth’s perception of Mr. Darcy must solely be surmised from the one insult he directs toward Lizzy at the ball.