Bloom's Taxonomy for Pride and Prejudice

Bloom’s Taxonomy for Pride and Prejudice
Knowledge: What are the names of all five Bennet sisters from oldest to youngest?
Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia.
Comprehension: Describe the story Mr. Wickham invents as the reason for Mr. Darcy's dislike of him.

Mr. Wickham tells Elizabeth that Mr. Darcy and he grew up together, which is true. He tells her that Darcy’s father loved Wickham like a second son, which is also true. Wickham says that old Mr. Darcy bequeathed Wickham the generous living of the rectory upon his death; a truth as well. However, Wickham lies when he says that he had his heart set on joining the church, but Mr. Darcy ignored his father’s wishes and gave the living to another man, leaving Wickham poor, and with no other choice than to join the army. Wickham says the reason Mr. Darcy did this is because Darcy’s father loved Wickham better and Darcy couldn’t stand it. The truth, however, is that after old Darcy’s death Mr. Wickham demanded that Mr. Darcy give him the sum of the living in cash, having no intention of joining the church. Darcy complied, and Wickham soon gambled all his money away, forcing him to join the militia. Mr. Darcy hates Wickham for stronger reasons that are later revealed in the novel, but Wickham fails to mention those to Elizabeth as well.

Application: Apply what you know about Darcy to why he is so surprised when Elizabeth refuses his first offer of marriage.

Mr. Darcy is blind to the fact that Elizabeth has a growing dislike of him prior to his first proposal. She has heard lies about his character, and witnessed some inexcusable flaws about him herself. Yet Darcy is too confused about his own growing attachment to Elizabeth that he fails to see her obvious disgust. He is rather proud during his early acquaintance with Lizzy, to the point where he doesn’t stop to think about the fact that she might not love him when he proposes. He is far too concerned about the fact that she is beneath him, has low connections and no fortune and what that will look like in his society if he were to marry her. He wants her, but doesn’t know how to go about being an appealing person, and thus makes the mistake of telling her that he loves her against his better judgment.
Darcy practically doesn’t bother with a romantic offer of marriage because he believes her situation to be one that will joyfully marry a man of his wealth and circumstance. He far underestimates her character, however. Elizabeth is shocked and insulted by his proposal and she tells him so. She purely dislikes him, and despite his wealth, would never marry without love. This is quite a wake-up call for Darcy, and it wounds his pride. He didn’t see that coming because of his upbringing, shyness, and confused feelings.

Analysis: Analyze Jane and Bingley and Lizzy and Darcy’s relationships by the end of the novel and compare. Which couple do you think has a more open and honest relationship? What about Elizabeth and Darcy is more “real” than Jane and Bingley’s seemingly perfect love?

Jane and Bingley might seem as first to be the more honest and loving couple because of their sincere and kind natures. But in fact, it is Elizabeth and Darcy who have the stronger foundation going into their marriage. Jane and Bingley each think that the other is perfect in every particular. They adore each other, but were both too shy prior to their engagement to really tell each other how they felt. If they had merely been more confident and straightforward, they could have spared themselves a lot of grief. In fact, the reason they get together in the end is largely because encouragement from their friends and family helps them on.
Unlike Jane and Bingley, Elizabeth and Darcy are well aware of each other’s faults, and love each other in spite of them. They insult and yell at each other while getting to know one another, but manage to work through their differences in the end and fall in love. Elizabeth knows going into a marriage with Darcy that he is sometimes proud and is hot tempered. But she also knows that he is capable of great feeling and love as well. Darcy knows going into a marriage with Elizabeth that she is often stubborn, highly opinionated and quick to judge, but he has learned to love that because it is those characteristics that make her sharp and witty and passionate. Darcy and Elizabeth know each other inside and out and have created a deep love that cannot be broken, whereas Jane and Bingley barely know one another and are a bit more superficial. Austen gives us no reason to suppose that Jane and Bingley’s marriage does not turn out to be a happy one, but the reader can clearly see the stronger match of the two couples.

Synthesis: In the middle of Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Darcy proposes to Elizabeth and this comes as a huge shock to the reader. Elizabeth refuses him because she does not like him, but due to various circumstances, falls in love with him over time and accepts his second offer at the end of the book. Using your knowledge about their understanding of each other at the time of his first proposal, how do you think their marriage would have been if she had accepted him the first time because of his wealth, despite her dislike? Do you think Elizabeth would have still grown to love him and have a happy marriage?

Elizabeth has a loving disposition, but she would have hated herself eternally for accepting a man merely because of his wealth and not for love. Also, Lizzy hates Darcy most when he first proposes because she knows that he has single handedly ruined her sister’s chances with Bingley. She also believes Darcy is cruel because of what Wickham had told her of him. If Elizabeth had accepted Darcy’s first proposal, her main dislikes of him would have festered instead of getting out in the open like they did. By accusing him of destroying her sister’s happiness and Mr. Wickham’s, Darcy was able to defend himself. Having merely married him, the story of Wickham might have eventually cleared up, but Elizabeth would have despised him throughout her marriage out of love for her sister. Elizabeth too might have never grown to love Darcy because she would be angry at herself for marrying for money, which is totally out of character for her. And Darcy’s love for Elizabeth would start off completely on the wrong foot, having only been infatuated at the time of his first proposal. Without Lizzy’s love in return, Darcy’s would have waned quickly, potentially landing them in an unhappy marriage that fulfilled neither party’s desires. They would have been a couple that was destined to be, but unfortunately stuck together forever. A proposal and acceptance could only work between them having failed the first time. Besides, we, as readers, would not like Elizabeth Bennet as much as we do if she had not abominately refused Darcy to his face after his first declaration of love.

Evaluation: Convince fellow readers that Elizabeth Bennet, from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, is one of the strongest and most admirable female leads in all literature.

Elizabeth Bennet is extremely ahead of her time. In Jane Austen’s day, (think 1816, England) women were sized up by the asking of three questions: Is she beautiful? Is she rich? Is she accomplished? (‘Accomplished’ being the mastering of: music, singing, drawing, dancing, French and German.) To be a young woman, your single purpose in life was to marry. For young woman of slight fortune, to marry a rich gentleman, and for a young woman of good fortune, a man of her station or better to increase her wealth. This, in the opinion of everyone, was the single object of life as a lady. Austen, being the real modern woman here, as she is the author, creates a character like Elizabeth Bennet. Elizabeth is witty, smart, opinionated, outspoken, lively and loving. She is not highly fond of the general expectance for her gender, and so she ignores it. Elizabeth’s mother personifies the attitude of most English society towards a woman’s duty. Mrs. Bennet favors Jane because she is beautiful, she admires Mr. Bingley and Darcy because they are rich, and she spends the entirety of the novel scheming to marry off all five of her daughters, particularly Jane to Bingley because of his wealth.
Elizabeth shows herself to be the exact opposite of her own mother. She cares little about the superficial, nothing for the rich, and detests the thought of marrying someone for the sake of being married. Elizabeth demonstrates a high self esteem and a strong opinion on life, which were hardly qualities that were looked for in a woman. When Mr. Collins proposes and Elizabeth rejects his offer, nearly every single one of her acquaintances disapproves. But Elizabeth stands strong, determined that she will not marry unless her partner perceives her as an equal and she loves him. In the novel she states that, “only the deepest love will persuade me into matrimony” thus proving that she will marry for nothing less.
Elizabeth is smart and funny, thinks for herself, and has extraordinary judgment. She is a model for any modern woman despite her nineteenth century background, making her one of the strongest and most admirable female leads in all literature.