Pride and Prejudice Discussion Questions
feat. some favorite P&P memes from all corners of the internet
Welcome to Reading Revisited, a place for friends to enjoy some good old-fashioned book chat while revisiting the truth, beauty, and goodness we’ve found in our favorite books.
I hope that you have all enjoyed our read-along of P&P as much as I have!
I’m climbing out of the inevitable Austen book hangover with my first Flannery novel: The Violent Bear it Away (which I’m reading for our first Book Swap episode on the podcast - which will be coming next month!).
has been on me to read this for years, and though up to this point I’ve only just dipped my toes into a few of her short stories, I may well come out of this novel a Flannery fangirl.And now…for your viewing pleasure…the best the internet has to offer in P&P memes!
Now…to a few discussion questions as we head into book club week:
Share a favorite scene/quote from the novel.
Austen initially intended the book to be titled First Impressions. What do you think of the change and how might we approach the novel differently with the former title?
Keeping the former title in mind, what were your first impressions of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth? (and any other characters that stood out to you?)
Where/how do you see Austen using “doubles”? (I.e Mr. Bennet often retreats to his library to avoid his wife and daughters, and Lizzy notices that Charlotte Lucas also has a private sitting room that she uses as a “retreat” from Mr. Collins)
Discuss Austen’s use of humor - in which moments did her sense of humor shine the most? Did you recognize her humor right away or did it take time for you to appreciate it?
Pride and Prejudice is a comedy of manners - we see Austen, in the midst of the story, observing and commenting (gently, I’d say) on the conventions of her society, particularly around marriage. What do you make of her light “social commentary”? How does her approach differ from other novels of manner that we’ve read? (i.e Remains of the Day, Wodehouse, etc.)
Discuss the theme of blindness/sight. Where do you see this coming out in the characters? Who sees clearly and who lacks clarity of vision?
Compare Elizabeth to other Austen heroines.
With which characters did you find yourself most sympathetic? Has this changed if you’ve revisited this novel more than once?
What was the effect of having Darcy/Elizabeth’s engagement happen “off-screen”?
Compare the various marriages we see in the novel and discuss ways in which they set up the discussion about what makes a good marriage.
What makes P&P (and Austen in general) remain so readable (and re-readable) in our own time?
here:
Below is a PDF version of all of the Pride and Prejudice posts from this month. I would encourage you to print it out and bring it to your book club meetings. I personally like to print things out as booklets and put them in my book or planner as a good place to take notes and mark topics to chat about at book club. I hope this is a helpful resource to you!
Thank you for reading along with us! We look forward to discussing P&P with you all at our book clubs in the coming weeks.
IT IS NOT TOO LATE TO JOIN OUR VIRTUAL ZOOM BOOK CLUB THIS MONTH! Let us know if you’d like to join us to discuss this lovely novel.
*Stay tuned for our reading schedule for our next read: Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art by Madeline L’Engle.
In Case You Missed It:
A Few Reminders:
If you are wanting to get in on the in person or virtual community please contact us!
Book lists from previous years can be found here.
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Loved reading the Pride and Prejudice posts! Thanks, Hannah! Nice work!
Thanks for the reading guide; it's so helpful to have everything in one place.