by Jane Austen
28. delicacy: moral sensitivity and refinement.
29. by honour: because of an agreement he himself made, and therefore is obliged by honor to follow.
30. noticed: acknowledged, accepted.
31. alliance: marriage.
32. That is, Lady Catherine's invitations to dinner and to tea, which she apparently considers such tremendous favors that they confer a strong obligation in return from Elizabeth.
33. There has already been much evidence of this, and it is itself part of Lady Catherine's problem. Having always been able to dictate to others, and having apparently never benefited from the type of lesson in humility that Elizabeth administered to Darcy, she neither knows how to persuade by argument someone who is not under her power, nor how to reconcile herself to being unable to change another person's mind.
34. noble line: in this case, a line of earls.
35. Being a long-established family, as the Darcys apparently are, would be a distinction even if the family had no title. The sentence also implies that Miss De Bourgh comes from an untitled family on her father's side, which suggests that Sir Lewis de Bourgh was a knight rather than a baronet (the latter status, because it is inherited, would make the family a titled one).
36. Of course, the only actual voices Lady Catherine has referred to are those of herself and of Darcy's mother, now deceased.
37. connections: family ties. By using the word after “family” Lady Catherine may be intending to designate more distant relations, or she may simply be trying to reinforce her point.
38. Elizabeth shows her consciousness of her own social position. Though her father is much less wealthy than Darcy, he is in the same broad category of gentleman.
39. Here Elizabeth does not refute Lady Catherine directly, for she knows that in fact her mother's family is on a lower social level.
40. application: appeal, request.
41. worked on: influenced, persuaded.
42. patched-up business: business or arrangement put together hastily or clumsily.
43. uncles: of course, it was only one uncle, Mr. Gardiner, who was involved, and it was someone else, Darcy, who bore this expense. But Lady Catherine, who would not know the details of the affair, is probably just assuming that both Lydia's uncles, along with her father, would have acted in the affair.
44. steward: an inferior position socially; see p. 151, note 53.
45. By shades Lady Catherine probably means grounds, which would include many shades (or pieces of ground shadowed by trees, a then-current meaning of “shade”). The pollution would come from having people of inferior birth traverse those grounds as guests and members of the family; such “pollution” is mentioned at the very end of the novel.
Some have suggested that shades could mean ancestors, i.e., ghosts. Shade was used in that sense then, but only occasionally and usually in reference to the shades supposed to inhabit the underworld in ancient mythology. It was not really used to signify the general spirit of a dead person, and thus the sort of entity that could be harmed or polluted in a symbolic way by dishonor to the family. As for the idea of actual ghosts who might inhabit a house and could be affected by changes in it, such an idea had for at least a century been regarded as foolish superstition and would never be employed in serious argument by an intelligent and educated person like Lady Catherine.
46. credit: reputation, public standing.
47. It would be standard form to send compliments after a visit, if one did not actually say good-bye to the person in question.
Chapter Fifteen
T he discomposure of spirits, which this extraordinary visit threw Elizabeth into, could not be easily overcome; nor could she for many hours, learn to think of it less than incessantly. Lady Catherine it appeared, had actually taken the trouble of this journey from Rosings, for the sole purpose of breaking off her supposed engagement with Mr. Darcy. It was a rational scheme to be sure! but from what the report of their engagement could originate, Elizabeth was at a loss to imagine; till she recollected that his being the intimate friend of Bingley, and her being the sister of Jane, was enough, at a time when the expectation of one wedding, made every body eager for another, to supply the idea. She had not herself forgotten to feel that the marriage of her sister must bring them more frequently together. And her neighbours at Lucas Lodge, therefore, (for through their communication with the Collinses, the report she concluded had reached Lady Catherine) had only set that down, as almost certain and immediate, which she had looked forward to as possible, at some future time.1
In revolving2 Lady Catherine's expressions,3 however, she could not help feeling some uneasiness as to the possible consequence of her persisting in this interference. From what she had said of her resolution to prevent their marriage, it occurred to Elizabeth that she must meditate4 an application to her nephew; and how he might take a similar representation of the evils attached to a connection with her, she dared not pronounce. She knew not the exact degree of his affection for his aunt, or his dependence on her judgment, but it was natural to suppose that he thought much higher of her ladyship than she could do; and it was certain, that in enumerating the miseries of a marriage with one, whose immediate connections were so unequal to his own, his aunt would address him on his weakest side. With his notions of dignity, he would probably feel that the arguments, which to Elizabeth had appeared weak and ridiculous, contained much good sense and solid reasoning.
If he had been wavering before, as to what he should do, which had often seemed likely, the advice and intreaty of so near a relation might settle every doubt, and determine him at once to be as happy, as dignity unblemished could make him.5 In that case he would return no more. Lady Catherine might see him in her way through town;6 and his engagement to Bingley of coming again to Netherfield must give way.
“If, therefore, an excuse for not keeping his promise, should come to his friend within a few days,” she added, “I shall know how to understand it. I shall then give over every expectation, every wish of his constancy. If he is satisfied with only regretting me, when he might have obtained my affections and hand, I shall soon cease to regret him at all.”7
———
The surprise of the rest of the family, on hearing who their visitor had been, was very great; but they obligingly satisfied it, with the same kind of supposition, which had appeased Mrs. Bennet's curiosity; and Elizabeth was spared from much teazing on the subject.
The next morning, as she was going down stairs, she was met by her father, who came out of his library with a letter in his hand.
“Lizzy,” said he, “I was going to look for you; come into my room.”
She followed him thither; and her curiosity to know what he had to tell her, was heightened by the supposition of its being in some manner connected with the letter he held. It suddenly struck her that it might be from Lady Catherine; and she anticipated with dismay all the consequent explanations.
She followed her father to the fire place, and they both sat down. He then said,
“I have received a letter this morning that has astonished me exceedingly. As it principally concerns yourself, you ought to know its contents. I did not know before, that I had two daughters on the brink of matrimony. Let me congratulate you, on a very important conquest.”
The colour now rushed into Elizabeth's cheeks in the instantaneous conviction of its being a letter from the nephew, instead of the aunt; and she was undetermined whether most to be pleased that he explained himself at all, or offended that his letter was not rather addressed to herself;8 when her father continued,
“You look conscious.9 Young ladies have great penetration in such matters as these; but I think I may defy even your sagacity, to discover the name of your admirer. This letter is from Mr. Collins.”
“From Mr. Collins! and what can he have to say?”
“Something very much to the purpose of course. He begins with congratulations on the approaching nuptials of my eldest daughter, of which
it seems he has been told, by some of the good-natured, gossiping Lucases. I shall not sport10 with your impatience, by reading what he says on that point. What relates to yourself, is as follows. “Having thus offered you the sincere congratulations of Mrs. Collins and myself on this happy event, let me now add a short hint on the subject of another; of which we have been advertised11 by the same authority.12 Your daughter Elizabeth, it is presumed, will not long bear the name of Bennet, after her elder sister has resigned it, and the chosen partner of her fate, may be reasonably looked up to, as one of the most illustrious personages in this land.”
“Can you possibly guess, Lizzy, who is meant by this?” “This young gentleman is blessed in a peculiar13 way, with every thing the heart of mortal can most desire, —splendid property, noble kindred, and extensive patronage.14 Yet in spite of all these temptations, let me warn my cousin Elizabeth, and yourself, of what evils you may incur, by a precipitate closure with this gentleman's proposals, which, of course, you will be inclined to take immediate advantage of.”
“Have you any idea, Lizzy, who this gentleman is? But now it comes out.”
“My motive for cautioning you, is as follows. We have reason to imagine that his aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, does not look on the match with a friendly eye.”
“Mr. Oarcy, you see, is the man! Now, Lizzy, I think I have surprised you. Could he, or the Lucases, have pitched on any man, within the circle of our acquaintance, whose name would have given the lie more effectually to what they related? Mr. Darcy, who never looks at any woman but to see a blemish, and who probably never looked at you in his life! It is admirable!”15
Elizabeth tried to join in her father's pleasantry, but could only force one most reluctant smile. Never had his wit been directed in a manner so little agreeable to her.16
“Are you not diverted?”
“Oh! yes. Pray read on.”
“After mentioning the likelihood of this marriage to her ladyship last night, she immediately, with her usual condescension,17 expressed what she felt on the occasion; when it became apparent, that on the score of some family objections on the part of my cousin, she would never give her consent to what she termed so disgraceful a match. I thought it my duty to give the speediest intelligence of this to my cousin, that she and her noble admirer may be aware of what they are about, and not run hastily into a marriage which has not been properly sanctioned.” “Mr. Collins moreover adds,” “I am truly rejoiced that my cousin Lydia's sad business has been so well hushed up, and am only concerned that their living together before the marriage took place, should be so generally known.18 I must not, however, neglect the duties of my station,19 or refrain from declaring my amazement, at hearing that you received the young couple into your house as soon as they were married. It was an encouragement of vice; and had I been the rector of Longbourn, I should very strenuously have opposed it. You ought certainly to forgive them as a Christian, but never to admit them in your sight, or allow their names to be mentioned in your hearing.” “That is his notion of Christian forgiveness! The rest of his letter is only about his dear Charlotte's situation, and his expectation of a young olive-branch.20 But, Lizzy, you look as if you did not enjoy it. You are not going to be Missish,211 hope, and pretend to be affronted at an idle report. For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?”22
“Oh!” cried Elizabeth, “I am excessively diverted.23 But it is so strange!”
“Yes —that is what makes it amusing. Had they fixed on any other man it would have been nothing; but his perfect indifference, and your pointed dislike, make it so delightfully absurd! Much as I abominate writing, I would not give up Mr. Collins's correspondence for any consideration. Nay, when I read a letter of his, I cannot help giving him the preference even over Wick-ham, much as I value the impudence24 and hypocrisy of my son-in-law.25 And pray, Lizzy, what said Lady Catherine about this report? Did she call to refuse her consent?”
To this question his daughter replied only with a laugh; and as it had been asked without the least suspicion, she was not distressed by his repeating it.26 Elizabeth had never been more at a loss to make her feelings appear what they were not. It was necessary to laugh, when she would rather have cried. Her father had most cruelly mortified her, by what he said of Mr. Darcy's indifference, and she could do nothing but wonder at such a want of penetration,27 or fear that perhaps, instead of his seeing too little, she might have fancied too much.
1. Elizabeth's speculations about the source of Lady Catherine's idea will shortly be confirmed by Mr. Bennet. It is highly doubtful that any general rumor about Elizabeth and Darcy had been circulating in the neighborhood, for if so, such lovers of gossip as Mrs. Bennet and her sister Mrs. Philips would surely have heard of it. The Lucases, however, could easily have come up with the idea on their own. Earlier at the Netherfield Ball, Sir William Lucas, when complimenting Elizabeth and Darcy on their excellent dancing, anticipated their meeting often after Jane and Bingley were married. Now Sir William, who would relish the idea of a close acquaintance of his being married to someone of high rank like Darcy, could easily leap to the idea of Elizabeth's marriage, especially after Darcy had accompanied Bingley in their recent visit. Furthermore, Charlotte had already suspected, when Elizabeth was visiting her, a tie between Darcy and Elizabeth and could have mentioned this idea to her family, either at that time or later. In a society where speculations about marriages, especially advantageous ones, were a constant subject of talk and communication, even a hint like that could have inspired the Lucases to imagine an impending marriage of Elizabeth and Darcy. It is also possible that they had only the germ of the idea, and that it was then elaborated further by Charlotte or Mr. Collins.
2. revolving: considering, pondering.
3. expressions: utterances.
4. meditate: intend, plan.
5. That is, such a course (shunning Elizabeth) would give him the happiness of not having harmed the family dignity, though it would not give him the happiness of having Elizabeth as a wife.
6. town: London.
7. Of course, all that has happened recently indicates that Elizabeth, if Darcy did stay away from her, would regret him greatly and for a long time. Clearly her reflections are an attempt to inoculate herself against possible disappointment, and to keep under some control the strong emotions concerning Darcy that are currently buffeting her.
8. Normally a man would not ask the father first if he wished to propose. In some cases, when pursuing a very sheltered daughter, he might ask the father's permission before he began courting her, but Elizabeth is certainly not such a daughter.
9. conscious: aware or cognizant of something.
10. spon: amuse myself.
11. advertised: notified, warned.
12. same authority: the Lucases, already identified by Mr. Bennet as the source of Mr. Collins's knowledge of Jane's marriage.
13. peculiar: distinctive, unique.
14. Mr. Collins's list of “every thing the heart of mortal can most desire” is revealing.
15. admirable: astonishing, extraordinary.
16. Elizabeth's discomfort, and her subsequent anxiety about the possible truth of her father's assertions, represents one final penance for her before Darcy's proposal. It is a particularly appropriate one, for her father's belief in Darcy's indifference results in part from Elizabeth's own denunciations of Darcy, while her father's behavior, subjecting her to his sharp wit and raillery, is giving her an unpleasant taste of the same medicine that she herself administered so freely to Darcy.
17. condescension: friendliness and attention toward inferiors. Mr. Collins means this as a term of praise.
18. The irony of Mr. Collins's concern about discretion is that he himself was the one who informed Lady Catherine of the affair when it first occurred (see p. 540), and Lady Catherine seems like one who would not hesitate to spread such news. In any case, his concern here stems not from worries about the effects
of public knowledge on Lydia herself, for he shortly reveals that he cares nothing for her; most likely he is worried about the reputation of the family, which is something that might affect himself, at least a little.
19. my station: my position as a clergyman.
20. olive-branch: a child. Hence Charlotte is pregnant; that also may be what is meant by “Charlotte's situation.” The use of olive-branch to mean offspring derives from Psalm 128, Verse 3: “Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house; thy children like olive plants round about thy table.” Such an allusion, one both pedantic and biblical, is appropriate for Mr. Collins.
21. Missish: affectedly prim or squeamish; hence inclined to take offense easily.
22. Probably Mr. Bennet's best summation of his philosophy of life.
23. excessively diverted: Elizabeth's use of such a hyperbolic expression, when in fact she is not diverted at all, indicates her confusion of mind as well as her wish to prevent her father from guessing the true state of her feelings.
24. impudence: effrontery, shamelessness.
25. He means valuing these qualities of Wickham, just as he values those of Mr. Collins, as a source of amusement.
26. Here Elizabeth is helped by her father's tendency to treat everything as a joke. Were he more serious, a little reflection might cause him to perceive that Lady Catherine, alerted by the Collinses, could have called to speak to Elizabeth about Darcy.
27. want of penetration: lack of penetration or discernment (on Mr. Bennet's part regarding Elizabeth and Darcy's relationship).
Chapter Sixteen
I nstead of receiving any such letter of excuse from his friend, as Elizabeth half expected Mr. Bingley to do, he was able to bring Darcy with him to Longbourn before many days had passed after Lady Catherine's visit. The gentlemen arrived early; and, before Mrs. Bennet had time to tell him of their having seen his aunt, of which her daughter sat in momentary dread, Bingley, who wanted to be alone with Jane, proposed their all walking out. It was agreed to. Mrs. Bennet was not in the habit of walking, Mary could never spare time, but the remaining five set off together. Bingley and Jane, however, soon allowed the others to outstrip them. They lagged behind, while Elizabeth, Kitty, and Darcy, were to entertain each other. Very little was said by either; Kitty was too much afraid of him to talk; Elizabeth was secretly forming a desperate resolution; and perhaps he might be doing the same.1
