Today, in our society, people normally marry for love. In other societies, notably Indian and Muslim, some marriages are arranged in advance due to family agreement. In Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, a major theme of the book is marriage. The characters in the book marry others for several reasons. The three main reasons mentioned in the book are financial, social status or love. Bennet, although she does not marry, is very involved in her daughters' marriages. She is very interested in them because she knows that when Mr. Bennet dies, the outcome of his daughters' marriage will determine where she will live after his death. When a distant relative, Mr. Collins, first visits to see the estate he will inherit, Mrs. Bennet is not happy with his presence. When she learns that he might eventually marry one of her daughters, her feelings toward him change: "the man she couldn't bear to talk about the day before was now high in her good graces" (71). When she finds out that he might marry one of her daughters, she is very friendly towards him and tries to please him in every way possible in the hope that he will marry one of her daughters. If he does, Mrs. Bennet knows she could benefit from security. Mr. Wickham is not necessarily marrying Lydia for his family's money, as they do not have any, but how it will benefit him to do so. When Mr. Gardiner responds to the family, he explains that he has arranged for Mr. Wickham to marry Lydia, on the condition that Gardiner "[pays] for his debts to be discharged and for him to still have something left" (288). When Lydia and Elizabeth were talking about her wedding, Lydia lets it slip that Mr. Darcy was present at the wedding. Elizabeth, outraged by the... middle of paper...... social barrier of money that could prevent them from being together because it doesn't matter to them. When Lady Catherine de Bourgh tries to stop them, Elizabeth tells her: “In marrying your nephew, I should not consider myself leaving this estate. He is a gentleman; I am a gentleman's daughter; so far we are equal” (337). Mr. Darcy appreciates the fact that he fell in love with Elizabeth first and had to pursue her instead of her pursuing him, as most of the women in the novel do. He has no chance of gaining anything in terms of status or money by marrying her. In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, many characters get married. They all get married for different reasons, some better than others. However, characters who tend to be very proud of themselves and are secure with who they are marry for love, while others seek it for status and money..