In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen creates her protagonist, Elizabeth Bennet, to be a strikingly unconventional woman for her times. Elizabeth tends to identify less with her companions and must instead define herself by the men around her. His relationships with the men in the novel therefore reflect his continual search for an ideal figure of social respectability. Elizabeth begins the novel feeling a close affinity with her father who is, in comparison, more civilized than her ignorant and materialistic mother. But when high society, namely Mr. Darcy, enters her life, exposing her family's improprieties and also scorning her, Elizabeth is forced to look for a hero who is not only refined, but who will also redeem her dignity. She thinks she will find such a person in Wickham. Mr. Darcy, the most well-bred of all, only becomes Elizabeth's final hero when he exposes Wickham's deception and stops associating with her and exposes his love and respect for her. Therefore, although propriety may seem to be the basis of Elizabeth's quest for a hero, the underlying determinant of her search is her own pride. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayMr. Bennet's role as Elizabeth's hero seems to stem from Elizabeth's desire to get away from her rude mother and several frivolous sisters to whom he offers a seemingly suitable alternative. But more importantly, he favors Elizabeth, which raises her self-esteem and strengthens her attachment to him. In comparison to Mrs. Bennet who has only "poor understanding, little information, and an uncertain character" (Austen 4), all of which are humiliating and socially undesirable characteristics, the "quick parts,...the reserve and Mr. Bennet's caprice" are a real step up on the property ladder. For example, while Mrs. Bennet comically dwells on the superficial details of her daughters' future marriages, Mr. Bennet looks on, amused, which Elizabeth finds less embarrassing than her mother's boldness Yet the strongest influence is Mr. Bennet's favoritism towards Elizabeth when he and his wife discuss visiting Mr. Bingley as a son-in-law. promising, Mr. Bennet insists that he “must put in a good word for [his] little Lizzy” (Austen 44) By only paying special attention to Elizabeth, he not only thinks that Elizabeth is the most qualified. to be Mr. Bingley's wife, but he also shows the affection with which he regards her by calling her "my little Lizzy". Mr. Bennet may be the most courteous of Elizabeth's family, but his preference for Elizabeth is what really makes him Elizabeth's hero at the beginning of the novel. However, when Darcy offends Elizabeth and indicates that her family lacks refinement, she must find an alternative hero who she perceives is on the same level of social mannerism as Darcy in order to counteract the damage Darcy has done to her ego. Elizabeth finds such a man in Wickham. At the Meryton ball, when Bingley suggests that Darcy dance with Elizabeth, he condescendingly says that Elizabeth "is not fair enough to temper [him]" (Austen 9). Additionally, Darcy obviously makes her feel conscious and subordinate because of her family's offenses, sometimes making Elizabeth "tremble with fear lest her mother should expose herself again" (Austen 31). In turn, Elizabeth is eager to accept and idolize Wickham because they are united by a shared dislike of Mr. Darcy, which also makes her quick to ignore any suspicious flaws she later identifies. She willingly believes in Wickham's refinement and lingers moreat length on the ideas he gives him to reassure his pride. Wickham portrays Darcy as the more uncouth of the two, calling him a "bad-tempered man" with "high and imposing manners" (Austen 53). Wickham goes on to tell an extremely personal story that makes her feel like having "a face[that] can guarantee that it is lovable" (Austen 54), which she accepts without question. Due to her extreme need for self-confidence after Darcy hurts her pride, Elizabeth is quick to insert Wickham as her hero. leaves his first real meeting with Wickham "with a head full of him" (Austen 56) not because he feigns an air of respectability that surpasses that of his father and is meant to equal that of Darcy, but above all because he gives him back his dignity during their first real interaction. Elizabeth, who has already made Wickham her hero, the contents of Darcy's letter come as a complete shock. They contradict all the values ​​she thinks Wickham has that make him her hero, and attribute them to Darcy, whom she despises. Darcy's letter not only ridicules Elizabeth and destroys her expectations of Wickham; she actually paves the way for Darcy to become Elizabeth's hero, as in the letter he shows his extreme regard for her. The only reason for Elizabeth's animosity towards Darcy in the first place. was his lack of respect towards her when they first met. In his letter, Darcy makes it clear that although he may find "faults in those close to Elizabeth" (Austen 131), he esteems her, saying with consideration that "it pains her to offend her" (Austen 131). . Then the letter reveals the true story of Mr. Darcy and Wickham, proving that Mr. Darcy is a generous and generous man. She is much more willing to accept this idea because her pride no longer gets in the way of her possible kind feelings for him. After reading the letter and experiencing Darcy's admiration and love for her, their subsequent encounters only strengthen Elizabeth's respect for Mr. Darcy as her hero. Elizabeth is pleasantly surprised by the way Darcy treats her aunt and uncle, the Gardiners, with "such undignified manners" (Austen 164), modest "gentleness" (Austen 164), and the "utmost courtesy" (Austen 165). Additionally, Darcy further solidifies his position as Elizabeth's hero later in the novel when he generously bribes Wickham to marry Lydia. Even though Darcy is of the highest class and therefore of the highest social respectability, he only becomes Elizabeth's hero when she can maintain her sense of pride in him. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized paper now from our expert writers. To some extent, Elizabeth's search for a hero in Pride and Prejudice is based on her search for the embodiment of social respectability with whom she can associate and identify. However, Darcy has been in the highest social class since the beginning of the novel, and Elizabeth's initial dislike of him due to his derogatory behavior shows how her pride is the final determinant of who she considers like his hero. Her father begins as her hero because he is the most courteous of his family, but also because he raises Elizabeth, considering her the most intelligent of all his daughters. Elizabeth's hero turns to Mr. Wickham once she needs to relieve her ego of the damage Darcy is doing to her by belittling her and her family. However, once Darcy shows Elizabeth the qualities of his character, and especially his love and respect for her, she does not hesitate to make him her final hero. Although Elizabeth appears to be an individualistic woman, her independence is not.