What role does Mr. Collins seem to be playing in the novel thus far? In other words, what element of society is Austen attempting to criticize or satirize with his character? Be sure to cite from the novel to demonstrate your point.
Mr. Collins seems to be deemed the upper part of middle class. I mean by this that he interacts with part of the upper class’s society but is not directly himself part of it. In hoping to be respected and more liked by the upper class he displays all humility to them. An example is even before they meet Lady Catherine de Bourgh. The women of the house all are deciding what to wear to the meeting when Mr. Collins tells Elizabeth “Do not make yourself uneasy, my dear cousin, about your apparel… Lady Catherine sill not think the worse of you for being simply dressed. She likes to have the distinction of rank preserved.” (page 155). This suggests that Mr. Collins has bought into the belief that he is not just worthy of being upper class but that he is meant to be of lower standards. Further into this explanation is when Elizabeth Bennet is first introduced to Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Mr. Collins does everything he can in his power to appease Lady Catherine’s ears. He not just humiliates himself by saying that he won in a card game too much, but that he should be better about his life. He bends to every suggestion that she makes to appease her just so he can have a positive relationship with the upper class.
Mr. Collins is an example of a man that is financially considered middle class, but perceives himself as above the rest of the people in his financial situation. He over exaggerates his importance in society, to the Bennet’s when he comes to visit, and believes that because Lady Catherine de Bourgh is his patroness he is of a higher caliber than them. When proposing to Elizabeth his true pompousness can be seen; “"My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you (104).” With Mr. Collins character, I believe that Austen is trying to criticize people that over-embellish themselves in order to please people of a higher social ranking. Mr. Collin’s is basically a social climber, that tries to use his relation to Lady Catherine de Bourgh to climb the social ladder.
The obsequious character of Mr. Collins, portrays Austen’s satire of marrying out of desperation and lack of love. After being told to marry someone from the strict orders of his patroness, Mr. Collins servile manner is apparent as he does whatever he can to please Lady Catherine, shown through his multiple proposals to Elizabeth and Catherine. "My reasons for marrying are, first, that I think it a right thing for every clergyman in easy circumstances (like myself) to set the example of matrimony in his parish; secondly, that I am convinced that it will add very greatly to my happiness; and thirdly—which perhaps I ought to have mentioned earlier, that it is the particular advice and recommendation of the very noble lady whom I have the honour of calling patroness.." Mr. Collins is sort of the wanna-be of Mr. Darcy with the difference being, Mr. Darcy is a man of actual wealth, decency and propriety whereas Mr. Collins is not exactly wealthy himself, but associated with the high class all because of his relation to the noblewoman, Lady Catherine. His unexpected prosperity has given him a snobbish and dull behavior which explains why Elizabeth rejected him. Thinking Elizabeth would be ecstatic in regards to his proposal also shows how arrogant Mr. Collins is and how there isn't anything positive to his character.
Interesting points, Evan. I agree with your statements what say that Mr. Collins does whatever he can to please Lady Catherine, which includes marrying. I also agree with your point that says that because of his sudden wealth, his middle class character transformed into a more snobbish and conceited upper class facade. I thought it interesting that you compared Mr. Collins to a wannabe Mr. Darcy. I hadn't thought of him in that way, but as you mention it, it makes decent sense. The way that Collins addresses Darcy suggests that he thinks they are in the same social class, which is far from true. It is easy to even compare Collins to a small child always wanting to hang out with an older kids friend group, except friend groups it is rungs of a society's ladder.
Mr. Collins is extremely conceited and constantly searching to be part of the upper class in some and any way. His riches categorize him into the upper end of the middle class but he believes that his relations and impeccable manners push him farther up the social scale. For example, when describing Mr. Collins at one of the dinners at Lady Catherine’s house Austen says, “He carved, and ate, and praised with delighted alacrity; and every dish was commended first by him, and then by Sir William, who was now enough recovered to echo whatever his son-in-law said, in a manner which Elizabeth wondered Lady Catherine could bear. But Lady Catherine seemed gratified by their excessive admiration… (Austen 157)” Mr. Collins takes immense pride in his relations with Lady Catherine and loves to brag about their friendship even if it is merely out of her boredom. When Mr. Darcy comes and Lady Catherine has other more interesting subjects around much less attention is paid to Mr. Collins, but he doesn’t care; he takes what he can get. I think that Austen is criticizing the social climbers.
I agree with you that Austen is criticizing people who are trying to climb the social hierarchy by trying to act like something they are not. Mr. Collins is a huge suck up to people of the upper class and acts upper class to people who are actually poorer than him. To the Bennets he thinks of himself as a hero: a person who will marry one of the daughters and take over the estate when Mr. Bennet passes away. But actually he just comes off as a joke. When he proposes to Elizabeth he completely makes a fool of himself, but doesn't actually realize it and shrugs it off as Elizabeth playing hard to get. Mr. Collins is a self-centered man who symbolizes all of the people in that time that try to climb the social ladder by sucking up and acting sophisticated.
Mr. Collins is unbearably polite and constantly trying to be approvable in the sight of Lady Catherine, which is almost an impossible task. He is constantly complimenting the furniture, the agreeableness of those of impressive social status that he encounters, and apologizes profusely about minute things. He rambles prolonged ideas to impress everyone else, when in reality it is exhausting and ridiculous to be around. He is confident in his abilities to easily mary a Bennet off, and endures a stage of denial at Elizabeth’s rejection, stating that she is only trying to enhance his attachment in the way all women do. He shows the basicness of his proposal and feelings on marriage when he says:“"My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you (104).” He quickly marries a Charlotte Lucas after Elizabeth’s rejection. Austen seems to express the ridiculousness and shallowness in the system of marriage at this time. Revolving around social status, the bonds of the people entering into marriage are weak, not individual, and certainly not a result of love.
Kailey- I definitely agree on the last part of Austen's expression and how she portrays the system of matrimony at the time. The majority of the relationships we have encountered so far in the novel are merely for the sake of convenience, social status or physical attraction. For example, with the situation of Charlotte Lucas, she desperately accepted the proposal knowing that that was the best she could do at the time and not wanting to face social scorn. Or with Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, there love just doesn't seem intense, compatible or real. It seems to be based strictly off of physical attraction when they were younger. Mr. Bennet even has a little fun with mocking and teasing his wife out of entertainment. "To his wife he was very little otherwise indebted, than as her ignorance and folly had contributed to his amusement." With these different marriages, the characters don't express any sort of true bond which could be considered a form of fake love.
Mr. Collins is a very polite man with incredible manners. However, he apologizes way too much for the things he does, and also believes that he exists above the social class that he is in. His relationship with Lady Catherine de Bourgh is merely her treating him as a play thing who compliments her and her estate profusely, as seen by Elizabeth when she attends a dinner at Rosings Park. Lady Catherine makes him believe that he is a lot more interesting and cultured than he actually is, allowing him to make a fool of himself in public. One such example of this is when Mr. Collins proposes to Elizabeth. His statement to her almost seems that he feels entitled that she should marry him and feel attracted because of his status rather than an actual personality. By using the character of Mr. Collins, I believe that Austen attempts to poke fun at those that act entitled and try to climb social ladders but fail at doing so.
I agree that Mr. Collins completely bases his confidence off of gaining the approval of Lady Catherine and being socially impressive. His entitlement is seen in the scene you referred to where he so confidently proposes to Elizabeth Bennet, and because the situation of the marriage makes so much sense to him with her being able to inherit the estate, he can't fathom that she would reject him. This is another example in the reading we've done so far of marriage being much more logically driven than emotionally. All the effort that Mr. Collins puts into being viewed as polite, agreeable, and socially impressive essentially don’t win him the true admiration of ladies that he had falsely expected. When he does find someone to marry him, her reasons are as practical and shallow as he is. His character probably best exemplifies what Austen is criticizing and exposing the ridiculousness of.
In the novel thus far, Mr. Collins has been portrayed as a man of no large fortune who thinks he’s one of the highest people up in society based off of his close living proximity to Lady Catherine. Mr. Collins has been one of the biggest conflicts throughout the first two Volumes. The entire Bennet family does everything they can to make his stay worthwhile, in the hopes of pleasing him enough to deal with the estate in a good manner. Although, he acts very differently back and ends up asking Elizabeth to marry him while she is in love with Wickham. This causes extreme stress on Elizabeth because Mr. Collins seems to taunt her after her refusal at what she could have had. He shows off to her mostly, even when his loving, new wife is around. I think that Austen is attempting to criticize marriage during this time because although Mr. Collins’ case seems to be dramatic, it is the norm for marriages to be like that during that time period. By making him slightly more dramatic, it creates an interesting image of how marriage works.
Up to this point in the book, Mr. Collins is definitely my least favorite character. Even though he is just middle class he acts like he is upper class and tries very hard to suck up to others in the upper class. The way he speaks is intended to give him a sense of upper class, sophisticated manner, but it just comes off as annoying and trying a bit too hard. He proposes to Elizabeth and expects her to say yes. It almost doesn't register when she declines, as he states, "that is usual with young ladies to reject the addresses of the man they secretly mean to accept." This further shows his arrogance. And the way he proposes is even annoying as he just lists reasons on why he wants to or should be married; very conceited and very off-putting. I think that Austen uses Mr. Collin’s character to criticize the part of the middle class that tries to act upper class, but also criticizes the social hierarchy as a whole.
While I do agree with you on the character of Mr. Collins, I disagree with you on what Austen is satirizing. While the Bennet family is in the middle class, very few people actually look down on it. In fact, the only other character I can find besides Mr. Collins and Mr. Darcy is Ms. Bingly, who is also easily dislikeable. The point I’m making is that even though a social class obviously does exist, it doesn’t seem to be that big of a deal in the book. I think that Mr. Collin’s identity as a cleric is a much more important indicator of the satire Austen is going for. Hypocrisy was probably the most common complaint against the church in those days, and I think it is far more likely that his inclusion in the book is a criticism against the church than it is the upper class. Especially considering that several of the main love interests in the novel belong to said class.
Mr. Collins is located near the middle of the spectrum of wealth. He has property and livestock, though it is small and generally unimpressive. His situation could be far worse though. The quality that sets him apart from others in his social class is his attachment to Lady Catherine. Instead of being mere acquaintances with her, he practically obsesses over her. He brings up his relationship with Lady Catherine whenever possible, and when he does so he makes a point to put her on the highest of pedestals. It is almost ridiculous the amount of praise he offers to someone who is essentially nothing more than a neighbor. His character is likely Austen’s attempt to satirize the people that are overly concerned with societal classes, who struggle endlessly to gain rank, but ultimately end up looking ridiculous.
Mr. Collins is located near the middle of the spectrum of wealth. He has property and livestock, though it is small and generally unimpressive. His situation could be far worse though. The quality that sets him apart from others in his social class is his attachment to Lady Catherine. Instead of being mere acquaintances with her, he practically obsesses over her. He brings up his relationship with Lady Catherine whenever possible, and when he does so he makes a point to put her on the highest of pedestals. It is almost ridiculous the amount of praise he offers to someone who is essentially nothing more than a neighbor. His character is likely Austen’s attempt to satirize the people that are overly concerned with societal classes, who struggle endlessly to gain rank, but ultimately end up looking ridiculous.
Mr. Collins is easily the most unlikeable character of the novel so far. He has earned this title by being patronizing and pretentious at every opportunity provided to him. Perhaps the best example of this can be found on page 104, wherein immediately after proposing, he points out, “Your portion is unhappily so small that it will in all likelihood undo the effects of your loveliness and amiable qualifications.” So essentially, after his cousin expressed some doubt about a marriage proposal to him, his go to strategy was to point out how poor she was and how her financial status would prevent her from any other marriages. Obviously he was trying to come off as logical, but it is perhaps his idea of himself as a superior to the Bennets that really drives the point home. Even though his own family is going out of their way to make him as comfortable as possible, Mr. Collins only complains, acts superior, or name drops whenever the feeling seizes him. I suspect his role is meant to satirize the church at the time who no doubt acted hypocritical and superior despite the humble origins of their religion.
In Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Collins is portrayed as an upper middle class character who wishes to be among the upper class citizens. He projects himself as someone who is socially superior than he actually is in order to fit in with the upper class. He justifies this because he owns property, just like those he is trying to become equal to. Using Mr. Collins, Jane Austen attempts to make a satirical point about social classes in general, particularly the members of the upper class. She makes it clear that Mr. Collins wishes to socially advance, all while pointing out characters flaws and faults in the people he is trying to become. For example, especially in Volume 1, Austen portrays Mr. Darcy to be very arrogant and entitled. With this in mind, Austen is essentially criticizing the upper class for thinking they are superior to everyone else, all while recounting the attempt of an average citizen to ascend into said social class only to become one of the same arrogant human beings. Austen uses this example to bash the idea of social classes in general, saying that they are merely an entity that drives people off their path in life and into unfortunate situations.
Mr. Collins is a token of his time period and so far in the novel, acts as a source of conflict for the Bennett family. His proposal and eventual rejection spawns the rebellion of Elizabeth and the eventual marriage of him and Charlotte Lucas. His conduct inflicts mockery from the other characters, yet he remains a symbol for behavior demanded of the era. Every fiber of his moral being and all his behavior is a determinate of etiquette and the expectations of others. His conversation is orchestrated by strict social decorum and he utters profuse apologies at any given moment. Above all, he is defined as a respectable gentleman in need of a wife and chooses to skate around the whole concept of "love". Austen chooses to rebel against the marital pressures of women as well as the constraining expectations set upon society at the time through creating a caricature of its mindlessness through Mr. Collins.
Mr. Collins seems to be deemed the upper part of middle class. I mean by this that he interacts with part of the upper class’s society but is not directly himself part of it. In hoping to be respected and more liked by the upper class he displays all humility to them. An example is even before they meet Lady Catherine de Bourgh. The women of the house all are deciding what to wear to the meeting when Mr. Collins tells Elizabeth “Do not make yourself uneasy, my dear cousin, about your apparel… Lady Catherine sill not think the worse of you for being simply dressed. She likes to have the distinction of rank preserved.” (page 155). This suggests that Mr. Collins has bought into the belief that he is not just worthy of being upper class but that he is meant to be of lower standards. Further into this explanation is when Elizabeth Bennet is first introduced to Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Mr. Collins does everything he can in his power to appease Lady Catherine’s ears. He not just humiliates himself by saying that he won in a card game too much, but that he should be better about his life. He bends to every suggestion that she makes to appease her just so he can have a positive relationship with the upper class.
ReplyDeleteMr. Collins is an example of a man that is financially considered middle class, but perceives himself as above the rest of the people in his financial situation. He over exaggerates his importance in society, to the Bennet’s when he comes to visit, and believes that because Lady Catherine de Bourgh is his patroness he is of a higher caliber than them. When proposing to Elizabeth his true pompousness can be seen; “"My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you (104).” With Mr. Collins character, I believe that Austen is trying to criticize people that over-embellish themselves in order to please people of a higher social ranking. Mr. Collin’s is basically a social climber, that tries to use his relation to Lady Catherine de Bourgh to climb the social ladder.
ReplyDeleteThe obsequious character of Mr. Collins, portrays Austen’s satire of marrying out of desperation and lack of love. After being told to marry someone from the strict orders of his patroness, Mr. Collins servile manner is apparent as he does whatever he can to please Lady Catherine, shown through his multiple proposals to Elizabeth and Catherine. "My reasons for marrying are, first, that I think it a right thing for every clergyman in easy circumstances (like myself) to set the example of matrimony in his parish; secondly, that I am convinced that it will add very greatly to my happiness; and thirdly—which perhaps I ought to have mentioned earlier, that it is the particular advice and recommendation of the very noble lady whom I have the honour of calling patroness.." Mr. Collins is sort of the wanna-be of Mr. Darcy with the difference being, Mr. Darcy is a man of actual wealth, decency and propriety whereas Mr. Collins is not exactly wealthy himself, but associated with the high class all because of his relation to the noblewoman, Lady Catherine. His unexpected prosperity has given him a snobbish and dull behavior which explains why Elizabeth rejected him. Thinking Elizabeth would be ecstatic in regards to his proposal also shows how arrogant Mr. Collins is and how there isn't anything positive to his character.
ReplyDeleteInteresting points, Evan. I agree with your statements what say that Mr. Collins does whatever he can to please Lady Catherine, which includes marrying. I also agree with your point that says that because of his sudden wealth, his middle class character transformed into a more snobbish and conceited upper class facade. I thought it interesting that you compared Mr. Collins to a wannabe Mr. Darcy. I hadn't thought of him in that way, but as you mention it, it makes decent sense. The way that Collins addresses Darcy suggests that he thinks they are in the same social class, which is far from true. It is easy to even compare Collins to a small child always wanting to hang out with an older kids friend group, except friend groups it is rungs of a society's ladder.
DeleteMr. Collins is extremely conceited and constantly searching to be part of the upper class in some and any way. His riches categorize him into the upper end of the middle class but he believes that his relations and impeccable manners push him farther up the social scale. For example, when describing Mr. Collins at one of the dinners at Lady Catherine’s house Austen says, “He carved, and ate, and praised with delighted alacrity; and every dish was commended first by him, and then by Sir William, who was now enough recovered to echo whatever his son-in-law said, in a manner which Elizabeth wondered Lady Catherine could bear. But Lady Catherine seemed gratified by their excessive admiration… (Austen 157)” Mr. Collins takes immense pride in his relations with Lady Catherine and loves to brag about their friendship even if it is merely out of her boredom. When Mr. Darcy comes and Lady Catherine has other more interesting subjects around much less attention is paid to Mr. Collins, but he doesn’t care; he takes what he can get. I think that Austen is criticizing the social climbers.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that Austen is criticizing people who are trying to climb the social hierarchy by trying to act like something they are not. Mr. Collins is a huge suck up to people of the upper class and acts upper class to people who are actually poorer than him. To the Bennets he thinks of himself as a hero: a person who will marry one of the daughters and take over the estate when Mr. Bennet passes away. But actually he just comes off as a joke. When he proposes to Elizabeth he completely makes a fool of himself, but doesn't actually realize it and shrugs it off as Elizabeth playing hard to get. Mr. Collins is a self-centered man who symbolizes all of the people in that time that try to climb the social ladder by sucking up and acting sophisticated.
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ReplyDeleteMr. Collins is unbearably polite and constantly trying to be approvable in the sight of Lady Catherine, which is almost an impossible task. He is constantly complimenting the furniture, the agreeableness of those of impressive social status that he encounters, and apologizes profusely about minute things. He rambles prolonged ideas to impress everyone else, when in reality it is exhausting and ridiculous to be around. He is confident in his abilities to easily mary a Bennet off, and endures a stage of denial at Elizabeth’s rejection, stating that she is only trying to enhance his attachment in the way all women do. He shows the basicness of his proposal and feelings on marriage when he says:“"My situation in life, my connections with the family of de Bourgh, and my relationship to your own, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into further consideration, that in spite of your manifold attractions, it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you (104).” He quickly marries a Charlotte Lucas after Elizabeth’s rejection. Austen seems to express the ridiculousness and shallowness in the system of marriage at this time. Revolving around social status, the bonds of the people entering into marriage are weak, not individual, and certainly not a result of love.
ReplyDeleteKailey-
DeleteI definitely agree on the last part of Austen's expression and how she portrays the system of matrimony at the time. The majority of the relationships we have encountered so far in the novel are merely for the sake of convenience, social status or physical attraction. For example, with the situation of Charlotte Lucas, she desperately accepted the proposal knowing that that was the best she could do at the time and not wanting to face social scorn. Or with Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, there love just doesn't seem intense, compatible or real. It seems to be based strictly off of physical attraction when they were younger. Mr. Bennet even has a little fun with mocking and teasing his wife out of entertainment. "To his wife he was very little otherwise indebted, than as her ignorance and folly had contributed to his amusement." With these different marriages, the characters don't express any sort of true bond which could be considered a form of fake love.
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ReplyDeleteMr. Collins is a very polite man with incredible manners. However, he apologizes way too much for the things he does, and also believes that he exists above the social class that he is in. His relationship with Lady Catherine de Bourgh is merely her treating him as a play thing who compliments her and her estate profusely, as seen by Elizabeth when she attends a dinner at Rosings Park. Lady Catherine makes him believe that he is a lot more interesting and cultured than he actually is, allowing him to make a fool of himself in public. One such example of this is when Mr. Collins proposes to Elizabeth. His statement to her almost seems that he feels entitled that she should marry him and feel attracted because of his status rather than an actual personality. By using the character of Mr. Collins, I believe that Austen attempts to poke fun at those that act entitled and try to climb social ladders but fail at doing so.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Mr. Collins completely bases his confidence off of gaining the approval of Lady Catherine and being socially impressive. His entitlement is seen in the scene you referred to where he so confidently proposes to Elizabeth Bennet, and because the situation of the marriage makes so much sense to him with her being able to inherit the estate, he can't fathom that she would reject him. This is another example in the reading we've done so far of marriage being much more logically driven than emotionally. All the effort that Mr. Collins puts into being viewed as polite, agreeable, and socially impressive essentially don’t win him the true admiration of ladies that he had falsely expected. When he does find someone to marry him, her reasons are as practical and shallow as he is. His character probably best exemplifies what Austen is criticizing and exposing the ridiculousness of.
DeleteIn the novel thus far, Mr. Collins has been portrayed as a man of no large fortune who thinks he’s one of the highest people up in society based off of his close living proximity to Lady Catherine. Mr. Collins has been one of the biggest conflicts throughout the first two Volumes. The entire Bennet family does everything they can to make his stay worthwhile, in the hopes of pleasing him enough to deal with the estate in a good manner. Although, he acts very differently back and ends up asking Elizabeth to marry him while she is in love with Wickham. This causes extreme stress on Elizabeth because Mr. Collins seems to taunt her after her refusal at what she could have had. He shows off to her mostly, even when his loving, new wife is around. I think that Austen is attempting to criticize marriage during this time because although Mr. Collins’ case seems to be dramatic, it is the norm for marriages to be like that during that time period. By making him slightly more dramatic, it creates an interesting image of how marriage works.
ReplyDeleteUp to this point in the book, Mr. Collins is definitely my least favorite character. Even though he is just middle class he acts like he is upper class and tries very hard to suck up to others in the upper class. The way he speaks is intended to give him a sense of upper class, sophisticated manner, but it just comes off as annoying and trying a bit too hard. He proposes to Elizabeth and expects her to say yes. It almost doesn't register when she declines, as he states, "that is usual with young ladies to reject the addresses of the man they secretly mean to accept." This further shows his arrogance. And the way he proposes is even annoying as he just lists reasons on why he wants to or should be married; very conceited and very off-putting. I think that Austen uses Mr. Collin’s character to criticize the part of the middle class that tries to act upper class, but also criticizes the social hierarchy as a whole.
ReplyDeleteWhile I do agree with you on the character of Mr. Collins, I disagree with you on what Austen is satirizing. While the Bennet family is in the middle class, very few people actually look down on it. In fact, the only other character I can find besides Mr. Collins and Mr. Darcy is Ms. Bingly, who is also easily dislikeable. The point I’m making is that even though a social class obviously does exist, it doesn’t seem to be that big of a deal in the book. I think that Mr. Collin’s identity as a cleric is a much more important indicator of the satire Austen is going for. Hypocrisy was probably the most common complaint against the church in those days, and I think it is far more likely that his inclusion in the book is a criticism against the church than it is the upper class. Especially considering that several of the main love interests in the novel belong to said class.
DeleteMr. Collins is located near the middle of the spectrum of wealth. He has property and livestock, though it is small and generally unimpressive. His situation could be far worse though. The quality that sets him apart from others in his social class is his attachment to Lady Catherine. Instead of being mere acquaintances with her, he practically obsesses over her. He brings up his relationship with Lady Catherine whenever possible, and when he does so he makes a point to put her on the highest of pedestals. It is almost ridiculous the amount of praise he offers to someone who is essentially nothing more than a neighbor. His character is likely Austen’s attempt to satirize the people that are overly concerned with societal classes, who struggle endlessly to gain rank, but ultimately end up looking ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteMr. Collins is located near the middle of the spectrum of wealth. He has property and livestock, though it is small and generally unimpressive. His situation could be far worse though. The quality that sets him apart from others in his social class is his attachment to Lady Catherine. Instead of being mere acquaintances with her, he practically obsesses over her. He brings up his relationship with Lady Catherine whenever possible, and when he does so he makes a point to put her on the highest of pedestals. It is almost ridiculous the amount of praise he offers to someone who is essentially nothing more than a neighbor. His character is likely Austen’s attempt to satirize the people that are overly concerned with societal classes, who struggle endlessly to gain rank, but ultimately end up looking ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteMr. Collins is easily the most unlikeable character of the novel so far. He has earned this title by being patronizing and pretentious at every opportunity provided to him. Perhaps the best example of this can be found on page 104, wherein immediately after proposing, he points out, “Your portion is unhappily so small that it will in all likelihood undo the effects of your loveliness and amiable qualifications.” So essentially, after his cousin expressed some doubt about a marriage proposal to him, his go to strategy was to point out how poor she was and how her financial status would prevent her from any other marriages. Obviously he was trying to come off as logical, but it is perhaps his idea of himself as a superior to the Bennets that really drives the point home. Even though his own family is going out of their way to make him as comfortable as possible, Mr. Collins only complains, acts superior, or name drops whenever the feeling seizes him. I suspect his role is meant to satirize the church at the time who no doubt acted hypocritical and superior despite the humble origins of their religion.
ReplyDeleteIn Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Collins is portrayed as an upper middle class character who wishes to be among the upper class citizens. He projects himself as someone who is socially superior than he actually is in order to fit in with the upper class. He justifies this because he owns property, just like those he is trying to become equal to. Using Mr. Collins, Jane Austen attempts to make a satirical point about social classes in general, particularly the members of the upper class. She makes it clear that Mr. Collins wishes to socially advance, all while pointing out characters flaws and faults in the people he is trying to become. For example, especially in Volume 1, Austen portrays Mr. Darcy to be very arrogant and entitled. With this in mind, Austen is essentially criticizing the upper class for thinking they are superior to everyone else, all while recounting the attempt of an average citizen to ascend into said social class only to become one of the same arrogant human beings. Austen uses this example to bash the idea of social classes in general, saying that they are merely an entity that drives people off their path in life and into unfortunate situations.
ReplyDeleteMr. Collins is a token of his time period and so far in the novel, acts as a source of conflict for the Bennett family. His proposal and eventual rejection spawns the rebellion of Elizabeth and the eventual marriage of him and Charlotte Lucas. His conduct inflicts mockery from the other characters, yet he remains a symbol for behavior demanded of the era. Every fiber of his moral being and all his behavior is a determinate of etiquette and the expectations of others. His conversation is orchestrated by strict social decorum and he utters profuse apologies at any given moment. Above all, he is defined as a respectable gentleman in need of a wife and chooses to skate around the whole concept of "love". Austen chooses to rebel against the marital pressures of women as well as the constraining expectations set upon society at the time through creating a caricature of its mindlessness through Mr. Collins.
ReplyDelete