PRIDE & PREJUDICE: JANE AUSTEN: CHAPTER FORTY FIVE

Miss Bingley's dislike of Elizabeth had its origin in jealousy.  Elizabeth could not help feeling how unwelcome Miss Bingley's presence at Pemberly would be.

On reaching the Pemberly House, they were shown through the hall into the saloon. It offered a refreshing view of the beautiful oaks and Spanish chestnuts scattered over the lawn behind, boarded by  wooded hills.  Miss Darcy, along with Mrs Hurst and Miss Bingley received them.  Miss Darcy's reception of them was very civil, but she was embarassed out of shyness and the the fear of committing any mistakes while doing something, gave her a look of proud, to those who were inferior to her. But Mrs Gardiner, and Elizabeth however, did her justice, and pitied her.

On entering of Mrs Hurst and Miss Bingley, there came a pause in the conversation among others, an awkward pause, which was broken by Mrs Annesley, a well bred agreeable woman, and the conversation continued, between her and Mrs Gardiner with occasional help from Elizabeth.

Miss Bingley had been watching Elizabeth closely, and the latter was confused that she could not carry on her conversation with Miss Darcy.  She received a cold inquiry from Miss Bingley after the health of her family.  She answered with equal indifference and brevity.  An uneasy silence followed, which was broken by the arrival of servants with cold meat, cake and all variety of fine fruits of the season.  Mrs Annesley smiled to Miss Darcy, and she, then invited all, though, with little bit of shyness, to join her.  The members of the party instantly moved behind her and collected around the table.  At this moment Mr Darcy entered the room.  Elizabeth was all perplexed, but she resolved to stay calm.  But Miss  Bingley was not at all calm.  Mr Gardiner, along with two other gentlemen was occupied by river and fishing. Miss Darcy moved easily among the guests in the presence of her brother, and both were moving towards Elizabeth, when Miss Bingley said, "Pray Miss Eliza, are not the shire Militia removed from Meryton?  Must be a great loss to your family."

Elizabeth understood that Mr Wickham was in her mind when she uttered 'shire militia', but she answered the question in a detached tone.  Mr Darcy looked at her earnestly, and his sister was confused.  The question brought recollections in their mind of Miss Darcy's meditated elopement. But Mr Darcy was sure that the intelligence never reached Miss Bingley.  Elizabeth also was aware of this, and she correctly assessed that Miss Bingley's question directed against her to remind Mr Darcy of her family's connection with shire Militia and of her sympathy to Mr Wickham.

Elizabeth's collected behaviour, however, quieted Mr Darcy's emotions; and as Miss Bingley vexed and disappointed, dared not touch Wickham, Miss Darcy also recovered in time.

Mr and Mrs Gardiner, along with Elizabeth had returned; Miss Bingley found time to nettle Mr Darcy with some remarks.

"How very ill Miss Eliza Bennet looked this morning, Mr Darcy," she cried, "I never in my life saw anyone so much altered as she is since the winter.  She is grown so brown and coarse!  Louisa and I would not have recognised her."

Mr Darcy was not at all happy with her remarks, but he replied himself coolly that he saw no alteration, other than her being tanned because of travelling in summer.

"For my own part," she rejoined, "I should consider that, I could never see any beauty in her.  Her face is too thin; her complexion has no brilliancy; and her features are not at all handsome.  Her nose wants character - there is nothing marked in its lines.  Her teeth are tolerable, but not out of the common way; and as of her eyes, which have sometimes been called so fine, I could never see anything extraordinary in them.  They have a sharp shrewish look, which I do not like at all; and in her air altogether there is a self-sufficiency without fashion, which is intolerable."

Miss Bingley found that Mr Darcy admired Elizabeth, and recommending herself was not prudent; and her comments were irked him very much.  He was very resolute in his silence.  Determined to make him speak, Miss Bingley continued:

I remember, when we first knew her in Hertfordshire, how amazed we all were to find that she was a reputed beauty; and I particularly recollect your saying one night, after they had been dining at Netherfield, "she a beauty! - I should soon call her mother a wit." But afterwards she seemed to improve on you, and I believe you thought her rather pretty at one time."

"Yes," replied Darcy, who could contain himself no longer, "but that was only when I first saw her, but it is many months since I have considered her as one of the handsomest women in my acquaintance."

Mr Darcy went away, and Miss Bingley was satisfied that she forced him to say what gave anyone any pain but herself.

Mrs Gardiner and Elizabeth talked of everything that had occurred during their visit, as they returned, except what had particularly interested them both.  The look and behaviour of everybody present in the party were discussed, except of the person who had mostly engaged their attention.

Elizabeth was longing to know what Mrs Gardiner thought of him.  Mrs Gardiner would have been highly gratified, by her niece's beginning the subject.

THE END 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

( 16 )CHARLES DICKENS: DAVID COPPERFIELD: CHAPTER 16: I AM A NEW BOY IN MORE SENSES THAN ONE

Next morning, after breakfast, I entered on school life again.  I went, accompanied by Mr Wickfield to the scene of my future studies- a grave building in a courtyard, with a learned air about it that suited very well to the stray rooks and jackdaws who came down from the Cathedral tower to walk with a clerkly bearing on the grass plot - and was introduced to my new master, Doctor Strong. Doctor Strong looked almost as rusty, to my thinking, as the tall iron rails and gates outside the house; and almost as stiff and heavy as the great stone urn that flanked them, and were set up, on the top of red brick wall, at regular distances all round the court, like sublimated skittles for Time to play at.  Doctor Strong was in his library, with his clothes not particularly well brushed, and his hair not particularly combed, his knee-small unbraced, his long black gaiters unbuttoned, and his shoes  yawning like two caverns on the hearth-rug.  Turning upon me a lustreless eye, t...
Read more

Sailing Around Erethraean Sea: Three

Updated 29/11/2024 Below the Calf-Eaters there is a little market-town on the shore after sailing about four thousand stadia from Berenice, called Ptolemais of Hunts, from which the hunters started for the interior under the dynasty of Ptolemies. This market town has true land to rtoise in small quantities; it is white and smaller in the shells. And here also is found a little ivory, like that of Adulis. But the place has no harbour, and is reached by small boats. 1. Calf-Eaters: Cattle rearing nomadic tribes. 2. Stadia is the plural of stadion. Ten  stadia= one mile. 3. Ptolemais of Hunts: Ptolemies Theron is the exact Greek term,  located at the Bay of Anfile or Amphila Bay on the coast of Eritrea. Facing the bay is Hando island. It is, in fact, a double bay, an inner bay within, between promontories M'edr and Lelisa. End of the Section 
Read more

Travels Of Marco Polo: Thirty

Now, let me tell of the beasts which his Majesty keeps for hunting.  Among these are Leopards and lynxes or stag-wolves well fitted for that purpose.  He has also many lions larger than those of Babylon of a beautiful hair and colour, striped length ways black red and white, and trained to catch stags, wild oxen, hogs, wild goats and asses; it is delightful to see one of these chases, where the hunters go out, carrying the lion in a cage, and with him a small dog.  They have likewise abundance of eagles, with which they capture hares, foxes and even wolves; those which are trained to catch these last are very large, and of great weight, so that no wolf can escape them. ____________________________________ 1. The lion here described by the author is manifestly the tiger. It is probable that tiger was unknown in Europe when Marco left, he might have viewed it as a variety of lion. 2. Lion and tigers are wild animals and cannot be domesticated. Still human societies used to ...
Read more