pride and prejudice

As I was reading Pride and Prejudice, I began to think that Jane Austen is a social critic like Ibsen. I’m not sure if she can be classified as a social critic but I think there’s enough evidence in the book to support my claim. The concepts of entailment and marrying based on financial situations are criticized by Jane Austen. Jane Austen clearly ridicules the concept of entailment by highlighting Mr. Collin’s ridiculous nature. Due to the law of entailment during the time which the novel was written, the Bennett fortune and estate would not have been able to pass directly to the Bennett girls because of their gender. Mr. Collins suggest that he be the one who inherit the property and Mr. Bennett reluctantly agrees. It is clear as the novel progresses how outrageous Mr. Collins is. Although his male status should make him more “fit” than the Bennett girls to inherit the fortune, it is clear that any of the Bennett girls should inherit the fortune. Mr. Collins is portrayed in the book as such a ridiculous character so that the readers can realize that the concept of entailment is flawed. It should be the Bennet girls, not Mr. Collins who is more qualified to inherit the property. However, the concept of entailment prevents that from happening.
The idea that marriage should be based on financial situations was prevalent during the era in which this book was written. I believe that Jane Austen is against this idea as she uses Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. Their relationship starts as a bitter one. Mr. Darcy is pompous and arrogant in the beginning of the novel. His good looks and height are shadowed by his negative personality. At first, Mr. Darcy tries to pry away Mr. Bingley from Jane as he considers the Bennett household too poor to be a suitable match for his friend. However, as the novel progresses, Mr. Darcy starts to develop feelings for a common girl like Elizabeth. He starts to linger around her a lot and there are many instances where there is awkward silence between the two. Mr. Darcy eventually confesses his love to Elizabeth in a condescending way and Elizabeth becomes indignant. However, through his letter he wrote for Elizabeth, she forgives him. The readers then reazlize even an aristocrat like Mr. Darcy can change in the face of look and over come the financial barrier that seperates the two love birds. It is through the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth that Austen criticizes the concept of marrying based no financial situation instead of love. She is trying to create a model couple that marries based on love. In essence, the relationship between Mr. Collins and Charlotte is the foil to the relationship between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy