Pride and Prejudice Read-Along Week 2

Hello, readers and friends! Today I’m checking in with the second discussion for the Pride and Prejudice Read-Along. To learn more about the read-along, just head over to seasonsofhumility.blogspot.com

General Impressions

In these chapters, we meet Mr. Collins and Mr. Whickham. Both are infamous characters, but for very different reasons. I always laugh and feel awkward when Mr. Collins enters. He’s just such an odd person! And I get mad every time I see Elizabeth fall for Mr. Whickham. At this point, she doesn’t know his true character, but she will come to regret it later.

I’m not the biggest fan of Mr. Darcy. I don’t dislike him, but he isn’t my favorite hero, because he is so proud, especially in the beginning of the book.

I’m glad that Mr. Bingley is so nice to Jane. Like she said, he is just what a gentleman ought to be. Yet I can’t abide his sisters. They’re wicked.

Favorite Quote

“An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.”

Discussion Questions

Feel free to answer one, two, or all three of these questions in the comments section or in your own blog post!

1.Which quote or scene made you laugh/smile the most?

“An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.”

I’ve always loved this quote, because it really shows how much Mr. Bennet loves Lizzy and how he is most concerned with her (and her sisters’) happiness.

2. Mr. Darcy is often silent: in social settings, in his feelings toward Elizabeth, and in defense of his side of Wickham's story. Do you think his silence is "golden" (a wise choice), or do you think he should have been more vocal in these chapters?

In a way, I do think Mr. Darcy’s silence was a wise choice. He and Lizzy didn’t know each very well at that point in the book, and it would be rather awkward to spill the story that I know he tells to someone you don’t really know. It would almost be hard to take him seriously and one might wonder if he had made it up simply to make himself look better.

3. How would you respond to Mr. Collins if he proposed to you?

Not well, I’m afraid! It would just be so awkward. I definitely would have said no, but I would not have been as composed as Lizzy. I probably would have had a meltdown because it would just be such an awkward situation.

So another week of the read-along has come and gone. I’m really having fun with this read-along. Are you currently reading Pride and Prejudice? Or have you in the past and have any comments on this part of the book? Tell me about it in the comments!

-Miranda Atchley