The Beauty Talk
Lizzie was apparently a "reputed beauty"; tolerable but not handsome enough to tempt single men of large fortune like Mr Darcy, the hero of Pride and Prejudice.
The Origins of Ms Elizabeth Bennet
Elizabeth did not look more than 20; she herself claimed she was 'not one-and-twenty'. Second of the five sisters, she was the daughter of a gentleman who had an estate in the village of Hertfordshire; but her mother was of low birth - merely an attorney's daughter.
A Mother's Disdain
Mrs Bennet, a lady of mean understanding and little information, always blamed her husband for giving preference to Lizzie when she not a bit better than the rest of her four daughters. The mother believed Lizzie to be not half so handsome as Jane, the eldest, nor half so good-humored as Lydia, her favorite child.
Impressions of Mr Darcy - The Man who Matters
Although not being enough of a beauty to be worthy of a celebrated heroine, Mr Darcy, unlike the hasty judgment he had formed during his earlier meetings with Lizzie (once he inappropriately said, "She a beauty! I should as soon call her (foolish) mother a wit!"), later allowed himself to temper his impressions. During one of the balls, he actually found himself agreeably engaged on meditating on the very great pleasure, which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty Ms Bennet bestowed!
Lizzie as an Athlete
Lizzie also happened to be a good walker and could cross field after field in the country. She was used to jumping over stiles, and was quick enough to spring over puddles after rainy mornings, with an impatient activity that made her face glow with the warmth of exercise. Once, even Mr Darcy was moved enough to admire the brilliancy which exercise had given to her complexion. His penetrating observation could not miss the shine of her fine eyes, which were brightened in the process.
Was Elizabeth a Shrewd Catty Woman?
Her athletic inclinations failed to obtain favor with Ms Caroline Bingley, the snobbish and stylish sister of Mr Bingley. This Mr Bingley was a close friend of Mr Darcy. He was falling in love with the certainly beautiful Ms Jane Bennet, Lizzie's eldest sister." She has nothing to recommend her, but being an excellent walker" was the cold-hearted assessment of our heroine by the elegant Ms Bingley, who had cultivated her manners in the higher echelons of the London society. She felt that Lizzie had a tendency to show an abominable sort of conceited independence and a most country-town indifference to decorum.
Elizabeth was consequently categorized as one of those young ladies who seek to recommend themselves to the other sex, by undervaluing their own; a very mean art indeed! But it is advisable not to consider Ms Bingley's remarks only, for she herself had plans for Mr Darcy and perhaps perceiving him to be drawn towards Lizzie, she could have constructed her views about her rival under the despicable influence of that negative emotion called jealousy. However, we must come back to the subject of the outward appearance of Ms Bennet and not busy ourselves with laying down conjectures about her manners and wit.
Article comments
1 - Michael J. West
Elizabeth Bennett is the most celebrated heroine of literature?
2 - Mayank Austen Soofi
Ok, she is 'one' of the most celebrated heroine of literature.
3 - Orchid
Is it important that she be beautiful? The whole point of the story is that Elizabeth's appeal was not in her looks but in her character. Her wit, intelligence, and her ineffable spark as well her decision not to settle for matrimonial offers to find security or a higher social station were her appeal, not her physicality.
It's only in an era when we feel great beauty must be inexorably tied to a woman's a appeal that we can't see this and ask pointless questions about whether or not a "celebrated" heroine was physically outstanding.
4 - Mayank Austen Soofi
Orchid, I completely agree with you. This piece merely happened since I was intrested in spotting clues concerning Lizzie's looks in the novel. It was fun.
5 - KKS
Interesting compilation! Austen's words are integrated to a very amusing effect.
This piece does seem to show (perhaps unintentionally) that Elizabeth's appearance actually is important to the novel. With all the emphasis Austen placed on Elizabeth's playful manners, good sense, and intelligence, mentions of her physical traits are brought up many times. After all, they are part of "first impressions."
Some additional clues:
During Elizabeth's first visit to Lady Catherine, Lady Catherine remarks to Mrs. Collins that Elizabeth was "a very genteel, pretty kind of girl" (Chapter 29).
And about another of Elizabeth's potential suitors:
The narrator tells us that "Mrs. Collins's pretty friend [Elizabeth] had moreover caught his[Colonel Fitzwilliam's] fancy very much" (Chapter 31).
6 - Mayank Austen Soofi
On second thoughts, I think Lizzie's beauty did matter. Remember, Mr Darcy was first charmed by Lizzie's fine eyes. Yes, later her wit, her intelligence, too played their part but as KKS points out, 'first impressions' started it all.
Whether we like it or not, looks do matter. Else why senisble but plain-looking Charlotte had to marry that awful Mr Collins. She knew she was nothing to look at and Mr Collins was the best option for her to enter into respectable matrimony and not die an old maid. Yeah, looks are important. But again, wit is more important. Otherwise Mr Darcy would have rather married the stylish Carolyn Bingley!
Thanks KKS for pointing our more references of Lizzie's looks. I will incorporate them in the text of my post which I will upload in my blog.
7 - Lulu
One of the things I love about Jane Austen's works is the lack of descriptions regarding physical appeal. My mind can imagine Elizabeth Bennet to be a brunette, Lydia Bennet to be a blond, Marianne Dashwood as a redhead, or anything else my mind wishes to impose upon the characters.
If I remember correctly the Bronte sisters were also sparse in details of appearance. I always think of Catherine Earnshaw as blond, but every movie has had her brunette. Of course I could have missed something in there.
Another point that must be considered is that what constituted beauty in the Regency period might not correspond to the prevailing preferences of modern day beauty. This subject came up in my family after watching the 1995 miniseries of P&P and thinking their Elizabeth was much prettier than their Jane.
While I agree with Orchid that it's Lizzy's personality that counts, we must remember than men often don't think of that until later.
As to the lack of "wow you're hot" speech in proposals: Mr. Collins, as a clergyman, should have known better than to be influcenced by looks in the first place, and so might reasonably (if one believed him capable of reason) have deliberately avoided complimenting her specifically on her beauty; he might also have thought that compliments as to one's outward appearance might lead to the sin of pride.
Mr. Darcy...well...he just didn't know how to propose, and I think knowing Lizzy's personality the way he did he would know that she wouldn't wish a man to propose to her only because of her looks. It also might not have been the style of the time to speak of beauty when speaking of marriage. Particularly in the upper classes marriage was generally about status, wealth, and other non-romantic considerations; love was not considered necessary, and therefore it is possible that the subject of looks would have been avoided as a matter of course.
8 - Lulu
One last thought: Elizabeth must have been considered somewhat attractive and pretty, as Jane Austen described Mary Bennet as the only plain one of the five sisters.
9 - Mayank Austen Soofi
Yeah, in the first few viewings of the 1995 BBC series, Lizzie comes out prettier than Jane who is supposed to be the most beautiful of the five sisters. But after watching the series more than 20 times, I'm of the conclusion that even in this celebrated television adaptation, Jane looks more beautiful (especially her long hair) and Lizzie....well she does look beyond her age (played by Jennifer Ehle) but I can not imagine Lizzie without thinking of this actress. Like evrerybody else in this series, she was absolutely brilliant.
10 - moonspinner
Elizabeth is supposed to be next to Jane in "age and beauty". I think the fact that she had a sister like Jane made it harder to notice how pretty and attractive she really was.
Kiera Knightley with her tomboyish good looks really captured the essence of Lizzie Bennet in the 2005 movie.