One of our favorites from dear Mr. Collins…
“‘My dear Miss Elizabeth, I have the highest opinion in the world of
your excellent judgment in all matters within the scope of your
understanding . . .”
Mr. Collins to Lizzy, when he insists on speaking to Mr. Darcy though they have not been introduced, and she tries to stop him
Pride & Prejudice, volume 1, chapter 18
Image from bbc.co.uk
Comments Off on Your excellent judgment, cousin Elizabeth
Filed under a Woman's mind, Elizabeth Bennet, Insults, Mr. Collins, Pride and Prejudice
“Mary wished to say something very sensible, but knew not how.”
Mr. Bennet tries to provoke Mary into commenting on “the forms of introduction,” in the midst of all the hoopla about meeting Bingley
Pride & Prejudice, volume 1, chapter 2
Poor Mary! I empathize…
Image
©BBC 1994 for Masterpiece™
Filed under a Woman's mind, Conversation, Mary Bennet, Pride and Prejudice
“Where people wish to attach, they should always be ignorant. To come with a well-informed mind is to come with an inability of administering to the vanity of others, which a sensible person would always wish to avoid. A woman especially, if she have the misfortune of knowing any thing, should conceal it as well as she can.”
This is the narrator’s voice, in the chapter where Henry, Eleanor and Catherine hike to the top of Beechen Cliff, and Catherine feels completely ignorant about Henry’s ideas of what makes a beautiful landscape
Northanger Abbey, volume 1, chapter 14
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Filed under a Woman's mind, Catherine Morland, Henry Tilney, Northanger Abbey, Pride
The Jane Austen Guide to Life: Thoughtful Lessons for the Modern Woman (May, 2012)
A Walk with Jane Austen: A Journey into Adventure, Love, and Faith