Comments on: Chapter 5: Vanity or Pride?

By: tinternteacher

tinternteacher — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 21:55:12 +0000

Norma, I like the way that you explain how “their own opinion of themselves is worth nothing compared…” The way you say it points beyond the problem of low self-esteem to one of the real strengths that we associate with women, that they can have a selflessness that builds up others. The search for men and women is to find that empowering balance between a strong sense of self and a selfless regard for the good of others.

By: Norma Fleming

Norma Fleming — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:49:06 +0000

Yes, I agree with “breeze”, men seem to think more highly of themselves, even if all around them are thinking otherwise, they don’t consider, so much, what others think of them, while women depend almost completely on the thoughts of others about them. They have vanity more often than pride because their own opinion of themselves is worth nothing compared to the opinions of others. Elizabeth is very unique in that she is a lot of each of her sisters, and she connects to different people than her family members do. She is the most interesting and profound character in the novel, in my opinion.

By: tinternteacher

tinternteacher — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 01:27:09 +0000

I think you’re right on both counts, “breeze.” I think that what Jane Austen is showing through her writing is that each person needs to shape a self so that their selfhood is not formed exclusively by others. I think the relationship between freedom, selfhood, and authorship of your own life makes the novel such a democratic art form, and the work of a woman writer, a liberating one.

By: call me the breeze

call me the breeze — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 20:19:34 +0000

Mary does seem to have a very interesting point. It seems that perhaps men are able to create an “ego” for themselves, while women need other people to believe that they are beautiful in order for them to realize it themselves, thus being vane.
I think that Elizabeth’s not being as susceptible to vanity arises from her free spirit and confidence in her own being. She is really the only truly independent woman in the book and that independence allows her to live without believing that she needs a husband to do so, as she does not get caught up in the chase for a beau like her sisters do.