Pride and Prejudice Homework Week 8

How important a character is Mr Collins? Write a paragraph in response, clearly arguing your point of view. In developing your thesis, include a discussion of the way the reader is positioned to respond to him and the importance of this for dealing with at least one of the ideas underpinning the novel. Consider the work we have done in class on satire and irony as you plan your response. The Character of Mr Collins is very important in Jane Austens novel 'Pride and Prejudice.'This is because he shows the tradition of marrying without love and the views of society during this period. In this novel when Mr Collins proposes to Elizabeth he is rejected because Elizabeth believes in marrying for love. He proves to be the complete opposite to Elizabeth due to his belief in marrying for the sake of it. The audience is positioned to poke fun at Collins' ways, the views of the society and to disregard people in the novel who act in the same way as Mr Collins does. Sattire is used in the novel to make the reader see a character, what they believe in and their views as a joke. This is displayed when Mr Collins approaches Mr Darcy to introduce himself and when he does this Mr Darcy '[replies] with an air of distant civility' (p.g 96)When Mr Collins returns back to Elizabeth he tells her that 'Mr. Darcy seemed much pleased with the attention,'(p.g 96)when in fact the meeting did not go well at all. Mr Collins plays a significant character in the novel because he is used as a character to prove points made by Jane Austen, he is a character that positions the audiences to poke fun and think of him as an odd, conceited man.