mr bingley to darcy: “how could you propose to elizabeth bennet in kent just after you convinced me not to marry jane bennet because of her poor social status?”
like! people always reference pride & prejudice as the archetypal “normal girl falls for mysterious brooding antihero” story but they overlook the part where lizzy drags darcy so fucking hard he leaves town and then apologizes for talking to her the next time they meet even though they’re at his literal house
imagine the drama if characters from classical literature engaged in tumblr antics
CALLOUT POST for Fitzwilliam Darcy
did not consider me handsome enough to dance with
has been the means of ruining, perhaps for ever, the happiness of a most beloved sister
reduced George Wickham to his present state of comparative poverty (I don’t have receipts on this but trust me)
is full of arrogance, conceit, and selfish disdain of the feelings of others; is ungentlemanlike in general
EDIT: I HAVE RESCINDED ALL CALLOUTS OF MR. DARCY He is now my husband (long story)
op literally used her arts and allurements to in a moment of infatuation make my nephew forget what he owes to himself and to all his family but go off i guess
if I had done so, I should be the last person to confess it!
oh so we’re just gonna ignore the fact that he was already practically engaged to my daughter huh
but i mean you’re lost to every feeling of propriety and delicacy anyway so i’m not sure why we’re even having this conversation :))
i just read a washington post article on romcoms aging poorly due to the pushiness (and oft-stalkery conduct) of the male characters therein, and it got me thinking about pride and prejudice, and specifically darcy saying, “one word from you will silence me on this subject forever.”
because, like, that’s the seldom-portrayed romantic dream in the patriarchal hellscape that is our world, isn’t it?
a dude being willing to say, “i understand if you don’t feel the same way about me, and i’ll leave you alone forever about this if my attention is unwanted.”
so simple, yet so wonderful in its basic human decency
and dudes to this day wonder why women still swoon over darcy
Note also: Elizabeth turns down Darcy’s first proposal, and in the process, accuses him of doing some stuff he did not do (and also some stuff he totally did).
The next day, he surprises her on her walk. He hands her a letter, asks that she read it, and then takes off.
When this happened to me after I had turned someone down IN REAL LIFE, the letter contained a passionate argument to the tune of “actually you’re wrong and you do like me and you should go out with me” and it was creepy af.
Darcy’s letter to Elizabeth starts with: “Be not alarmed, Madam, on receiving this letter, by the apprehension of its containing any repetition of those sentiments, or renewal of those offers, which were last night so disgusting to you”. He goes on to set the record straight about the stuff he didn’t do (as well as the stuff he did) which is *actually relevant* to Elizabeth. And he, as promised, doesn’t romance her further.
It’s totally bizarre that even now, this can be considered unusually great dude behaviour.
Darcy’s first proposal: “You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.”
Darcy’s second proposal: “One word from you will silence me on this subject forever.”
His whole arc in the book is about learning to consider other people’s feelings and not just his own, but the fact that it’s expressed via who gets to talk and who is told to shut up is so, so telling. The first time around, he imposes his voice on her whether she wants it or not. The second time, he asks how she feels, and in exchange, offers her the gift of his silence.
And yeah, the fact that dudes still! have! not! learned! this! lesson! is exhausting.
the real victim in Pride and Prejudice is Georgiana Darcy, bc u know her brother spent at least two weeks lying around in his Regency Jammies eating Benjamin and Jerrold’s out of ye olde carton feeling sorry for himself bc his crush not only didn’t like him back but tore him to shreds in the process and Georgie had to deal with that and then said crush shows up at their HOUSE and she has to live w both of them probably stealing lovelorn yearning glances at each other the whole damn day while knowing if she even SUGGESTS to her brother that maybe perhaps his crush doesn’t hate his entire guts anymore he’ll just be all tragic about it bc “you don’t KNOW her Georgiana she dESPISES me and i DESERVE it”
when will YA authors realize that the mr. darcy fantasy isn’t “hot rich guy is a huge dick to you” but “hot rich guy fucking respects and listens to you”
“hot rich guy only seems like a huge dick because he has the social skills of an agarophobic lobster.”
“hot rich guy falls in love with you, respects your wishes when you tell him to fuck off, mends his ways with no ulterior motive and opens his dumb awkward heart to you”
I can’t believe the 2005 pride & prejudice completely understood that the ONLY correct characterization for Darcy was having him look mortifyingly uncomfortable in literally every situation he’s placed in. his body language is just. horrifying. this man wants to crawl into a hole. not to mention he’s like 6 and a half feet tall which is just. he’s so uncomfortably Large that you can’t ignore him even though he Desperately Wants You To Ignore Him. thank GOD they didn’t try any of that Dashing Gentleman bullshit. awkward nerd is the only correct Darcy.
I realized that anyone who’s never actually seen Pride & Prejudice (2005) dir. Joe Wright aka one of the best films in cinematic history has probably only ever seen this scene in gif form and that just doesn’t do it justice please watch this and then watch the entire film
Nothing but My Aching Soul 