(This conversation will contain spoilers for the current chapters and possibly for future chapters.)

R: There’s a great deal of drama going on in these chapters. The Bingleys and Darcy leave Netherfield, and Jane is informed by Miss Bingley that they have no intention of returning. The discussion about her letter between Jane and Elizabeth continues to highlight Elizabeth’s prejudice against Bingley’s sisters and Mr. Darcy (though at this point I think many readers would agree that it’s at least somewhat justified) and gives us a further glimpse into Jane’s kind nature. She simply refuses to think ill of Miss Bingley.

S: Jane really is such a sweetheart! She desires to see good in all people. I do agree with Elizabeth’s assessment of Miss Bingley’s character though, so it’s difficult to not perceive Jane as being deceived. 

R: In Chapter 22, we get the shock of learning that within a couple of meetings, Charlotte Lucas has managed to secure the hand of Mr. Collins! Following her earlier discussion with Elizabeth, this isn’t terribly surprising; her only goal is to have a comfortable home of her own. She doesn’t seem to care whether or not she will or could actually ever come to care for her husband.

I think we get perhaps our worst look at Elizabeth’s prejudice here, though I do think she is also concerned for her friend. She thinks Charlotte is being incredibly foolish, but her prejudice against Mr. Collins leads her to treat her best friend quite badly when Charlotte shares her news. ‘Charlotte the wife of Mr. Collins was a most humiliating picture! And to the pang of a friend disgracing herself and sunk in her esteem, was added the distressing conviction that it was impossible for that friend to be tolerably happy in the lot she had chosen.’ I think this also shows that Elizabeth holds to a bit of impractical romanticism. In reality, most marriages of the time were likely more like those of Charlotte and Mr. Collins.

S: Agreed! I am surprised at Elizabeth’s harsh criticism of her friend. For a moment I was a little surprised that Charlotte chose to marry Mr. Collins, but the more I thought back to the earlier chapters I could see that it was hinted at in the way she engaged him in conversation. Still, I think he and Mary Bennet would have been a better match, as they both seem to have the same ideals. However, perhaps Charlotte will temper him! One can only hope.

When I read in Chapter 23 that Elizabeth’s and Charlotte’s relationship has been ruined by Charlotte’s impending marriage to Mr. Collins I was so sad! For Elizabeth to throw away years of friendship because she dislikes Mr. Collins and dislikes Charlotte’s decision to marry him hurts my heart. I don’t think she should be surprised by Charlotte’s choice, but perhaps her own romanticism brushed it aside. 

R: It’s sad to lose a friend over choices they make. Sometimes it’s warranted, but I’m not sure this is one of those times. I can see Elizabeth and Charlotte not being as close anymore, especially with the distance; but understanding Mr. Collins’ character, I would think that Elizabeth would be a lifeline to sanity for her friend. 

S: I was also sad for Jane that she had to constantly put up with her mother’s cries about Mr. Bingley. It’s as though Mrs. Bennet thinks that Jane isn’t emotional enough so she’s going to put out all the emotion on her behalf! 

R: Same! I’m so annoyed by Mrs. Bennet’s over-emotionalism. She’s like the stereotype of every emotional female on the planet, which may have been Austen’s intent. She’s almost a caricature of what females were expected to act like in the Regency era.

S: In Chapter 24 we see more clearly Jane’s sagacity. She is hands down my hero right now and my favourite character so far. Elizabeth really does have a lot of emotion and her father is just rude. I know that it’s probably because his life did not turn out the way he wanted, but there is a difference between being witty and being a bully.

R: I think we see here that in some cases Elizabeth is a better judge of character than Jane. While Jane wants to think the best of everyone, Elizabeth can see that Bingley’s sisters, at least, are trying to keep him away from Jane. Elizabeth sees the hypocrisy of how they treated Jane to her face and how they acted when Jane wasn’t around. 

S: That is a good point. She does know them better than Jane does, as we saw in earlier chapters.

I’m so happy that Jane is able to go with her aunt to London! I like Mrs. Gardiner, and I am intrigued by her initial thoughts of Mr. Wickham. Are her suspicions founded? I know that the chapter ends with her pushing her suspicions aside due to his amiable character, but it seems rather fishy to me.

R: I think Mrs. Gardiner is probably one of my favorite characters in the book. She’s related to the family by marriage, so doesn’t suffer from the same emotionalism as most of the Bennet ladies do. She’s a good counselor and role model for them.

S: I’m excited to see if her character is more developed in the coming chapters! I also am interested to see if Jane does run into Mr. Bingley whilst in London.