Pride and Prejudice: Lit for Little HandsIt is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." Pride and Prejudice opens with one of the most famous first lines in English literature. But the plot is driven by the corresponding truth of the second sentence: "However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighbourhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered as the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters." In the neighborhood of the Bennet sisters -- Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Catherine, and Lydia -- appear four eligible bachelors of varying means -- Charles Bingley, Fitzwilliam Darcy, William Collins, and George Wickham -- and Mrs. Bennet sets out to ensure that none of them are much longer in want of a wife. The resulting embarrassments, confusions, tempests, and romances have enchanted readers since 1813. |