Mr. Bennet: Not Who You Think He Is

From the very beginning of the novel Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Bennet is an important figure in the Bennet household. The first chapter primarily focuses on interactions between Mr. Bennet and his wife, Mrs. Bennet. They are quite different in their approach to everything that arises in the opening few chapters of the books, yet seeming to work extremely well together as the elder figures in the novel. While it is obvious that Mrs. Bennet is the louder, more talkative, excited and enthusiastic one of the two, Mr. Bennet still has a major role throughout the novel. When Mrs. Bennet immediately begins pressing Mr. Bennet with news about Mr. Bingley's arrival, he reacts calmly, with either no answer, or very stoic ones, allowing Mrs. Bennet to simply get her announcement out of the way (2). Later, when Mrs. Bennet suggests that Mr. Bingley might possibly be marrying one of their daughters and that they must meet him immediately, Mr. Bennet responds with "I see no occasion for that...You are over-scrupulous, surely" (6). He is also very quick to defend his daughters and sees only the best in them. When Mrs. Bennet shares that she believes that Lizzy is not the best of the daughters, Mr. Bennet disagrees with her and shares his opinion that "they are all silly and ignorant like other girls; but Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters" (8). Mr. Bennet might sit back and be quieter, but he notices everything around him and studies the people he is surrounded by, being able to tell a lot about them just by watching. I think that this is an important fact about him and will come back later on in the novel as in important trait of his. Also, what seems like a meaningless event among the Bennet family reveals another trait of Mr. Bennet's. Kitty begins to cough as Mrs. Bennet speaks and when Mrs. Bennet gets irritated and annoyed, Mr. Bennet jumps to defend her, saying that she cannot help when she coughs and simply has bad timing that is out of her control (10). Then after the conversation carries on for a while about Mr. Bingley and a meeting, Mr. Bennet mysteriously adds in "Now, Kitty, you may cough as much as you choose" as he gets up to leave the room (13). These two acts surrounding Kitty's harmless coughing reveal a lot about Mr. Bennet's character and compassion. He may come off as serious and dull (in contrast with his wife), Austen sneaks in moments of dialogue that show his compassion and love for his daughters. As mentioned previously, Mr. Bennet does seem to go against a lot of the things that Mrs. Bennet says. Austen states that "Mr. Bennet was so odd a mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humor, reserve, and caprice, that the experience of three-and-twenty years had been insufficient to make his wife understand his character" (9). This statement only strengthens the idea that Mr. Bennet is a very special and unique character, with opposite traits within himself. He is also very different from his loud wife, as mentioned earlier, and the little responses he gives to her only show how different they are.