A Truth Universally Acknowledged: Celebrating Pride and Prejudice
Hello lovely readers! I am sorry for being MIA for the month of January. I have been reflecting on the blog and honing in on what I want to write about in the future (more on that at the end of this post).
This year is a notable one for classic lovers- Jane Austen’s 250th birthday! As one of my favorite authors, I am excited to have even more excuses to write and praise her work. This year, 2025, many Austen institutions are holding celebrations all year long up until her birthday in December. As a self proclaimed Austen fangirl, I wanted to write about my favorite of her works, Pride and Prejudice. This novel holds a very special place in my heart; it was the book that made me fall in love with both Austen and classic literature. Additionally, the 1995 BBC adaptation (my favorite) is my ‘sick’ movie- the miniseries that has been there for me anytime I was sick, sad, or just generally going through a hard time. Pride and Prejudice is such a brilliant work of fiction so, in honor of its publication birthday, I want to share its origin story.
Fun fact: Pride and Prejudice was called First Impressions in its earliest drafts, written by 20 year old Jane Austen. It took her 10 months to write (October 1976- August 1797) and was initially rejected for publication. It would not be published until 1813 after the success of her first book, Sense and Sensibility, and major revisions. So why the name change? It was to avoid duplicating the title of another book that was published in 1800. The name Pride and Prejudice was a phrase taken from Cecilia by Fanny Burney, a novel admired by Jane Austen:
“The whole of this unfortunate business,” said Dr. Lyster, “has been the result of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE.”
On January 28, 1813, Pride and Prejudice was published in three volumes. It cost 18 shillings* and was penned under “the author of Sense and Sensibility” (her real name was connected to her works until after her death). She sold the copyright for £110 to the publisher- meaning she did not get any money from its financial success other than the initial 110. Which is a shame considering its success- and what success! It was reviewed favorably by the public and literary publications of the time, so much so that a second printing was needed less than a year later (October). Of course, there were some not so easily impressed, including famous writers Charlotte Bronte and Mark Twain. But overall, people were charmed by the characters and witty dialogue. It did not find its home in academia until later but is certainly considered one of the great classics in 2025- and not just as a novel.
There are 10 movie/mini series adaptations, the earliest being a black and white film from 1940, starring Lawerence Olivier. This number does not include films that were inspired by or partially based on Pride and Prejudice. Plays, fan fiction, spin off books of Pride and Prejudice can be found all over the world and students still study the works of Jane Austen today. I can’t help but wonder what Jane Austen would think of the impact her work has had on the culture 250 years later.
I hope she would find it tolerable. :)
*1 pound=20 shillings; the 1 pound in 1813 is equivalent to 88.66 pounds today
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I hope this little post, lovely readers, was enjoyable. To be honest, I wanted to go deeper and, hopefully in the future, I will be able to give Austen’s most famous work more attention.
January was a reflective time for me, one of setting realistic expectations for myself. I am a mom of a toddler and she is my number one priority. This means my posts might not always be as long or as frequent as I want. I plan to continue writing as much as possible and focus on giving you intriguing, quality pieces.
In terms of the types of posts, I have decided I want to lean more heavily into literary history. This includes author backgrounds, genre deep dives, literary questions (ie. Are audiobooks reading, what constitutes a classic, when did the first library open, etc...) and history as it relates to the written word. I still plan to do spotlights on bookish businesses and companies as much as I am able, but this focus shift means I won’t be writing many book reviews or book recommendation lists (with some exceptions). SO if you do want that type of content, please follow me on Instagram @ladybookishblog. There I will be posting mini reviews and recommendations pretty frequently. But for the more researched, thought out pieces, please keep reading the blog.
Until next time,
Happy Reading!
Lady Bookish
Main Sources
https://jasna.org/austen/works/pride-prejudice/
https://jasna.org/austen/screen/pride-prejudice/
https://www.newberry.org/blog/200-years-of-pride-and-prejudice
https://janeaustens.house/jane-austen/novels/pride-and-prejudice/
An Interesting Source for Historical Context:
https://www.chipublib.org/historical-context-of-pride-and-prejudice/