It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. 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.

凡是有钱的单身汉，总想娶位太太，这已经成了一条举世公认的真理。这样的单身汉，每逢新搬到一个地方，四邻八舍虽然完全不了解他的性情如何，见解如何，可是，既然这样的一条真理早已在人们心目中根深蒂固，因此人们总是把他看作自己某一个女儿理所应得的一笔财产。

"My dear Mr. Bennet," said his lady to him one day, "have you heard that Netherfield Park is let at last?"

有一天班纳特太太对她的丈夫说：“我的好老爷，尼日斐花园终于租出去了，你听说过没有?”

Mr. Bennet replied that he had not.

班纳特先生回答道，他没有听说过。

"But it is," returned she; "for Mrs. Long has just been here, and she told me all about it."

“的确租出去了，”她说，“朗格太太刚刚上这儿来过，她把这件事的底细，一五一十地告诉了我。”

Mr. Bennet made no answer.

班纳特先生没有理睬她。

"Do not you want to know who has taken it?" cried his wife impatiently.

“你难道不想知道是谁租去的吗?”太太不耐烦地嚷起来了。

"You want to tell me, and I have no objection to hearing it."

“既是你要说给我听，我听听也无妨。”

This was invitation enough.

这句话足够鼓励她讲下去了。

"Why, my dear, you must know, Mrs. Long says that Netherfield is taken by a young man of large fortune from the north of England; that he came down on Monday in a chaise and four to see the place, and was so much delighted with it that he agreed with Mr. Morris immediately; that he is to take possession before Michaelmas, and some of his servants are to be in the house by the end of next week."

“哦!亲爱的，你得知道，郎格太太说，租尼日斐花园的是个阔少爷，他是英格兰北部的人;听说他星期一那天，乘着一辆驷马大轿车来看房子，看得非常中意，当场就和莫理斯先生谈妥了;他要在‘米迦勒节’以前搬进来，打算下个周未先叫几个佣人来住。”

"What is his name?"

“这个人叫什么名字?”

"Bingley."

“彬格莱。”

"Is he married or single?"

“有太太的呢，还是单身汉?”

"Oh! single, my dear, to be sure! A single man of large fortune; four or five thousand a year. What a fine thing for our girls!"

“噢!是个单身汉，亲爱的，确确实实是个单身汉!一个有钱的单身汉;每年有四五千磅的收入。真是女儿们的福气!”

"How so? how can it affect them?"

“这怎么说?关女儿女儿们什么事?”

"My dear Mr. Bennet," replied his wife, "how can you be so tiresome! You must know that I am thinking of his marrying one of them."

“我的`好老爷，”太太回答道，“你怎么这样叫人讨厌!告诉你吧，我正在盘算，他要是挑中我们一个女儿做老婆，可多好!”

"Is that his design in settling here?"

“他住到这儿来，就是为了这个打算吗?”

"Design! nonsense, how can you talk so! But it is very likely that he may fall in love with one of them, and therefore you must visit him as soon as he comes."

“打算!胡扯，这是哪儿的话!不过，他倒作兴看中我们的某一个女儿呢。他一搬来，你就得去拜访拜访他。”

"I see no occasion for that. You and the girls may go, or you may send them by themselves, which perhaps will be still better; for, as you are as handsome as any of them, Mr. Bingley might like you the best of the party."

“我不用去。你带着女儿们去就得啦，要不你干脆打发她们自己去，那或许倒更好些，因为你跟女儿们比起来，她们哪一个都不能胜过你的美貌,你去了，彬格莱先生倒可能挑中你呢?”

"My dear, you flatter me. I certainly have had my share of beauty, but I do not pretend to be any thing extraordinary now. When a woman has five grown up daughters, she ought to give over thinking of her own beauty."

“我的好老爷，你太捧我啦。从前也的确有人赞赏过我的美貌，现在我可有敢说有什么出众的地方了。一个女人家有了五个成年的女儿，就不该对自己的美貌再转什么念头。”

　　Many people simply regard Pride and Prejudice as a love story, but in my opinion, this book is an illustration of the society at that time. She perfectly reflected the relation between money and marriage at her time and gave the people in her works vivid characters. The characters have their own personalities. Mrs. Bennet is a woman who makes great efforts to marry off her daughters. Mr. Bingley is a friendly young man, but his friend, Mr. Darcy, is a very proud man who seems to always feel superior. Even the five daughters in Bennet family are very different. Jane is simple, innocent and never speaks evil of others. Elizabeth is a clever girl who always has her own opinion. Mary likes reading classic books. (Actually she is a pedant.) Kitty doesn’t have her own opinion but likes to follow her sister, Lydia. Lydia is a girl who follows exotic things, handsome man, and is somehow a little profligate. When I read the book, I can always find the same personalities in the society now. That is why I think this book is indeed the representative of the society in Britain in the 18th century.

The family of gentleman in the countryside is Jane Austen’s favourite topic. But this little topic can reflect big problems. It concludes the stratum situation and economic relationships in Britain in her century. You can find these from the very beginning of this book.

The first sentence in this book is impressive. It reads: “It is a truth well known to all the world that an unmarried man in possession of a large fortune must be in need of a wife”. The undertone is very clear: the foundation of the marriage at that time is not emotion but possession.

People always think that Austen was an expert at telling love stories. In fact, the marriage in her book is not the result of love, but the result of economic needs. After reading this book, I know the truth is that a poor woman must be in need of a husband, a wealthy man.

I couldn’t forget how eager Mrs. Bennet wants to marry off her daughters. If you want to know why she is so crazy about these things, I must mention the situation in Britain at that time. Only the eldest son had the privilege of inheriting his father’s possessions. Younger sons and daughters who are used to luxurious lives have no choice but marry a man or woman in possession of a large fortune to continue their comfortable lives. Thus, we can see that getting married is a way to become wealthier, particularly for women without many possessions. Jane Austen told us that money and possession determined everything, including marriage and love in her century.

In “Pride and Prejudice”, the sister of Mr. Bingley strongly opposed his plan of marrying Jane because the Bennets don’t have many possessions and their social positions are much lower than them. From this, we can see there are a lot of obstacles for a not very rich woman to marry a wealthy husband. The society, the relatives would not allow them to get married.

In modern society, although the marriages of economic needs have decreased rapidly, the concept of “money determines everything” is still rooted in some people’s mind. A lot of parents try hard to interfere their children’s marriages. Education background, possessions, jobs remains the main reason that may influence one’s marriage. Marry for money is still a big problem in our society. We can’t help thinking: can money determine everything?

Austen left this problem for us to think. The genius of Jane Austen lies in this perfect simplicity, the simplicity that reflects big problems. Although Austen was only 21 when she wrote “Pride and Prejudice”, her sharp observation of social lives makes the style of this book surprisingly mature and lively. The plots in her works are always very natural. The development of the plot is as inevitable as a problem in mathematics. I think the depth of Pride and Prejudice is the reason that makes this book prominent and classic. Today, her book still can be the guide telling us the economic relationships both at her time and in modern time.