COUPLES
There are two obvious “models” of existing couples throughout the novel: Mr. and Mrs Bennet ; Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner.
And there are four courtships which end up in marriages in the course of the novel, three of which involve the Bennet daughters: Mr. Collins and Charlotte Lucas ; Mr. Wickham and Lydia ; Mr. Bingley and Jane ; Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth.

MR. AND MRS. BENNET

The novel starts with a startling image of the Bennets as a couple, and their marriage is depicted throughout the novel. They bicker from the very beginning (chapter1): Mr. Bennet ironizes on his wife’s nerves while she accuses him of abusing her and their children (p. 6). From the very beginning, we are made aware of how dysfunctional this couple is, and Jane Austen gives us here a very bad image of a marriage in which, in the course of its 23 years of existence (p. 7) ‘respect, esteem and confidence, had vanished for ever’ (p. 183). It is only at the end however, that we are made to understand that this marriage was based solely on the good looks of Mrs. Bennet (p. 183). Mr. Bennet did not choose an intelligent and wise woman, he can only regret it, and his “views of domestic happiness” have vanished (p. 183). Therefore, the Bennets as a couple, cannot provide their daughters with a confident approach to marriage: theirs has been a failure, so much so as Mr. Bennet has retreated in his study, with his books and his love of the country, totally uninvolved in family matters. So it is only natural that Mr. Bennet should advise Elizabeth on what NOT to do: “My child, let me not have the grief of seeing you unable to respect your partner in life” (p. 291). In any case, the Bennets are a perfect example of a mismatched couple.

MR. AND MRS. GARDINER

On the other hand, the Gardiners give the image of a perfect match. They illustrate the benefits and blessings of marriage as an institution. Theirs is a marriage based on respect, love and understanding. They seem