Hopeless romantics try to find rainbows and sunshines all in the name of love. If this can’t happen in reality for now, they can satisfy their craving for something dreamy in romance novels. Jane Austen is one of the renowned authors who’s known for her more honest portrayal of love, far from a fairy tale but is no doubt romantic. Dry humor is woven into a skillfully crafted love story in Jane Austen’s timeless works of art, such as “Pride and Prejudice” and “Persuasion.”
Pride and Prejudice
The story starts when the boy meets girl. Boy and girl decide they don’t like each other, thanks to the lasting wonder of first impressions. They meet again and decided that they like each other, thanks to the graciousness of second chances. In between, there are secondary love stories, sufficient amount of banter, and society intervention. In “Pride and Prejudice,” we are given contrasting romantic relationships so that we can judge for ourselves what we would do for love. The hero and heroine finally get together not because he gave her the right flowers or hid a ring in her cheesecake, but through hard work of give-and-take and the humbling experience of self-examination. We learn from the other couples in the story what can keep people together, besides love, sweet nothings, and sexual fantasies.
Persuasion
In “Persuasion,” we consider that maybe luck and chance do play a part in romance. This is echoed today in many films featuring the romantic moments wherein two characters reach for the same head of lettuce till their eyes meet. Similarly, it is luck and chance that bring Anne and Captain Wentworth together after being separated for years. This time, they keep their feelings in check, still learning from past lessons in love. And since uncertainty is to love as jalapeno is to salsa, the whole petal-picking of love-me-nots leaves us in anticipation on whether or not they will finally get together.
What makes people stay together? What makes them fall apart? Why does everybody love chicken? These are the questions that we can ponder upon one idle day. The trouble with love is that it comes when you’re not looking for it. Those who do look for it mistake it for a lukewarm companionship and end up with a relationship like Mr. and Mrs. Bingley. That’s good enough if you don’t have enough friends.
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