On the surface, Pride and Prejudice seems like a pretty typical love story. Boy meets girl. Girl hates boy. Hijinks ensue. By the end of the novel, dislike has turned to love, all is well, and the perfect union is formed.
Of course, Jane Austen's classic novel is much more complex than just a simple romance. Perhaps that's why, more than 200 years later, it remains one of her most beloved works. Are you a fan of Pride and Prejudice? Read on for 5 surprising facts about Austen's famous novel.
1. The original title was First Impressions
If you've read Pride and Prejudice, you know that most of the characters make judgements about each other based on their first impressions. Wrong first impressions is pretty much the premise of this story, which inspired Jane Austen's original title.
However, before it went to publication, Austen changed the title to the one we know and love today. Pride and Prejudice does pack more of a punch, don't you agree?
2. Mr. Darcy would be a multi-millionaire today
The characters in Pride and Prejudice go on and on about Mr. Darcy's 10,000 pounds a year, but that sum can be a little puzzling to our modern minds. So, exactly how rich was Mr. Darcy?
Well, it's estimated 10,000 pounds a year would have been today's equivalent of 12 or 13 million pounds. That's not even taking into account all of Mr. Darcy's fortune! He was a millionaire many times over, let's just leave it at that.
3. Jane Austen finished it when she was only 21
Jane Austen was a mere 21 years of age when she completed Pride and Prejudice and submitted it for publication. Some of her inspiration for the novel undoubtably comes from her own personal experiences.
When she was 20, Austen fell in love with a young man whose family ultimately rejected her as too poor to make a good match. Considering the Bennetts face a similar sort of genteel poverty in her book, perhaps Austen wrote out the happy ending for Jane and Elizabeth Bennet that she couldn't have herself.
4. Pride and Prejudice is her most popular novel
Pride and Prejudice is often labelled as chic-lit, and Austen herself worried that the storyline was a bit too frivolous. Despite this, there's something about the novel that stands the test of time.
It continues to be Austen's most widely-read book, and her most popular. I think we can agree that there's actually a lot of depth to this classic, especially when talking about feminist issues and rigid societal structures which proved harmful to women.
5. It's also her most adapted work
There's seems to be an endless amount of adaptations based on Pride and Prejudice. Not only do we have TV shows like the BBC miniseries where Colin Firth immortalized Mr. Darcy on our screens, but there are also countless films and books based on Austen's popular novel.
A few of the mores surprising ones are perhaps Bridget Jones Diary (yes, believe it or not it's loosely based on Pride and Prejudice), Bride & Prejudice (Bollywood's less conventional take on the classic), and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (wherein Lizzie and the gang fight zombies).
Are you a fan of Pride and Prejudice? Tell us which is your favorite adaptation of Jane Austen's book in the comments below.
Our stunning Pride and Prejudice poster is created using the words from Jane Austen's novel!