Chapter 14 — Teaching Companion

What it asks It asks the student to hear the narrator’s praise of Mr. Bennet’s choice. “During dinner, Mr. Bennet scarcely spoke at all; but when the servants were withdrawn, he thought it time to have some conversation with his guest, and therefore started a subject in which he expected him to shine, by observing that he seemed very fortunate in his patroness.” A patroness is a woman of rank who supports and favours someone below her. Then: “Mr. Bennet could not have chosen better. Mr. Collins was eloquent in her praise.” The student decides whom the choice serves. The card must not settle whether Mr. Bennet is kind or cruel: the chapter gives his choice and his enjoyment, and leaves the judgment to the reader.

One reading

For Mr. Collins. A good host finds the subject his guest talks best on, and Mr. Bennet does. The subject lifts his cousin to “more than usual solemnity”, and he is “eloquent” and happy for the rest of dinner. Whatever Mr. Bennet hoped for, the guest has a fine evening.

• Mr. Collins was eloquent in her praise.
• The subject elevated him to more than usual solemnity of manner;

Another reading

For Mr. Bennet. He expects his cousin to “shine”, and a few paragraphs on the narrator says what he hoped for: that his cousin would be absurd. The choice sets up his own entertainment, and “could not have chosen better” praises the aim of a joke the guest does not know he is in.

• Mr. Bennet’s expectations were fully answered.
• His cousin was as absurd as he had hoped;

Listen for

• Notices that Mr. Bennet “scarcely spoke at all” at dinner and starts the talk only when the servants have gone: the choice is deliberate.
• Hears “shine” two ways: what a good host offers a guest, and what a man waiting for a show expects.
• Links “could not have chosen better” to “Mr. Bennet’s expectations were fully answered”, the narrator’s two verdicts on one plan.
• Allows that the choice can be good for both men at once: the guest is happy, and the host is entertained.

If stuck

• What does Mr. Bennet do during dinner, and what does he do once the servants have gone?
• How does Mr. Collins seem to feel while he talks about Lady Catherine?
• Can a host give a guest a happy evening and still be laughing at him?

A strong answer A strong response names who gains from the choice and reasons from the narrator’s words. One reader finds it good for Mr. Collins: the subject lifts him to “more than usual solemnity” and makes him “eloquent”, the happiest he is all evening. Another finds it good for Mr. Bennet: the narrator later says his “expectations were fully answered” and that his cousin was “as absurd as he had hoped”, so the praise of his choice is praise of a joke well set up. The best answers see that one sentence can serve both, and leave the judgment of Mr. Bennet to the student.

What it asks It asks the student to weigh one small item in a long list of favours. Mr. Collins has never seen “such affability and condescension” in a person of rank. Affability is easy, gracious friendliness; condescension, in Austen’s sense, is a person of high rank treating someone lower with gracious kindness. Many people think her proud, he admits, but he himself has seen nothing but affability in her. His proofs: she approved both his sermons, asked him twice to dine at Rosings, and sent for him “to make up her pool of quadrille”, a card game for four. Then: “She had always spoken to him as she would to any other gentleman; she made not the smallest objection to his joining in the society of the neighbourhood, nor to his leaving his parish occasionally for a week or two to visit his relations.” He says this to the relations he has come to visit. The student decides why a man would count not objecting as a kindness. The card must not say what Lady Catherine is really like: every detail is Mr. Collins’s report, and the many who call her proud never speak in the chapter.

One reading

Because, where he stands, it is one. She is his patroness, and his house is separated from her park only by a lane. A man that close to a great lady’s power knows she could keep him at home if she chose. Leave from someone who could refuse it is a real favour, and he is grateful for it.

• by observing that he seemed very fortunate in his patroness.
• The garden in which stands my humble abode is separated only by a lane from Rosings Park, her Ladyship’s residence.

Another reading

Because he measures kindness by rank. Only a man who thinks she has a right to object would thank her for not objecting. The same sentence thanks her for speaking to him “as she would to any other gentleman”, which he is. She gets credit for treating him as what he is. The higher the giver, the smaller a gift can be and still count.

• She had always spoken to him as she would to any other gentleman;
• she made not the smallest objection to his joining in the society of the neighbourhood,

Listen for

• Notices where he says it: at the table of the relations he has come to visit.
• Pairs it with “as she would to any other gentleman”: two favours that amount to treating him as a gentleman.
• Hears the company the item keeps: approved sermons, dinners, a seat at quadrille, advice to marry, and at the end “some shelves in the closets upstairs.”
• Judges the witness, not the woman: the chapter never shows Lady Catherine herself.

If stuck

• Who is Lady Catherine to Mr. Collins?
• What else is on his list of her kindnesses?
• Would you thank someone for letting you visit your own family? When might you?

A strong answer A strong response gives a reason a man would say this and grounds it in the list. One reader hears real gratitude: she is his patroness, his house lies a lane away from her park, and leave from someone who could refuse it is a favour. Another hears a scale of worth: he also thanks her for speaking to him “as she would to any other gentleman”, so he credits her for not treating him worse than he deserves. The best answers notice that he says it at the Bennets’ own table, and they judge Mr. Collins as a witness without saying what Lady Catherine is really like.

What it asks It asks the student to notice whose voice answers a plain question. Mrs. Bennet asks: “And what sort of young lady is she? Is she handsome?” Mr. Collins answers: “She is a most charming young lady, indeed. Lady Catherine herself says that, in point of true beauty, Miss de Bourgh is far superior to the handsomest of her sex; because there is that in her features which marks the young woman of distinguished birth.” He adds that she is “of a sickly constitution”, which has held back her accomplishments, “as I am informed by the lady who superintended her education”, and that she “often condescends to drive by my humble abode in her little phaeton and ponies.” A phaeton is a light open carriage. The student decides why, on her beauty, he gives her mother’s verdict and not his own. The card must not say that Miss de Bourgh is plain or beautiful: the chapter gives only her mother’s opinion, as Mr. Collins repeats it.

One reading

Because her word settles it. For Mr. Collins, Lady Catherine’s judgment outranks his own, on beauty as on shelves. The word “herself” is offered as proof. Her reason, features that mark “distinguished birth”, is a measure of rank, and he takes it whole. He needs no opinion of his own when hers is to hand.

• Lady Catherine herself says that, in point of true beauty,
• because there is that in her features which marks the young woman of distinguished birth.

Another reading

Because it keeps him safe. His own word is the mild “charming”. Every larger claim belongs to someone else: the beauty to her mother, the reason for her missing accomplishments to the lady who taught her. Passing on the household’s own opinions lets him praise it in full while answering for nothing himself.

• She is a most charming young lady, indeed.
• as I am informed by the lady who superintended her education,

Listen for

• Hears “herself”: the mother’s word is offered as the strongest proof he has.
• Notices the “because”: beauty is proved by birth.
• Finds the second borrowed voice, “the lady who superintended her education”.
• Does not say whether Miss de Bourgh is plain or beautiful; the chapter gives only her mother’s opinion, as he repeats it.

If stuck

• Who, by Mr. Collins’s account, says Miss de Bourgh is beautiful?
• What reason does that person give?
• What is Mr. Collins’s own word for her?

A strong answer A strong response gives a reason for the borrowed verdict and grounds it in his words. One reader hears deference: for Mr. Collins “Lady Catherine herself” settles the matter, and her reason, the mark of “distinguished birth”, is a measure he shares. Another hears caution: his own word is only “charming”, and the bigger claims belong to the mother and to “the lady who superintended her education”, so he praises the household without vouching for anything. The best answers see that either way the answer shows how Mr. Collins measures a person, and they say nothing about how Miss de Bourgh really looks.

What it asks It asks the student to read one small gesture. The narrator says that Mr. Bennet “listened to him with the keenest enjoyment, maintaining at the same time the most resolute composure of countenance, and, except in an occasional glance at Elizabeth, requiring no partner in his pleasure.” Composure of countenance is a calm, straight face. The sentence says he needs no one to share his pleasure, then makes one exception. The student decides what the glance is for. The card must not say that Elizabeth shares her father’s amusement: the chapter gives only his glance, and nothing of her answer.

One reading

To share it. A joke wants a witness, and the “except” admits he is not quite alone in his pleasure. He looks to the one person at the table he hopes will see what he sees. The glance is the only crack in his straight face.

• except in an occasional glance at Elizabeth,
• he listened to him with the keenest enjoyment,

Another reading

To test her. The sentence says he needs no partner, so the glance does not ask her to join in. It checks whether she sees what he sees. It is a father watching a daughter as much as a guest, and the chapter does not give her answer.

• requiring no partner in his pleasure.
• His cousin was as absurd as he had hoped;

Listen for

• Notices the build of the sentence: “no partner”, but with an exception set in the middle of it.
• Notices that the glance goes to Elizabeth alone, and asks why her.
• Weighs the glance against “the most resolute composure of countenance”: is it a crack in the face, or part of keeping it?
• Does not say what Elizabeth thinks or feels; the chapter does not tell us.

If stuck

• What does Mr. Bennet’s face look like while his cousin talks?
• Who is the only person he looks at?
• Why might a person who is enjoying a private joke look at someone else?

A strong answer A strong response gives the glance a purpose and grounds it in the sentence. One reader hears a wish to share: the “except” admits that his pleasure is not quite solitary, and the glance looks for a witness. Another hears a test: since he requires “no partner”, the glance asks whether Elizabeth sees the absurdity, not whether she will join in. The best answers notice that the chapter gives the glance and not her reply, and keep Elizabeth’s feelings out of it.

What it asks It asks the student to weigh his words against where he sits. After Lydia breaks into his reading, Mr. Collins, “much offended, laid aside his book”, and says: “I have often observed how little young ladies are interested by books of a serious stamp, though written solely for their benefit. It amazes me, I confess; for certainly there can be nothing so advantageous to them as instruction. But I will no longer importune my young cousin.” To importune is to press someone with requests they do not want. He offers himself to Mr. Bennet at backgammon. Mrs. Bennet and her daughters apologize and promise it will not happen again if he will go on reading; he assures them “that he bore his young cousin no ill-will, and should never resent her behaviour as any affront”, and “seated himself at another table with Mr. Bennet, and prepared for backgammon.” The student decides why he will not read on, and what that says about his “no ill-will”.

One reading

Because he is keeping his word. He had already offered to play Mr. Bennet before the family apologized, so going to the other table keeps an arrangement; it is not a sulk. He said he would “no longer importune” his cousin, and he keeps his word. A man can bear no ill-will and still not want to read to someone who does not want to listen.

• Then, turning to Mr. Bennet, he offered himself as his antagonist at backgammon.
• But I will no longer importune my young cousin.

Another reading

Because he is hurt. The narrator calls him “much offended”, and his speech is a rebuke to all “young ladies”, not to Lydia alone. The family begs him to go on and promises quiet, and he still will not. His “no ill-will” is a polite form, offered the way he offers compliments, and his chair says what the form hides.

• Collins, much offended, laid aside his book,
• seated himself at another table with Mr. Bennet, and prepared for backgammon.

Listen for

• Gets the order right: the backgammon offer comes before the apology and the promise.
• Notices the narrator’s “much offended”, set against his “no ill-will”.
• Hears the speech to “young ladies” as aimed at more than Lydia, and asks whether that is resentment.
• Notices that he speaks of Lydia as “my young cousin” and does not answer her: he speaks about her, to the room.

If stuck

• What does Mr. Collins do right after Lydia interrupts?
• What do Mrs. Bennet and her daughters promise him?
• Can a person hold no grudge and still walk away?

A strong answer A strong response gives a reason for the move and argues from the order of events. One reader takes him at his word: he offered to play backgammon before anyone apologized, and he keeps his promise to “no longer importune” his cousin. Another reads the move as hurt: the narrator calls him “much offended”, his speech rebukes all “young ladies”, and he refuses to go on even when the family promises quiet, so “no ill-will” is a polite form. The best answers notice that the narrator sets his offence and his assurance side by side and does not choose between them.

What it asks It asks the student to compare two kinds of praise at one table. After Mr. Collins reports his compliment that Miss de Bourgh “seemed born to be a duchess”, Mr. Bennet answers: “You judge very properly,” and “it is happy for you that you possess the talent of flattering with delicacy.” Delicacy here means fine, careful tact. He then asks how the compliments are made, and listens “with the keenest enjoyment, maintaining at the same time the most resolute composure of countenance”. The student builds a thesis on whether Mr. Bennet flatters Mr. Collins the way Mr. Collins flatters Lady Catherine, meets the strongest objection, and revises. The card must not say what Lady Catherine thinks of the compliments (“seemed pleased” is Mr. Collins’s report), and must not say that Elizabeth shares her father’s amusement.

One reading

Yes. Both men praise someone to his or her face for their own ends, and both keep the real purpose out of sight. Mr. Collins pays “little delicate compliments” because they please her Ladyship. Mr. Bennet pays a compliment that draws out just the absurdity he hoped for, and his straight face is as much a performance as anything his cousin says.

• You judge very properly,
• maintaining at the same time the most resolute composure of countenance,

Another reading

No. Mr. Collins’s praise is meant to please the person who hears it; Mr. Bennet’s is meant to expose him. One praises upward, to a patroness; the other leads on a guest, and even names the thing, “flattering”, to his face. They share a straight face, not a purpose.

• it is happy for you that you possess the talent of flattering with delicacy.
• These are the kind of little things which please her Ladyship,

Listen for

• Notices that Mr. Bennet’s praise works: it draws out the absurdity he hoped for.
• Weighs who gains from each: Mr. Collins hopes to please a patroness, and Mr. Bennet gains only his own enjoyment.
• Hears the word “flattering” said to Mr. Collins’s face, and notices that he answers as if it were praise.
• Revises toward a finer line than yes or no: alike in method, different in aim, or the reverse.

If stuck

• What does Mr. Bennet say right after the duchess compliment?
• Does Mr. Bennet mean “You judge very properly”?
• What does each man want from the person he praises?

A strong answer A strong thesis says what is alike and what differs. A student might argue that Mr. Bennet does just what Mr. Collins does: he praises to someone’s face (“You judge very properly”) to get something for himself, and his “resolute composure” hides his purpose as carefully as any compliment. The strongest objection is that the aims are opposite: Mr. Collins wants to please Lady Catherine, while Mr. Bennet wants his cousin to show himself, and he even names the talent as “flattering”. A good revision might hold that the two men share a method and differ in aim, and then ask which aim is the kinder one; the chapter leaves that to the reader.

What it asks It asks the student to judge where the comedy falls in the drawing-room. Offered a book from a circulating library, Mr. Collins “started back, and, begging pardon, protested that he never read novels.” He chooses “Fordyce’s Sermons”, a book of sermons, and “before he had, with very monotonous solemnity, read three pages”, Lydia, who “gaped as he opened the volume”, breaks in with news that her uncle Philips may turn away a man called Richard, that Colonel Forster may hire him, and that she will ask when Mr. Denny comes back from town. Her two eldest sisters tell her to hold her tongue. Mr. Collins speaks of how little “young ladies are interested by books of a serious stamp, though written solely for their benefit.” Mr. Bennet agrees he is wise to leave the girls “to their own trifling amusements.” The student builds a thesis on which of the two the scene laughs at harder, meets the strongest objection, and revises. The card must not tell the student what is in Fordyce’s book beyond what the chapter says.

One reading

Mr. Collins. The narrator gives his reading “very monotonous solemnity”, lets three pages be enough, and hands him a speech that blames the listeners for the book. He started back from a novel as if it might hurt him. Lydia is bored and says so badly, but he is the one the sentences are built to mock.

• before he had, with very monotonous solemnity, read three pages,
• I have often observed how little young ladies are interested by books of a serious stamp, though written solely for their benefit.

Another reading

Lydia. She gapes, breaks into a sermon a guest is reading aloud, and her news is gossip about Richard, Colonel Forster and Mr. Denny. Her own eldest sisters bid her hold her tongue. Whatever the book, she has been rude to a man her family is trying to treat civilly, and for once Mr. Collins has the room’s manners on his side.

• Lydia was bid by her two eldest sisters to hold her tongue;
• Do you know, mamma, that my uncle Philips talks of turning away Richard?

Listen for

• Looks at the narrator’s words for each of them: “started back”, “monotonous solemnity”, “gaped”, “interrupted”.
• Notices that Jane and Elizabeth hush Lydia, and that the family apologizes “most civilly”.
• Weighs Mr. Bennet’s “trifling amusements”: is he laughing at the girls, at his cousin, or at both?
• Allows the revision that the scene laughs at both, and says what each one’s fault is.

If stuck

• What does Mr. Collins do when he is handed a novel?
• What is Lydia’s news, and when does she tell it?
• Can a scene make fun of two people who are on opposite sides?

A strong answer A strong thesis picks a target and argues from the narrator’s words. A student might argue that the scene laughs harder at Mr. Collins: he starts back from a novel, reads with “very monotonous solemnity”, and blames all young ladies for not loving a book “written solely for their benefit”. The strongest objection is that Lydia is plainly rude: she gapes, breaks in with gossip about Richard, Colonel Forster and Mr. Denny, and her own sisters hush her. A good revision might hold that the scene favours neither, since a solemn man and a thoughtless girl each show the other up, and Mr. Bennet’s “trifling amusements” may be aimed both ways.

What it asks It asks the student to judge planned praise. Mr. Bennet asks: “May I ask whether these pleasing attentions proceed from the impulse of the moment, or are the result of previous study?” Mr. Collins answers: “They arise chiefly from what is passing at the time; and though I sometimes amuse myself with suggesting and arranging such little elegant compliments as may be adapted to ordinary occasions, I always wish to give them as unstudied an air as possible.” Unstudied means natural, not rehearsed. He has just said that such compliments are “the kind of little things which please her Ladyship”, and “a sort of attention which I conceive myself peculiarly bound to pay.” Mr. Bennet hears the answer “with the keenest enjoyment”. The student builds a thesis on whether praise that is planned can still be sincere, meets the strongest objection, and revises. The card must not settle the question as fact, say what Lady Catherine is really like or whether she believes the compliments, or say that Mr. Collins means to marry one of the Bennet daughters.

One reading

Yes, it can. Planning is how a careful speaker gets words right; what makes praise sincere is whether the speaker believes it. Mr. Collins plainly believes in rank: for him birth is beauty, and a great lady’s notice is kindness. He calls the compliments a duty he is “bound to pay”, and when asked, he admits the planning at once. He hides nothing he thinks is wrong.

• it is a sort of attention which I conceive myself peculiarly bound to pay.
• and though I sometimes amuse myself with suggesting and arranging such little elegant compliments as may be adapted to ordinary occasions,

Another reading

Not his. The trouble is not that he plans but that he hides the plan. He wants his compliments to seem to rise from the moment, so the hearer will take them for feeling. His first answer even says they “arise chiefly from what is passing at the time”. And he chooses them for their effect: they are the things “which please her Ladyship”. Praise aimed at the hearer’s pleasure is aimed away from the truth.

• I always wish to give them as unstudied an air as possible.
• These are the kind of little things which please her Ladyship,

Listen for

• Separates planning from pretending: words prepared ahead of time, and words made to look unprepared.
• Hears the turn inside one answer: “chiefly from what is passing at the time”, then the arranging he admits.
• Tests what Mr. Bennet’s question takes for granted: that “impulse of the moment” and “previous study” are opposites.
• Does not say what Lady Catherine is like or whether she believes him; “seemed pleased” is his report.

If stuck

• What does Mr. Collins first say his compliments come from?
• What does he admit in the same sentence?
• Is a speech written out beforehand less true than one made up on the spot?

A strong answer A strong thesis judges the compliments from Mr. Collins’s own sentences. A student might argue that planned praise can be sincere: he truly ranks birth above all, calls the compliments a duty he is “bound to pay”, and admits the planning as soon as he is asked. The strongest objection is that he wants them to carry “as unstudied an air as possible”, so the plan is hidden from the person praised, and they are chosen because they “please her Ladyship”. A good revision might hold that planning alone does not make praise false, but hiding the plan and choosing words for their effect come close; the chapter gives his words and Mr. Bennet’s enjoyment, and no verdict.