Chapter 17 — Teaching Companion

What it asks It asks the student to test Elizabeth’s joke against what Jane actually said. Jane: “They have both,” said she, “been deceived, I dare say, in some way or other, of which we can form no idea. Interested people have perhaps misrepresented each to the other.” Interested here means having something to gain, not curious. Elizabeth replies: “Very true, indeed; and now, my dear Jane, what have you got to say in behalf of the interested people who have probably been concerned in the business? Do clear _them_, too, or we shall be obliged to think ill of somebody.” The student decides whether the joke finds a real weakness in the theory or answers a claim Jane did not make. The card must not say which man’s account is true, and must not treat Jane’s theory as simply foolish: it is a guess, offered as one.

One reading

Yes. Jane’s aim is to explain the quarrel “without actual blame on either side”, and the narrator says she means to “think well of them both”. Her theory gets there by handing the blame to people nobody can name. The blame has not gone away; it has moved somewhere it cannot be checked. Elizabeth’s joke shows that clearing everyone in sight is not the same as clearing everyone.

• without actual blame on either side.
• and nothing therefore remained to be done but to think well of them both,

Another reading

No, or not quite. Jane never says that nobody is to blame. She says both men have been deceived, and that “Interested people” may have set them against each other. That is thinking ill of somebody. What she will not do is name the somebody, because she has no idea who it is. The joke answers a softer claim than the one she made.

• Interested people have perhaps misrepresented each to the other.
• of which we can form no idea.

Listen for

• Reads Jane’s speech closely: “deceived”, “Interested people”, “perhaps”.
• Hears “interested” in its old sense: having something to gain.
• Weighs whether the theory clears everyone, or only everyone Jane knows.
• Notices that Jane takes the joke without giving ground: “you will not laugh me out of my opinion.”

If stuck

• Who does Jane think caused the trouble?
• What does Elizabeth ask her to do about those people?
• Can you blame someone when you cannot say who it is?

A strong answer A strong response tests the joke against Jane’s words. One reader finds the hit fair: Jane wants a story with no blame on either side, and she gets one only by passing the blame to people no one can name or question. Another finds the hit unfair: Jane does blame someone, the “Interested people”, and refuses only to put a name to them without knowing. The best answers notice that both readings agree on what Jane lacks, a fact that would let her name anyone, and differ on whether waiting for one is a fault.

What it asks It asks the student to look hard at the one certainty Jane allows herself. Just after the sisters’ sharpest exchange, the narrator says: “But Jane could think with certainty on only one point,--that Mr. Bingley, if he _had been_ imposed on, would have much to suffer when the affair became public.” Imposed on means deceived. The student decides why Jane lets herself be sure of this, and of nothing else. The card must not say that Jane is in love with Mr. Bingley: the chapter shows her looking forward to his attentions at the ball, and goes no further.

One reading

Because it needs no verdict. It is true whichever man is right: if Mr. Bingley has been deceived, it will hurt him when it comes out. The stress on “_had been_” keeps the “if” wide open. Jane can be sure of it without blaming anyone, so it is her way of judging at its most careful: she reasons forward from what might be, and stops where the facts stop.

• But Jane could think with certainty on only one point,--that Mr. Bingley, if he had been imposed on, would have much to suffer when the affair became public.

Another reading

Because it is where her feelings are. Her one certainty is about one man’s pain, and he is the man whose “attentions” she pictures at the ball. The first paragraph shows the same pattern: the thought of Mr. Wickham’s suffering “was enough to interest all her tender feelings”. On this reading, Jane’s heart decides where she lets herself be certain.

• was enough to interest all her tender feelings;
• Jane pictured to herself a happy evening in the society of her two friends, and the attentions of their brother;

Listen for

• Notices where the sentence falls: right after the sisters’ sharpest words.
• Hears the stress on “_had been_” and what it keeps open.
• Notices that both of Jane’s strongest feelings in the chapter are about someone’s suffering.
• Keeps to the chapter: Jane looks forward to his attentions, and the chapter says no more.

If stuck

• What is the one thing Jane feels sure of?
• Does she need to know who is right to be sure of it?
• Who is it about?

A strong answer A strong response says why this point, and not another, is the one Jane is sure of. One reader finds it the cleanest piece of reasoning in the chapter: it holds whichever man is right, and the stress on “_had been_” keeps the question open. Another finds that her feelings choose where she is certain: her one certainty is about the man she hopes to see at the ball, just as the first paragraph shows her feelings moved by Mr. Wickham’s story. The best answers notice that the two readings can both be true, a careful mind with a soft heart, and ask whether Jane’s caution protects the people she judges, or herself.

What it asks It asks the student to weigh two small words in the narrator’s report of the visit. “The two ladies were delighted to see their dear friend again, called it an age since they had met, and repeatedly asked what she had been doing with herself since their separation. To the rest of the family they paid little attention; avoiding Mrs. Bennet as much as possible, saying not much to Elizabeth, and nothing at all to the others. They were soon gone again, rising from their seats with an activity which took their brother by surprise, and hurrying off as if eager to escape from Mrs. Bennet’s civilities.” Civilities are polite attentions. The student decides what the “as if” does. The card must not say why the sisters leave: the chapter shows their manner, not their reasons.

One reading

It is the narrator’s irony. Every detail before it points one way: the sisters greet Jane warmly, avoid Mrs. Bennet “as much as possible”, and say “nothing at all to the others”. The “as if” keeps the sentence polite and hands the last step to the reader. On this reading the hedge is a way of saying something without quite saying it, and the comedy lies in how little it hides.

• avoiding Mrs. Bennet as much as possible,
• saying not much to Elizabeth, and nothing at all to the others.

Another reading

It marks a real limit. The narrator went inside Jane’s mind in the first paragraph, but does not go inside the sisters’. Even their brother is taken “by surprise” at how fast they rise. The narrator reports what anyone in the room could see, the haste, and stops short of the reason. The reader is left with a manner and has to decide how far to read it, the same problem the two sisters faced in the shrubbery.

• rising from their seats with an activity which took their brother by surprise,
• and hurrying off as if eager to escape from Mrs. Bennet’s civilities.

Listen for

• Lists what the sisters do: warm to Jane, little to Elizabeth, nothing to the others.
• Notices that the narrator tells us Jane’s thoughts and not the sisters’.
• Notices that their brother is surprised by their haste.
• Keeps to the chapter: their manner is shown, their reasons are not.

If stuck

• How do the sisters treat each person in the family?
• Does the narrator ever tell us what they are thinking?
• What would the sentence say without “as if”?

A strong answer A strong response says what the “as if” does to the sentence. One reader hears irony: every detail before it points the same way, and the hedge lets the narrator stay polite while the reader draws the conclusion. Another hears a real limit: the narrator reports the haste that could be seen, notes that even their brother is surprised, and does not claim to know their minds. The best answers notice that the reader is placed where Elizabeth and Jane were a moment before, holding a manner and deciding how far to read it.

What it asks It asks the student to test whether Elizabeth’s view of Mr. Darcy could still be changed. Looking forward to the ball, “Elizabeth thought with pleasure of dancing a great deal with Mr. Wickham, and of seeing a confirmation of everything in Mr. Darcy’s look and behaviour.” In the shrubbery she had said: “If it be not so, let Mr. Darcy contradict it.” The student decides whether anything Mr. Darcy might do at the ball could count against Mr. Wickham’s story in her eyes. The card must not say what happens at the ball, or whether Mr. Darcy will say anything at all: the chapter ends before Tuesday.

One reading

Very little. She is not going to the ball to test the story but to see it confirmed, and “everything” leaves nothing out. She means to find it in his “look and behaviour”, and a look can be read to fit almost anything: a cold look proves pride, a quiet one proves guilt. She will also be watching from Mr. Wickham’s side, dancing “a great deal” with him.

• and of seeing a confirmation of everything in Mr. Darcy’s look and behaviour.
• Elizabeth thought with pleasure of dancing a great deal with Mr. Wickham,

Another reading

He could speak. Elizabeth named her own test in the shrubbery: if the story is false, “let Mr. Darcy contradict it.” A plain denial, with facts of his own, is the one thing she has said would count, and the ball, where she expects to see him, is the first chance he could have to give it. Her mind is made up, but by her own rule it is not shut.

• If it be not so, let Mr. Darcy contradict it.

Listen for

• Hears the word “confirmation”: she expects to have the story proved, not tested.
• Notices what she means to watch: his “look and behaviour”, not his words.
• Remembers her own test, “let Mr. Darcy contradict it”, and weighs how fair a test it is for a man who is not there to answer.
• Keeps to the chapter: it ends before the ball.

If stuck

• What does Elizabeth expect to see at the ball?
• What did she say Mr. Darcy could do if the story were false?
• Can a look prove a story true?

A strong answer A strong response tests whether her view could still be changed. One reader finds almost nothing that would count: she goes looking for confirmation of “everything”, in looks and manner that can be read to fit what she already believes. Another points to her own test: a plain contradiction from Mr. Darcy is the one thing she has said would move her, and the ball is his first chance to give it. The best answers notice the gap between the two: she plans to read his face, while her own test asks for his words.

What it asks It asks the student to work out what took Elizabeth in. In high spirits, Elizabeth asks Mr. Collins whether he will join in the dancing, “and she was rather surprised to find that he entertained no scruple whatever on that head, and was very far from dreading a rebuke, either from the Archbishop or Lady Catherine de Bourgh, by venturing to dance.” A scruple is a doubt of conscience; on that head means on that point. He asks for her hand “for the two first dances especially”, and “Elizabeth felt herself completely taken in. She had fully proposed being engaged by Wickham for those very dances; and to have Mr. Collins instead!--her liveliness had been never worse timed. There was no help for it, however.” Proposed here means intended. The student decides what took her in. The card must not say that Mr. Collins has proposed marriage or will: the narrator says plainly that he “might never make the offer”.

One reading

Her own guess about him. She asked her question expecting a clergyman who would fear a rebuke for dancing, and she was “rather surprised” to find he had no such scruple. She had read him wrong, and her lively question led her straight into the trap. On this reading she was fooled, and what fooled her was her own confidence about what kind of man he is.

• and she was rather surprised to find that he entertained no scruple whatever on that head,
• and was very far from dreading a rebuke, either from the Archbishop or Lady Catherine de Bourgh, by venturing to dance.

Another reading

Her own high spirits, more than any wrong guess. The narrator blames the timing, not her judgment: “her liveliness had been never worse timed.” Once he has asked, “There was no help for it”, and her plans for Mr. Wickham are “perforce” put off. On this reading she is less fooled than caught out by her own question: what traps her is a lively mood and good manners, not a mistake about anyone.

• her liveliness had been never worse timed.
• There was no help for it, however.

Listen for

• Weighs whether she was fooled by a wrong guess, or only caught by her own question.
• Notices that she asked the question herself, in high spirits, and was “rather surprised” by the answer.
• Notices that “proposal” and “proposed” in this paragraph are about dances and plans, not marriage.
• Weighs whether a mistake about Mr. Collins says anything about her other judgments, without deciding the last written question.

If stuck

• Who started the talk about dancing?
• What did Elizabeth expect Mr. Collins to say?
• Is being fooled the same as being caught?

A strong answer A strong response says what took her in, and whether she was fooled or only caught. One reader finds that she was fooled by her own guess: she expected a man too nervous of a rebuke to dance, asked her question in high spirits, and was surprised. Another finds that she was caught rather than fooled: once he asked, there was no help for it, and her plans were put off by necessity, not by error. The best answers notice where Austen puts the phrase, a few pages after Elizabeth has said there is no doubt what to think, and weigh how much a misreading of Mr. Collins can tell us, if anything, about her reading of anyone else.

What it asks It asks the student to judge what Elizabeth is doing when she waits. “It now first struck her, that _she_ was selected from among her sisters as worthy of being the mistress of Hunsford Parsonage”. Then: “The idea soon reached to conviction, as she observed his increasing civilities towards herself, and heard his frequent attempt at a compliment on her wit and vivacity”. Her mother soon lets her know the match would please her. “Elizabeth, however, did not choose to take the hint, being well aware that a serious dispute must be the consequence of any reply. Mr. Collins might never make the offer, and, till he did, it was useless to quarrel about him.” The student decides whether this waiting is an open mind or a quiet one. The card must not say that Mr. Collins will propose: the chapter ends with the offer unmade.

One reading

An open mind, or at least a fair one. However strong her guess, nothing has been said, and she will not quarrel over what has not happened: “till he did, it was useless to quarrel about him.” The idea was “suggested”, a guess drawn from his manner, and she treats it as one. A sister who can wait for an act before she acts is not simply quick to judge.

• Mr. Collins might never make the offer, and, till he did, it was useless to quarrel about him.
• She was not the better pleased with his gallantry, from the idea it suggested of something more.

Another reading

Only the peace. Her mind is not open at all: “The idea soon reached to conviction”. What she holds back is a reply, not a judgment, and the narrator gives the reason: a reply would bring “a serious dispute” with her mother. She waits because waiting is easier, not because she doubts what she sees.

• The idea soon reached to conviction,
• being well aware that a serious dispute must be the consequence of any reply.

Listen for

• Notices how fast the idea becomes “conviction”, and on what: civilities and compliments.
• Separates holding back a judgment from holding back a reply.
• Finds the narrator’s stated reason: the “serious dispute” a reply would bring.
• Keeps to the chapter: the offer is not made, and may never be.

If stuck

• What does Elizabeth come to believe about Mr. Collins?
• Why does she say nothing to her mother?
• Can you be sure of something and still wait to see it happen?

A strong answer A strong response says what kind of waiting this is. One reader finds a fair mind at work: whatever she suspects, she will not fight over an offer that has not been made, and she treats his manner as a hint, not a fact. Another finds only tact: her belief has already “reached to conviction”, and she keeps quiet to avoid a quarrel with her mother, not because she has any doubt. The best answers notice that the two readings separate judging from speaking, and ask which of the two the chapter’s other judgments, of Mr. Wickham and of Mr. Darcy, have kept apart.

What it asks It asks the student to weigh two sentences that pair the sisters. On the ball: “The happiness anticipated by Catherine and Lydia depended less on any single event, or any particular person; for though they each, like Elizabeth, meant to dance half the evening with Mr. Wickham, he was by no means the only partner who could satisfy them, and a ball was, at any rate, a ball.” Catherine is Kitty. On the rain: “Even Elizabeth might have found some trial of her patience in weather which totally suspended the improvement of her acquaintance with Mr. Wickham; and nothing less than a dance on Tuesday could have made such a Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday endurable to Kitty and Lydia.” The student decides how far she differs from them: whether the narrator is putting Elizabeth with her younger sisters or setting her apart. The card must not say that Elizabeth is in love with Mr. Wickham: she likes him and hopes to know him better, and the chapter goes no further.

One reading

Hardly at all. Both sentences pair them on purpose. Each sister means “to dance half the evening with Mr. Wickham”, and the narrator adds “like Elizabeth” to make sure we notice. In the rain the word is “Even”: the clever sister is waiting out the same four days for the same man. The quiet joke is that Elizabeth’s hopes for the ball look a good deal like her younger sisters’.

• for though they each, like Elizabeth, meant to dance half the evening with Mr. Wickham,
• Even Elizabeth might have found some trial of her patience

Another reading

A good deal. Each time the narrator also draws a line. Kitty and Lydia can be satisfied by any partner, since “a ball was, at any rate, a ball”; Elizabeth has one man in mind. In the rain they need “nothing less than a dance” to bear the days, while she only “might have found some trial”, and what she misses is not news or officers but the chance to know Mr. Wickham better. Her hopes rest on one person, which makes them more serious than theirs, and easier to overturn.

• he was by no means the only partner who could satisfy them, and a ball was, at any rate, a ball.
• weather which totally suspended the improvement of her acquaintance with Mr. Wickham;

Listen for

• Finds both pairings: “like Elizabeth” and “Even Elizabeth”.
• Notices the differences the narrator keeps: any partner against one man, “nothing less than a dance” against “some trial”.
• Hears the narrator’s light tone, and asks whether it is laughing at Elizabeth too.
• Keeps to the chapter: she likes Mr. Wickham; the chapter says no more.

If stuck

• What do Kitty and Lydia want from the ball?
• What does Elizabeth want from it?
• How does the rain treat each of them?

A strong answer A strong response weighs both sentences. One reader finds Elizabeth placed with her sisters: the narrator says “like Elizabeth” and “Even Elizabeth”, and her hopes for the ball rest on the same man. Another finds her set apart: her sisters would be happy with any partner and any news, while her hopes rest on one person and one purpose. The best answers notice that the difference cuts both ways: hopes fixed on one man are more serious than Kitty’s and Lydia’s, and easier to overturn, as Mr. Collins has already shown.

What it asks It asks the student to weigh the last reason Elizabeth gives for believing Mr. Wickham. Her case: “I can much more easily believe Mr. Bingley’s being imposed on than that Mr. Wickham should invent such a history of himself as he gave me last night; names, facts, everything mentioned without ceremony. If it be not so, let Mr. Darcy contradict it. Besides, there was truth in his looks.” Imposed on means deceived; without ceremony means freely, without hesitation. The student builds a thesis on how much the looks carry, meets the strongest objection, and revises. The card must not say which man’s account is true, and must not make Elizabeth the only sister moved by a face: the narrator says it was not in Jane’s nature to doubt “a young man of such amiable appearance as Wickham.”

One reading

Her weakest. The other reasons can at least be argued over: a story full of “names, facts” is hard to invent, and her challenge to Mr. Darcy names a test that could be met. A look proves nothing; it is only how the man struck her. “Besides” marks it as an extra, added after the case is made, and she offers it as one.

• names, facts, everything mentioned without ceremony.
• Besides, there was truth in his looks.

Another reading

The one that decided her. A detailed story is convincing only from a man you already trust, and she heard this one from Mr. Wickham himself the night before. The narrator shows Jane moved by the same face without any argument at all: doubting him was simply “not in her nature”. On this reading the looks come last because they lie under the other reasons, the one she can least defend and the one that did the work.

• as he gave me last night;
• it was not in her nature to question the veracity of a young man of such amiable appearance as Wickham.

Listen for

• Lists Elizabeth’s reasons in order: the names and facts, the challenge to Mr. Darcy, his looks.
• Hears what “Besides” does: adds a reason, or gives away the real one.
• Notices that Jane leans on Mr. Wickham’s “amiable appearance” too, so his face moves both sisters.
• Keeps to the chapter: neither man’s account is shown true or false.

If stuck

• What reasons does Elizabeth give for believing Mr. Wickham?
• Which of them could someone else check?
• Why might the last one come last?

A strong answer A strong thesis says how much weight the looks carry and shows it in Elizabeth’s words. A student might argue that they are her weakest reason: names and facts can be checked, a challenge to Mr. Darcy names a test, and a look proves nothing, which is why it comes after “Besides”. The strongest objection is that the looks may have decided everything else: a detailed story convinces only when it comes from a man already trusted, and the narrator shows Jane moved by the same “amiable appearance” with no argument at all. A good revision might hold that the looks are her weakest reason as evidence and perhaps her strongest as a cause, and leave the student asking how much of either sister’s judgment rests on Mr. Wickham’s face.

What it asks It asks the student to judge how each sister weighs the evidence, not which man is right. Jane: “It is, in short, impossible for us to conjecture the causes or circumstances which may have alienated them, without actual blame on either side.” To conjecture is to guess; alienated means set against each other. Defending Mr. Darcy, she asks: “Can his most intimate friends be so excessively deceived in him? Oh no.” Elizabeth: “I can much more easily believe Mr. Bingley’s being imposed on than that Mr. Wickham should invent such a history of himself as he gave me last night”. Then: “It is difficult, indeed--it is distressing. One does not know what to think.” “I beg your pardon;--one knows exactly what to think.” Later in the chapter, “It now first struck her, that _she_ was selected from among her sisters as worthy of being the mistress of Hunsford Parsonage”. The student builds a thesis on which sister weighs the evidence more wisely, meets the strongest objection, and revises. The card must not say which man’s account is true: the chapter never tests Mr. Wickham’s story, and Mr. Darcy never speaks. Nor may it say that Austen sides with either sister: both are shown, and neither is ruled on. Later chapters may not be used as evidence.

One reading

Jane. The sisters have one man’s story, told once, and nothing from the other. Jane says so: it is “impossible for us to conjecture” what set the two men apart. Not knowing what to think is an honest report of the evidence. And she does weigh it: against Mr. Wickham’s story she sets Mr. Darcy’s friends, who could hardly be “so excessively deceived in him”. The chapter also shows how well Elizabeth reads people when she is sure of herself: within a few pages the sister who knows “exactly” is surprised by what Mr. Collins means, and the thought “now first struck her”.

• It is, in short, impossible for us to conjecture the causes or circumstances which may have alienated them,
• Can his most intimate friends be so excessively deceived in him?
• It now first struck her, that she was selected from among her sisters as worthy of being the mistress of Hunsford Parsonage,

Another reading

Elizabeth. To weigh evidence is to let it count. She has a detailed story and a man who has not answered it, and she compares two things she cannot be sure of and chooses the likelier: a friend deceived is easier to believe than a story invented. Jane’s “One does not know what to think” is not a weighing but a refusal to weigh, and it ends exactly where she began, thinking well of everyone.

• I can much more easily believe Mr. Bingley’s being imposed on than that Mr. Wickham should invent such a history of himself as he gave me last night;
• “It is difficult, indeed--it is distressing. One does not know what to think.”

Listen for

• Gives Jane’s position its reasons: one side’s story, the other side silent, and “impossible for us to conjecture”.
• Gives Elizabeth’s position its reasons: a comparison of likelihoods, not just a feeling, and notices that Jane weighs the same question, whether Mr. Bingley could be deceived, and answers it the other way.
• Weighs “one knows exactly what to think” against how soon Elizabeth is surprised by Mr. Collins, without treating that surprise as proof about Mr. Wickham.
• Keeps to the chapter: neither man’s account is shown true, and the narrator rules on neither sister.

If stuck

• What evidence do the sisters actually have?
• What does Jane do with the parts she cannot explain? What does Elizabeth do with them?
• What would each sister need to hear before she changed her mind?

A strong answer A strong thesis judges how each sister weighs, not which man is right. A student might argue that Jane weighs more wisely: the sisters have one side of the story, and her “impossible for us to conjecture” is an honest account of what can be known. The strongest objection is that evidence must lead somewhere: Elizabeth compares two likelihoods and chooses, while Jane’s uncertainty ends where it began, thinking well of everyone, and so protects her from judging at all. A good revision might hold that each habit shields something: Jane’s guards every person from blame, Elizabeth’s guards her first opinion; and that the chapter, by surprising Elizabeth with Mr. Collins so soon after “one knows exactly what to think”, shows the cost of certainty without settling Mr. Wickham’s case.