The intricate nexus of marriage, money and love in Jane Austen's society is unfolded through the development of plots and characters of her novel Pride and Prejudice. In the nineteenth century's rural England, marriage was a woman's chief aim, both financially and socially. Financially because of women's dependent position marriage was the "only honourable position", infinitely preferable to the dependence of precarious shabby-genteel spinsterhood. Money was, therefore, a very significant aspect of Austen's society, especially …showed first 75 words of 922 total…

…showed last 75 words of 922 total…the self-development that true relationships bring about. A marriage can only become an institution when it provides for the fulfillment of both men and women's aspirations, sanctified by love and validated by prudence that both Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Collins can live on, the former drinking deep draughts of life's fullness, the later continuing to sip its littleness. The richness of Pride and Prejudice lies in that exploration of life and marriage by Jane Austen.