Pride and Prejudice (Austen) practice questions and exam guide

It is often assumed that the gentleman's intervention to save the youngest sister's marriage is publicly known to the Bennet family at once. In the novel, however:

1. He acts in secret and is found out only by an indiscreet letter from the protagonist's aunt
2. He demands public credit immediately
3. The protagonist's father announces it
4. Lady Catherine reveals it

Answer: A — He acts in secret and is found out only by an indiscreet letter from the protagonist's aunt

A) Correct — the secrecy is essential to its meaning. B/C/D) Wrong.

The proud gentleman's sister is portrayed as:

1. Sharp-tongued like her aunt
2. Worldly and ambitious
3. Shy, accomplished, and warmly attached to her brother
4. A rival to the protagonist for his affections

Answer: C — Shy, accomplished, and warmly attached to her brother

A/B/D) None fits. C) Correct — Georgiana is reserved and devoted to her brother.

During the protagonist's stay at her friend's parsonage, the colonel inadvertently reveals:

1. That his cousin has been engaged for years to a relative
2. That his cousin will inherit Longbourn
3. That his cousin owes large gambling debts
4. That his cousin recently saved a friend from an imprudent match

Answer: D — That his cousin recently saved a friend from an imprudent match

A) Lady Catherine's claim, not the colonel's. D) Correct — Fitzwilliam's casual mention triggers Elizabeth's anger. B/C) Untrue.

The protagonist's father is best characterized as:

1. A vigilant moral guide for his daughters
2. An indulgent matchmaker
3. A clever but largely disengaged parent who retreats to his books
4. A stern disciplinarian

Answer: C — A clever but largely disengaged parent who retreats to his books

A) He admits he failed in this. B) Not him. C) Correct — wit plus withdrawal is his mode. D) Wrong.

The narrator's frequent use of "perhaps," "it seemed," and "she fancied" works to:

1. Confess editorial uncertainty
2. Mark moments when a character's perception, rather than fact, is being reported
3. Set up an unreliable narrator
4. Hide quotations from sources

Answer: B — Mark moments when a character's perception, rather than fact, is being reported

A) Not editorial. B) Correct — these are signals of subjective perception within free indirect style. C/D) Wrong.

The clergyman cousin's living is granted by his patroness; this reflects the period's system of:

1. Elected clergy
2. Election by parishioners
3. State appointment by the king alone
4. Lay patronage of church livings by landed proprietors

Answer: D — Lay patronage of church livings by landed proprietors

A/B/C) Untrue. D) Correct — lay patronage was the norm.

The protagonist's earliest grounds for prejudice against the proud gentleman include all of the following EXCEPT:

1. His snub at a public dance
2. The militia officer's tales about him
3. Reports of his interference with her sister's match
4. Her mother's careful warning

Answer: D — Her mother's careful warning

A/B/C) Each contributes. D) Correct as the exception — Mrs. Bennet does not warn her.

Darcy's first proposal to Elizabeth, at Hunsford, includes:

1. Quiet romantic praise
2. A formal letter
3. Insults of her family and admission of struggle against her inferiority
4. Public declaration

Answer: C — Insults of her family and admission of struggle against her inferiority

A) Not present. C) Correct — Darcy proposes while underlining the social gap between them, which is why Elizabeth refuses. B) Comes the next morning, separately. D) Wrong.

England in the year of publication was at war with which power?

1. Napoleonic France
2. The Russian Empire
3. The Spanish Empire
4. The Ottoman Empire

Answer: A — Napoleonic France

A) Correct — the Napoleonic Wars are the background to militia presence. B/C/D) Wrong.

Each of the following is true of the protagonist's father EXCEPT:

1. He prefers his second daughter for her wit
2. He uses irony as a defense against his wife's nerves
3. He provides firm, consistent guidance to his younger daughters
4. He admits, after the elopement, that he failed his family

Answer: C — He provides firm, consistent guidance to his younger daughters

A/B/D) Each is true. C) Correct as the exception — Mr. Bennet's failing is precisely a lack of guidance.

The gentleman's country estate functions in the novel as a symbol of:

1. Old corruption
2. Religious authority
3. A failing economy
4. His true character — taste, responsibility, and social integration

Answer: D — His true character — taste, responsibility, and social integration

A/B/C) Wrong. D) Correct — Pemberley figures Darcy as he actually is.

The colonel's appearance in the novel is structurally important because he:

1. Saves the youngest sister
2. Marries the protagonist's practical friend
3. Marries the gentleman's sister
4. Innocently exposes the gentleman's hand in separating the eldest Bennet sister from his friend

Answer: D — Innocently exposes the gentleman's hand in separating the eldest Bennet sister from his friend

A) Darcy does. D) Correct — Fitzwilliam's small remark moves the plot. B/C) Untrue.

Darcy's letter?

Hand-delivered the next morning. Explains separating Bingley + Jane (perceived indifference + her family) + the truth about Wickham (gambler, attempted Georgiana elopement). Pivot of the novel.

Who is Colonel Fitzwilliam?

Darcy's cousin. Charming but cannot marry Elizabeth — needs a fortune. Inadvertently reveals Darcy's interference in Jane + Bingley.

Original draft title?

'First Impressions.' Austen rewrote substantially before final publication as Pride and Prejudice.

Author and publication year?

Jane Austen (1775-1817). Published anonymously January 1813 ('By the Author of Sense and Sensibility').

Theme: pride.

Darcy's pride of class + position. Elizabeth's pride in her own judgment. Both must humble themselves to see clearly.

Who is Kitty Bennet?

Fourth Bennet sister. Silly, follows Lydia's lead.