Crucible Dos

1) Betty: "You drank blood, Abby! You didn't tell him that!"
Abigail: "Betty, you never say that again! You will never--"
Betty: "You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!" (Miller, 19).

Here is the first evidence we have of anyone actually partaking in unnatural practices. I think Abigail is going t be a witch, for obvious reasons. Witches often were very adulterous beings in lore. We find out in this reading that Abigail had relations with John Proctor and now wants to kill his wife to have him to herself. Abigail and Mercy seem like the two witches we know of for sure, at this point. They both were in league with each other, and Mary Warren as well, even though she only saw their practices but did not partake in them. Thus we have the stereotypical triad of witches (a la Macbeth and Hocus Pocus?).

2) "I [Rebecca] think she'll wake when she tires of it. A child's spirit is like a child, you can never catch it by running after it; you must stand still, and, for love, it will soon itself come back" (26).

Rebecca Nurse is the only sane person in this entire society! Most likely we can attribute this to her age, but still. Everyone else screams, "Witchcraft!" at any sign of difference. Rebecca is the only person to look at a situation rationally. To every outrageous claim, she gives a logical answer that nobody else could think of. Here, she's chalking up Ruth's behavior to any child's playful mischief. When questioned as to why Ruth has not eaten yet, she responds, "Perhaps she is not hungered yet" (27). It's obvious, but in this type of setting, not something you would expect. I really like Rebecca.

2 Character Analyses--Darcy and Caroline

Scott Pero
AP English Language—Mr. George
November 28, 2009
Mr. Darcy Character Analysis

Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy is a taciturn man who, though originally believed to be haughty and disagreeable, learns from his mistakes and will do anything for the people he loves.

Mr. Darcy is stoic. He rarely ever speaks, and constantly maintains a serious countenance. His manners are received by other members of society as proud and antisocial. The real reason he acts in such a manner is because he is actually very awkward, and has never willfully spoken to anyone outside the select few he already knows. Darcy is socially awkward and does not speak well with people he does not know. In that sense, he is very shy. His manners, though, are not his fault, as he tells Elizabeth: “I have been a selfish being all my life…as a child I was taught what was right, but I was not taught to correct my temper…I was spoilt by my parents who…allowed, encouraged, almost taught me to be selfish and overbearing…I might still have been but for you…Elizabeth! You taught me a lesson, hard indeed at first, but most advantageous” (Austen 282). The reason Darcy comes off as proud is because he was raised that way. He seems selfish because, through his life, he was spoiled. Until Elizabeth came along, Darcy thought that he was perfectly fine, and that his manners were the proper way to act. Elizabeth serves as his own personal reality check. Over time, Darcy develops strong feelings for her. When he proposes for the first time, his pride gave him reason to think Elizabeth had at that point desired his proposal. Elizabeth then lists every reason as to why she would not want to marry him. Darcy, rather than feeling utterly devastated as any other man would, he learns from these accusations and betters himself through them. This shows his intelligence, as he endeavors to explain his motives and his actions, while still learning from his mistakes. It is also shown that he is very caring to all those who are close to him. Darcy is described by his servants as the perfect master, and by his sister as the best brother. He is very kind to his staff, and even kinder to his own family, buying whatever Georgiana wishes. Darcy pays off Wickham’s debts all for Elizabeth. Darcy does everything with Elizabeth in mind.

Mr. Darcy is a lot like Beast from Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Like Beast, Darcy grew up a spoiled, proud child, which is what eventually turned him into the ‘beast’ that society sees him as. At first, he always thinks he is right, and looks down on others. When he meets Elizabeth, the Belle of his story, he begins to develop feelings for her, and soon loves her more than anything. He, like Beast, wants to do everything for her and get closer to her, but his own beastly and awkward manners only push him farther away. He learns what to do in order to become a true gentleman in her eyes. He earnestly tries to overcome the beast within and seeks retribution in the eyes of the woman he loves. Soon there is something there that was not there before between Darcy, or Beast, and Elizabeth, his Belle.

In our modern day, a real-world counterpart of Mr. Darcy is Stephen Simmons: Both are men of few words who are very kind and amiable to their friends and family; there is more to their character than what one sees on the surface.


Scott Pero
AP English Language—Mr. George
November 28, 2009
Caroline Bingley Character Analysis

Miss Caroline Bingley is an obsessive, duplicitous young woman who desperately tries in vain to attract the attentions of a man who does not love her and simultaneously shoot down any traces of competition in other women.

When we first see Miss Bingley, she is described, along with her sister, Mrs. Hurst, as, “fine women, with an air of decided fashion” (Austen 6). Caroline appears nice and lovely, especially when she interacts with Jane. At first, it seems as though Caroline is very amiable and agreeable to most. She quickly becomes the best of friends with Jane. Soon, however, it is shown that she has a darker side hidden away from public light. She is obsessive of Mr. Darcy, and wants to marry him more than anything. In many instances where Mr. Darcy is admiring Elizabeth from afar, Caroline swoops in and cunningly tries to deviate his interests from Elizabeth to herself. Caroline constantly brings up the many obstacles Darcy would have to overcome in order to be with Elizabeth, such as her inferiority and her ludicrous family. In doing so, Caroline tries to promote herself in Darcy’s eyes. She talks politely in a friendly manner to Elizabeth, concealing her hidden motives from her, but the minute Elizabeth is gone, Caroline begins to attack Elizabeth on everything, such as her clothes, her manners, and her family. Not only is Caroline deceptive, but she is also very hypocritical as well. She speaks about despising women who try and sabotage others in the pursuit of a man, but she openly is the one doing it. She attempts to attract Mr. Darcy with every action and entice him with each word: “[Caroline] could not win [Mr. Darcy], however, to any conversation…at length, quite exhausted by the attempt to be amused with her own book, which she had only chosen because it was the second volume of his, she gave a great yawn and said, ‘How pleasant it is to spend an evening this way! I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading’” (41). Caroline is constantly trying to win Mr. Darcy’s attention. No matter how many times she tries and fails, she can not take a hint and give him up. She is relentless in her pursuit of a man who will never be hers, obsessing over something she will never have. Caroline is a deceitful woman who endeavors ineffectively to captivate the one man who will never love her in return.

Caroline is just like an annoying little bug that constantly buzzes around the house. She will never go away, partly because no on is ever able to get her to go away. Every now and then, she is noticeable out of the corner of your eye, though you are not really paying attention to her. She is just that aggravating. She always hovers around the light on the ceiling, or in this case, Mr. Darcy. Just like the bug will fly into the light countless times only to get burnt and fly back again, so does Caroline always try and flaunt herself in front of Mr. Darcy, only to face rejection once more. Still, she tries again, demonstrating a level of prudence only common to unintelligible insects.

A modern day counterpart in the real world of Caroline Bingley is Kurt Hummel from the TV show Glee; both desperately strive in vain to gain the favor of a man they will never have, both appear friendly but secretly plot for their own benefit, and both aim to destroy any competition in their race to win the heart of the object of their devotion.

P&P Ch. 16-END

1) "But think no more of the letter. The feelings of the person who wrote, and the person who received it, are now so widely different from what they were then, that every unpleasant circumstance attending it ought to be forgotten. You must learn some of my philosophy. Think only of the past as its remembrance gives you pleasure" (Austen 282).

This quote struck me as odd, considering it was Elizabeth who said it. I actually quite like the philosophy, 'Think only of the past as its remembrance gives you pleasure'. Although, for Elizabeth to say it, it seems contradictory. For the first half of the novel, all Elizabeth did was remember the past, instead of letting it go. The entire reason she hated Darcy in the beginning was because he hurt her pride. That obviously did not give her pleasure, but she still remembered that one reason, accumulating others on top of that. This philosophy is alot like how Jane thinks: she chooses to see and reember only the good of a person. If Elizabeth had followed this philosophy from the beginning, instead of just saying to dismiss the discussion on Mr. Darcy's letter, the whole novel would have been changed. Elizabeth would have accepted Mr. Darcy's proposal, and she would have been the lady of Pemberly when she went there.

2) "'And if I had not a letter to write myself, I might sit by you, and admire the evenness of your writing, as another young lady once did. But I have an aunt, too, who must not be longer neglected" (292).

This quote made me laugh. Now that Elizabeth and Darcy are engaged, everything is happy between them. So, Darcy begins writing to people to let them know of their engagement. The way Elizabeth responds is priceless. She basically referrences Miss Bingley. I can picture them both laughing at that, Elizabeth laughing and Darcy simply smiling as Elizabeth gets up to write her own. This is also the only mention of Caroline in a long while. It shows that Elizabeth still remembers how many other women would love to be married to Mr. Darcy, but out of all of them, she was the lucky winner. Better luck next time, Not-so-sweet Caroline.

P&P Ch. 13-15

1) "My daughter and my nephew are formed for each other...They are destined for each other by the voice of every member of their respective houses; and what is to divide them? The upstart pretensions of a young woman without family, connections, or fortune. Is this to be endured! But it must not, shall not be. If you were sensible of your own good, you would not wish to quit the sphere, in which you have been brought up" (Austen 272).

When Lady Catherine first visits Longbourn, she begins by indirectly insulting the estate, basically. Then, after she walks with Elizabeth, Lady Catherine explodes on her about a supposed marriage between her and her nephew, Mr. Darcy. Obviously, she would be upset, as Mr. Darcy was supposed to marry Miss de Bourgh. In her argument with Elizabeth, twice did Lady Catherine insult her directly, the quote above being the second. This one seemed more important to me, because Lady Catherine mentions the sphere of class Elizabeth was born into. This is a major focal point of her argument, aside from the fact that Darcy and Miss de Bourgh were destined since birth to wed. Lady Catherine ouright threatens Elizabeth to stay away from her nephew, though Elizabeth wittily retorts against Lady Catherine's every word expertly.

2) "Elizabeth had never been more at a loss to make her feelings appear what they were not. It was necessary to laugh, when she would rather cried. Her father had most cruelly mortified her, by what he said of Mr. Darcy's indifference, and she cold do nothing but wonder at such a want of penetration, or fear that perhaps, instead of his seeing too little, she might have fancied too much" (278).

This made me feel bad for Elizabeth. After receiving the letter from Mr. Collins, Mr. Bennet addresses Elizabeth with the parts that concern her, parts that detail the supposed marriage of Darcy and herself. Ignorance is bliss, as Mr. Bennet clearly demonstrates. He has no clue that Darcy loves Elizabeth, vice-versa, and that Darcy has already proposed to Elizabeth once. Because he does not know about such things, he is able to laugh at the entire situation. He finds it hilarious that Mr. Collins would choose Darcy as opposed to any other gentleman, because as he believes it, Darcy despises Elizabeth. He also thinks Elizabeth reciprocates, when meanwhile she is painfully taking every word her father mentions. He claims he has seen too little of this, but Elizabeth believes that, because of how much his words hurt and how, to her, they seem sensible, that she has been too farfetched in her beliefs of a second proposal from Darcy.

P&P Ch. 10-12

1) "''Tis an etiquette I despise,' said he. 'If he wants our society, let him seek it. He knows where we live. I will not spend my hours in running after my neighbours every time they go away, and come back again'" (Austen 253).

I think this quote is a societal critique on Austen's part. Obviously, it has been made known by Mrs. Bennet and their neighbors that, when someone new enters the neighborhood, the patriarch of the house must be the one to introduce themselves and their family. Austen wrote this just before society was beginning to change, and she uses Mr. Bennet as a mouthpiece for society's changing views. He argues the practicality of it, that Bingley already knows the Bennets are in Hertforshire, and he knows where they live. So, why should he have to waste his time running over there if Bingley will just keep leaving town? Mr. Bennet makes perfect sense in that regard, and that is probabl what Austen is going for when she criticizes this societal tradition.

2) "[Bingley] was received by Mrs. Bennet with a degree of civility, which made her two daughters ashamed, especially when contrasted with the cold and ceremonious politeness of her curtsey and address to [Mr. Darcy]. Elizabeth particularly, who knew that her mother owed to the latter the preservation of her favourite daughter from irremediable infamy, was hurt and distressed to a most painful degree by a distinction so ill applied" (255).

This is a perfect quote to show how Elizabeth feels everytime she sees Darcy now. She can not see him without thinking that he is the reason her family has been able to stay together. Not only that, but her mother never helps anything ever. Yes, Mrs. Bennet does not know how exactly how Darcy has helped them, but she still acts distant towards him. She is cold only to him, but to everyone else, especially Bingley, she is her usual, annoyingly happy self. Elizabeth tries to tell Mr. Darcy just how appreciative she is, but she can never get him alone throughout his entire visit. All the while, Mrs. Bennet is embarassing them completely.

P&P Ch. 7-9

1) "What a triumph for [Mr. Darcy], as [Elizabeth] often thought, could he know that the proposals which she had proudly spurned only four months ago, would now have been gladly and gratefully received!...She began now to comprehend that he was exactly the man, who, in disposition and talents, would most suit her. His understanding and temper, though unlike her own, would have answered all her wishes. It was an union that must have been to the advantage of both; by her ease and liveliness, his mind might have been softened, his manners improved, and from his judgment, information, and knowledge of the world, she must have received benefit of greater importance" (Austen 237).

Here is the first instance Elizabeth ouright says she would marry Mr. Darcy, rather than hinting at it. She thinks of Darcy not being able to marry her because Wickham will now be a member of her family, an obstacle his love cannot endure (so she thinks). As she is thinking about him, she thinks upon all of his good qualities. These, to Elizabeth, seem like the perfect match for herself. Elizabeth has not, however, mentioned any feelings of love toward Darcy yet. So far, this is turning out to be a prudent marriage. She benefits from him, and he benefits from her. They both get along, everyone is happy. In my opinion, I do not think prudent marriages will ever stay prudent marriages. If you are compatible with someone in every way, shape, and form, and get married, you will find something you love about that person. Whether it is a small, trivial thing, or a monumental epiphany, compatibility breeds love of some kind. Thusly, if Darcy and elizabeth do marry because of Prudence, I believe it will eventually evolve into a Love Marriage.

2) "Wickham's affection for Lydia, was just what Elizabeth had expected to find it; not equal to Lydia's for him. She had scarcely needed her present observation to be satisfied, from the reason of things, that their elopement had been brought on by the strength of her love, rather than by his; and she would have wondered why, without violently caring for her, he chose to elope with her at all, had she not felt certain that his flight was rendered necessary by distress of circumstances; and if that were the case, he was not the young man to resist an opportunity of having a companion" (241).

The beginning of this quote struck me as odd. Elizabeth is doing exactly what Darcy did, in the same sense. Darcy thought that Jane's affections for Bingley were not equal to his own towards her. In the same way, Elizabeth is judging Wickham's affections towards Lydia. I am not saing that maybe Wickham really does love her, merely that the one thing that Elizabeth had reason to hate Darcy for, she is doing herself all over again. Elizabeth is also, in this qoute, pointing out that Lydia is merely an excuse to leave the militia in ---shire to Wickham. She also thinks that Wickham will not stay with Lydia. He seems to be the type of person who would not 'resist an opportunity of having a companion'. Once his debts are to be repaid, he will leave Lydia for the next best thing.

P&P Ch. 3-6

1) "'I am inclined to think that her own disposition must be naturally bad, or she could not be guilty of such an enormity, at so early an age...[Lady Catherine and her daughter] agree with me in apprehending that this false step in one daughter, will be injurious to the fortunes of all the others, for who, as lady Catherine herself condescendingly says, will connect themselves with such a family...Let me advise you then, my dear Sir, to console yourself as much as possible, to throw off your unworthy child from your affection for ever, and leave her to reap the fruits of her own heinous offence'" (Austen 225).

Mr. Collins has never been a fan favorite, and his letter in the reading cannot help that image. We usually picture Mr. Collins as the nerdy little awkward kid in school, the one that thinks he is great when he really is not. In this letter, however, he turns very harsh. He's basically saying that running off with Wickham is all Lydia's fault, without room for any factors that may contribute to the situation. No; it was absolutely Lydia's fault. He doesn't think that people her age are capable of mistakes, and that she did it willfully of her own malicious volition. He probably does not need to point out the fact that this will affect the entire family and the daughters, but Collins', being the loyal lapdog that he is, simply MUST relate Lady Catherine's 'Captain Obvious' point-of-view. Finally, he suggests shunning Lydia and letting her live on her own after what happened. This seems far too intense a statement for his character. Yes, Lydia did do something wrong that she should not have done, be it intentionally or unintentionally, but that is no reason to remove her from the family.

2) "'What, is he coming home, and without poor Lydia!' she cried. 'Sure he will not leave London before he has found them. Who is to fight Wickham, and make him marry her, if he comes away?'" (226).

This struck me as odd, considering Mrs. Bennet was the one that wanted Mr. Bennet to come home as quickly as possible to calm her nerves. This is a perfect passage that exemplifies Mrs. Bennet as a very manipulative character. She began only wanting Mr. Bennet to return from his search in London. while doing so, she tried to get everyone to focus on herself instead of what was really going on. Then, when Mr. Gardiner leaves to help the search, she gives him a laundry list of things to do that are almost idyllic in their dramatic simplicity. Most significant of all, she wants Mr. Bennet to come home so he will not have to duel Wickham. No, she finds out Mr. Bennet is returning home, and she argues against everything she has ever said on the matter. She is an instigator, and causes drama left and right all for her own enjoyment.