I’m in the midst of re-reading Pride and Prejudice, and I had forgotten how quickly the story moves along. I just reached the part that contains perhaps my favorite lines:
“Come here, child,” cried her father as she appeared. “I have sent for you on an affair of importance. I understand that Mr. Collins has made you an offer of marriage. Is it true?” Elizabeth replied that it was. “Very well—and this offer of marriage you have refused?”
“I have, Sir.”
“Very well. We now come to the point. Your mother insists upon your accepting it. Is it not so, Mrs. Bennet?”
“Yes, or I will never see her again.”
“An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents.—Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.”
One of the best dad moments in literature, even if later we learn perhaps Mr. Bennet should be a little more watchful of his younger daughters.
In honor of my re-read, and just because they’re all ready to go (at last), I am giving away one bar of each soap in my Jane Austen soap series.
I have created five soaps based on heroines from three Jane Austen novels: Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma.
The Bennet sisters, featured in Pride and Prejudice are also available as a set in my Etsy store.
Mrs. Darcy is inspired by that delightful creature herself, Elizabeth Bennet. Created with her personality in mind, it contains goat milk (to represent her stubbornness) and rich vegetable oils, including olive oil, coconut oil, palm, oil, sweet almond oil, castor oil, and cocoa butter and is scented with fragrantly floral plumeria.
Sweet Jane is as nice as her namesake, Jane Bennet. Made with coconut milk, olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil, cocoa butter, and castor oil, this soap has a clean, wholesome scent of lemon verbena.
Just like Emma herself, her namesake soap unites some of the best blessings of existence: beautiful calendula petals and luxurious silk with rich, moisturizing shea butter, olive oil, and sunflower seed oil and scented with citrusy tart yuzu and sweet orange.
Elinor’s soap has a fresh, mild, clean scent that evokes herbs and mint and is made with olive oil, sunflower oil, shea butter, and other rich, moisturizing oils.
This wild swirl of black raspberry vanilla evokes Marianne Dashwood’s passionate nature. Made with olive oil, cocoa butter, silk and other rich, moisturizing oils, this soap is a treat for your skin.
What do you have to do to win this prize package? Simply leave a comment with your favorite quote from Pride and Prejudice and explain why it’s your favorite. A winner will be chosen at random on Friday, February 22, 2013. You can earn an extra entry if you like New England Handmade Artisan Soaps on Facebook and share the giveaway. Simply locate the giveaway on my Facebook page and share it on your Facebook timeline.
Good luck! And remember that if you don’t win, you can still order this fantastic collection from my Etsy store.
You're so cool. I would love to be entered! My favorite line in Pride and Prejudice is when Elizabeth says "Mr. Darcy is not to be laughed at." It's such a perfect encapsulation of what she knows of him up to that point — and everything about him really! I like it because it's the thing that makes it clear what he sees in her, that she can laugh at everything, which is harder for him.
Good one! I love Lizzie's sparring with Mr. Darcy.
Such creative and gorgeous soaps. Wonderful job!
I read this book during high school, and the most provocative quote and scene for me was when Mr. Darcy says at the ball (referring to Elizabeth), "She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me." Then, obviously, at the end of the story Mr. Darcy does a 180. During high school I really empathized with Elizabeth, and felt her humiliation at that moment, at the same time sensing that she was a strong protagonist and that there were better things to come for her. This book really caught me by it's realistic portrayal of people.
My favorite quote has always been “An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.” Now I can't read the book or watch a movie without totally loving Mr. Bennett. He stands up for Lizzie when it really matters and supports her happiness. Yay for good dads!
My favorite line of the whole story happens when Jane is finally engaged to Bingley and he leaves to get her father's blessing, Jane turns to Elizabeth and says, "How shall I bear so much happiness?" because as a cynical 20-something I wished so much that I had her "problem" that I immediately ran to my bathroom and used an eyeliner to scribble the sentiment across the top of the mirror. It made my roommate and I smile every time we went in there for years! (Very closely followed by Darcy's first proposal which I just realized I have memorized from repeated viewings/readings. In vain I have struggled…)
Your soaps are just sumptuous-looking!!
And your clever contest has inspired me to pull my beaten up old copy of P&P out…it's one of my perennial re-reads.
Everyone has picked such good quotes, too!
I tend to like the snarkier quotes though, like "You have delighted us long enough." LOL!
In yet another paean of praise for Mr. Bennett, this one always makes me chuckle at his perspicacity, and his sheer torture of Lizzie when he reads Mr. Collins' letter full of gossip:
"You are not going to be Missish, I hope, and pretend to be affronted at an idle report. For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn."
This quote seems particularly appropriate, since I made my way here from your husband's retweet on Twitter, the land of making sport for and of our neighbors!
My favorite quote is Elizabeth's saying "Mr Darcy is not to be laughed at." Sums up quite well her felling. Also I like the way she can hold her own with him. Mr Darcy.
My favourite bit was the one said by Mrs Bennet "that a single man in possession of a good fortune is in need of a wife!
so practical!!!
Choosing a favorite Pride and Prejudice quote is like choosing which fingers I'd like to lose. But I would have to go with the first one "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." It sets the stage for the book, it sums up Austen's society and Mrs. Bennett perfectly. And it is just classic Austen.