The second part of the BBC miniseries version of Pride and Prejudice took a very interesting liberty in digressing from Elizabeth a bit and showing more of Darcy. For me, the book always seemed to focus in on Elizabeth more during the second half; the first dwells on her home life and her sisters a lot, and readers see what Elizabeth thinks and does mainly through interactions with others--talks with Jane, for example--rather than her actual thoughts, which we see a lot of as she tours Pemberly and then in smaller moments that tell us what she thinks as well as what she says to Lydia and Lady Catherine. However, the miniseries, although still primarily focusing on Elizabeth, also shows snippets of Darcy and the things he does independent of Elizabeth's company during the second half.
One of those moments that I really just love is the entire sequence leading up to the two of them reuniting at Pemberly. Shots cut back and forth between Elizabeth touring the estate with her aunt and uncle to Darcy sword fighting and expressing his desire to head home, riding his horse back onto the grounds, swimming in a pool on his estate, and then walking across the lawn. All of these make the suspense build up in the viewer, as even someone who has never read the book will be able to tell that the two are going to meet again. If they were not destined for such a fate, then why would the scenes keep switching between the two, showing a new side of Darcy, who is open to stripping down and swimming in a pool or go for a walk without putting back on his expensive coat, and also a new side to Elizabeth, who is open to admiring all she sees around her and re-working her old opinions of Darcy after the letter.
In the book, we only have the latter's views and opinions expressed, and not the former's. All we see is Elizabeth viewing the beautiful grounds and trying to come to terms with the letter. Instead of feeling the suspense of the two meeting again, there is only Elizabeth's disappointment at having turned him down. She expresses it in everything, with constant references to her decision, such as, "of all this, I may have been mistress of!" and such sentiments along that line. One feels bad for her, and the only suspense comes from wishing Darcy would show up and get this love fest going again instead of knowing he will.
Discussion Questions:
The first time I read this, I really didn't know when Darcy was going to show up again. Did anyone just know he was going to appear at Pemberly?
Was Pemberly as magnificently portrayed as the book leads us to imagine?
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