Things I Learned From Pride & Prejudice

My blog friend Tara put up a post about running into the BBC version of Pride & Prejudice on TV. That is hands-down my all-time favorite movie. It was a mini-series, about 5 hours long, but totally worth it in my humble opinion. I’ve made many people sit through the entire 5 hours with me so that they can experience the romance. They’re (usually) glad they did. So I thought I would share with you all some things I learned from this Movie of Movies (with video clips, of course). Beware, THIS MAY CHANGE YOUR LIFE!

• Getting a little help in the dating department isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Anyone that knows the story of how I met my husband understands how much I believe this. Check out Meet the Bennets and watch a mother go into matchmaking mode. The ending of the movie made me think, “Hmmm, could it be that a set-up could really work?” (Also learned from this clip: snorting isn't attractive. whoops.)
• A first impression can be a wrong impression. In Mr. Darcy's First Appearance, Darcy puts his foot in his mouth by insulting Elizabeth. Elizabeth overhears (AWKWARD), which puts him on her List of People I Abhor. So they both have a bad first impression of each other, only to fall completely in love later. This clip also teaches me that whispering in front of people is a Bad Thing. But if you're gonna do it (and you know you will), do indeed WHISPER.
• Going along with the last point, our views of other people may be totally wrapped up in what they think of us. I can think of a time that a woman that I hardly knew told my mother, “We LOVE Leslie.” I was, like, “Really?” I didn’t know why they “loved” me so much, but I have to admit that I appreciated this near-stranger much more after hearing this.
• Walking can be fun! At various points in the movie you see Elizabeth walking. Not just walking from one room to another, but walking through hill and dale and mud and dirt and just walking for eons. She’s even called a “great walker” at some point. Honestly, I always thought of walking as just a way to get from point A to point B. But after seeing this a few times I thought, I want to be a great walker! (But only with comfortable shoes. I wore some cool-looking Skechers on a walk around Lake Austin with my husband a few weeks ago. My feet looked good, but let's just say that my heels didn't appreciate the shoes as much as I did.)
• Continuing with the walking idea, I’ve discovered that praying while walking is totally awesome. It’s a common thing for a lot of people, but I always thought, what's the big deal? But it works! Maybe more blood is rushing to your head, I don't know. It’s like the opposite of laying in bed praying. You know how easy it is to fall asleep while praying? I heard of a guy that prayed standing on the edge of his bath tub so that he wouldn't fall asleep. I tried it once. I'd rather walk. Maybe the reason Elizabeth walks so much is because she’s got a lot of praying to do – “Please send me my man! And make him rich!”
• Not everyone loves a 5 hour movie. Sometimes I’ll ask (beg) people to watch it with me. They always ask, “How long is it?” Clearly wondering how long the torture will last. When I say 5 hours, they usually shudder as if I asked them for a kidney.
• Wigs really can look like real hair. I always loved Elizabeth’s hair in this movie. I thought the curls were just so cute. But then I read somewhere that she wore wigs because her hair is actually blond. I was shocked, I tell you. SHOCKED.
• The British really know how to tell someone off. Check out this clip (Professing Love, aka People Say Stupid Things When Nervous) of when Darcy first proposes to Elizabeth. I just love how she tells him that he couldn't have presented the proposal in any possible way…You go, girl! It just wouldn’t have sounded the same in American English. American translation - “I wouldn't marry you if you were the last man on earth!” Just doesn't have the same punch, does it? Sounds immature. So if I'm going to be told off, I want it done by a Brit.
• Lake water is rather murky. I always suspected as much. This lake scene proves it (Darcy jumps in the lake after being totally rejected by Elizabeth). Can I just say that that's some nasty looking water? Maybe this was a half-hearted suicide attempt??? ("Come and eat me, you dirty little fishies!")
• A man deeply in love will give The Look. Check out my absolutely favorite clip of this movie. Be still, my heart! I want to burst into tears every time I see this. I'm happy to say that my husband looks at me this way. He actually thinks I'm cute. Don't know why. I consider myself to be more of a dork. And history would testify to that (I'm thinking of the time I walked into a glass door and almost knocked myself out - so sad). All I can think is that God had a hand in it - "And God said, He shall see her as cute. And it was done. And it was good."
• It's important to put careful thought into what we say about other people - before we say it. I don’t have a clip for this, but there’s a scene where Elizabeth and her sister have a conversation about if they should tell people of something terrible that the villain in the movie did. That was new to me. You mean you don’t just let it come up in conversation? They decide against it. I was very impressed by this.

Anyway, this may be the longest post ever, but I thoroughly enjoyed talking about my favorite movie. Let me know your thoughts. Have you also been captivated by Elizabeth and Darcy’s love story?

Things I Learned From Pride & Prejudice

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