Old Favorite or New Discovery?

[Gypsy]

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msbackhus wrote:
This is an old favorite - so much so that I teach it every year to my sophomore Honors English class. My female students inevitably love the story, but I have a hard time tapping enthusiasm into teenage boys for P&P. I would love suggestions from our male readers about what it was that drew you and kept you in the book.

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OK, I'm not male, but I know a few who love the story. Mainly, they love turning the story upside down and looking at Bingley, Darcy and Mr. Bennett. And even Mr. Hurst. How do men feel about being pursued as a prize? How do they feel once they're "secured" with a wife that may not be what they expected? And how did those wives fool them? And then there's Mr. Wickham. Everybody knows a Wickham, who seduces women for sex and money. I suggest having your male students talk about their points of view.

[Laurel]

Gypsy, that's a great idea! That way they won't have to admit they like the book.

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Gypsy wrote:

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msbackhus wrote:
This is an old favorite - so much so that I teach it every year to my sophomore Honors English class. My female students inevitably love the story, but I have a hard time tapping enthusiasm into teenage boys for P&P. I would love suggestions from our male readers about what it was that drew you and kept you in the book.

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OK, I'm not male, but I know a few who love the story. Mainly, they love turning the story upside down and looking at Bingley, Darcy and Mr. Bennett. And even Mr. Hurst. How do men feel about being pursued as a prize? How do they feel once they're "secured" with a wife that may not be what they expected? And how did those wives fool them? And then there's Mr. Wickham. Everybody knows a Wickham, who seduces women for sex and money. I suggest having your male students talk about their points of view.

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[DavidShapard]

Speaking as a male who loves Jane Austen, I would say that while the romantic elements were never a turn-off, they were also not the main reason for my interest. I appreciated her humor, her insight into human characters, her clever use of language, and her very well-constructed plots. It is possible that stressing elements like that might draw male students in. You also might show how unsentimental Jane Austen can be in analyzing people, in contrast to the stereotype of writers dealing with romance.

[JesseBC]

I'd be careful not to teach the novel in a way that promotes the same gender stereotypes that Austen is skewering here.

The harpies who chase men for their money is as much a stereotype as that of men who want pretty doormats for trophies and, therefore, women must act stupid and dependent in order to snag a good provider (or, for that matter, that men don't enjoy romance).

The opening line of Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorites because it's just so delightfully sarcastic.

The novel presents a good opportunity for talking about satire. I wouldn't use it as a means of kicking off discussion about satirical stereotypes as if they were real since that defeats the whole purpose of good satire.

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Gypsy wrote:

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msbackhus wrote:
This is an old favorite - so much so that I teach it every year to my sophomore Honors English class. My female students inevitably love the story, but I have a hard time tapping enthusiasm into teenage boys for P&P. I would love suggestions from our male readers about what it was that drew you and kept you in the book.

---

OK, I'm not male, but I know a few who love the story. Mainly, they love turning the story upside down and looking at Bingley, Darcy and Mr. Bennett. And even Mr. Hurst. How do men feel about being pursued as a prize? How do they feel once they're "secured" with a wife that may not be what they expected? And how did those wives fool them? And then there's Mr. Wickham. Everybody knows a Wickham, who seduces women for sex and money. I suggest having your male students talk about their points of view.

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[scamp5]

I love this book because of the exaggerated imperfections of some of the characters.