Pride and Prejudice

Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has become a cultural phenomenon in the 213 years since its publication, with multiple movie and television adaptations being made. Arguably one of the most recognized and read among the classics, we will examine the course of its popularity below.

Pride and Prejudice has been most popular among English speaking peoples, and its introduction into other Western cultures seemingly only took off in the late 1940s (around the time the first film adaptation was released by Robert Z. Leonard), suggesting that this film gave a wider range of cultures access to the story.

The publication of new editions of the book and film and television adaptations resulted in sharp rises in Pride and Prejudice’s popularity, with the story’s popularity rising rapidly in the last 30 years, in the wake of major adaptations such as BBC’s 1995 miniseries and Joe Wright’s 2005 film.

The Popularity of Pride and Prejudice in the Interwar Period

While the above graphs show that Pride and Prejudice began to decline in popularity post 1900, there seems to have been a resurgence in the popularity of the novel between World War I and II which is not as pronounced among her other novels.

All of Austen’s novels, but Pride and Prejudice in particular, satirize marriage as a means of economic gain and social climbing for women in Regency-era England. To the women living in the aftermath of World War I, many of whom lost husbands and prospective suitors in the conflict, or who were facing the harsh economic realities of the Great Depression, this practical view of marriage might have struck a chord. Just as Jane Austen broke down the idealized tropes of matrimony that had previously been the standard, the renewed interest in Pride and Prejudice seen during the 20s and 30s might have reflected a breaking down in society of similar romantic ideals regarding marriage.

Austen’s novels had comparable levels of popularity until just before the end of the 19th century, when Pride and Prejudice began to surpass Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, and Mansfield Park. This suggests the recognition of Pride and Prejudice as a uniquely valuable work – not just the valuation of Austen as an author – which is reflected in its high status above her other novels today.

The Adaptation Effect

Clearly, there has been a massive increase in the number of Jane Austen book adaptations in TV and film within the last 30 years or so. While it is difficult to tell whether this is due to more people reading the novels because of the release of the adaptations, or if less people are reading the novels because so many film and TV adaptations exist, it's undeniable that the stories themselves have had a significant impact on Western culture. However, seeing how obviously major releases such as these have been able to influence the popularity of her stories raises important questions about visual media has been able to supplant reading as the most dominant and accessible form of entertainment in society.