Narrative Techniques of Pride and PrejudiceThis essay will focus on Chapter 53 or Vol III, Chapter 11, depending on the edition of the novel. This passage is taken from Bingley and Darcy's first visit to Longbourn after their return to Meryton. The passage focuses on Mrs. Bennet's stupidity and Elizabeth's feelings about the procedure. Mrs. Bennet's speeches in the passage emphasize her ignorance, which is part of Austen's narrative technique of letting characters reveal themselves through their speech. The effect is particularly comical due to Mrs. Bennet's utter ignorance, which manifests itself in moral insensitivity, as evidenced by her belief that Lydia is "well married" in her shameful union with Wickham, and in a lack of knowledge simple, as evidenced by his commenting that Newcastle is "a place quite north, it seems". For this reason, she manages to be obsequiously polite but quite rude, as shown by the contrast between her invitation to Bingley to shoot the birds at Mr. Bennet's mansion "When you have killed all your own birds" and her insult to Darcy that Wickham doesn't have "as many friends as he deserves." Austen uses a similar treatment for Mr. Collins, whose sycophantic language is even used when he criticizes Elizabeth's class [?] in his proposal, and whose excessive praise makes him completely ridiculous. The length of Mrs. Bennet's speeches betrays the fact that although she says a lot, she thinks and thinks very little, [very well.] a technique that is repeated in Mr. Collins's speeches and letters and in the argument of Lady Catherine against Elizabeth's marriage to Darcy. during his visit to Longbourn. This is emphasized here by the fact that she is the only one cited in direct speech as speaking out loud in the entire passage. Despite Elizabeth's sense, her own feelings remain to herself while her mother indiscreetly chatters about whatever comes to mind. Elizabeth's poor reasoning as she listens to her mother disgrace herself shows the extent of her shame and misery. Although this scene is largely seen from Elizabeth's point of view, Austen sometimes speaks as an omniscient narrator to reveal small ironies about Elizabeth herself. For example, after Elizabeth feels that "my heart's first wish...is never to be in the company of any of them again", which the reader should know to be foolish, especially regarding concerned