This article contains spoilers!
Witty, fierce, and defiant Elizabeth Bennet in contrast to insecure, silly, but determined Bridget Jones—at first glance, they could not appear to be any more different. However, Sharon Maguire’s modern retelling of Jane Austen’s coveted Pride and Prejudice reveals how similar themes can manifest in unique ways. The romantic comedy Bridget Jones’ Diary offers a new and fresh perspective on this well-loved classic.
Both of the protagonists’ mothers are eager to marry them off in fear of societal ridicule toward themselves and their daughters. An honest, open, and loving relationship is not the priority here—rather, a wealthy man who offers financial security is. Whether it be the 19th or the 21st century, the desperate need to prove one’s womanhood through a man remains the same.
In both stories, the audience meets a haughty, blunt, and fabulously wealthy Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth and Bridget are equally appalled at their first encounters with him after overhearing his blatant disrespect toward them. They both immediately hate him with a passion, vowing to avoid him at all costs. However, they soon come to find this impossible. They are constantly bumping into Mr. Darcy on different occasions, whether it be at the Hertfordshire ball or the family cocktail party.
Both women are under immense pressure to marry as soon as possible. Even then, Elizabeth and Bridget both refuse the offers of a relationship that Mr. Collins and Mr. Cleaver, respectively, provide. This is a very bold decision for Elizabeth, as making such a choice is essentially unthinkable in the Regency Period the novel takes place in. Nonetheless, Bridget arguably leaves the audience equally as shocked by her refusal of Mr. Cleaver—who cheated on her and lied for months at a time but at the end of the day is also her wealthy boss with a high social standing. One could not blame her for accepting him and his plea for a second chance. However, Bridget would rather keep her dignity than keep a man, so she refuses him.
Mr. Collins and Mr. Cleaver both ultimately seek to embarrass the women with their offers. They would never view the women as equal counterparts if they were to actually accept their proposals. On the other hand, to decline the men would leave the women single and forced to continue living under harsh judgment from society.
While Elizabeth is left bruised from Mr. Collins’s embarrasing proposal and Bridget from Mr. Cleaver’s cheating on her, both women hold Mr. Darcy in the back of their minds. When they least expect it, Mr. Darcy offers a profession of love and admiration in his brute, clunky way. Mr. Darcy, a man filled with pride and ego in both stories, cannot help but preface his confession by stating all of her flaws before finally stating that he is completely enamored by her. The women have never been more confused—how could such an arrogant, selfish man offer up such a speech? How are they to go on with their lives, knowing a man they once hated actually cares for them so passionately? The women are at a crossroads.
As time passes and both women are left to grapple with these complicated feelings, they are coincidentally around Mr. Darcy more and more. They see firsthand a softening of his actions and character, something both women once thought impossible. Elizabeth and Bridget fall for a man they swore to hate from the beginning, a man who, despite his own flaws in ego, is adamant that he loves her just as she is. Both women ultimately come to love Mr. Darcy in each of their stories because of his honest and pure intentions in a world of emotionless marriages dependent on financial and social gain. They are both able to have a man who truly cares for them and can do so without sacrificing their individuality and standards.
