Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 18 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Why is Wickham absent from the Netherfield ball?

   • Correct answer: His friend Denny explains that he was obliged to go to town on business, hinting he wished to avoid Darcy
   • He sends word through Mr. Denny that he has taken ill and must keep to his lodgings in Meryton that night
   • He arrives late and leaves again before Elizabeth can find him among the cluster of red coats in the drawing-room
   • He was purposely left out of the Bingleys' invitation to the officers at Mr. Darcy's particular request

   Denny tells the Bennet sisters that Wickham "had been obliged to go to town on business the day before" and adds with a "significant smile" that he does not imagine Wickham would have left "if he had not wanted to avoid a certain gentleman here."

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2. 2

   Question 2. What makes Elizabeth's first two dances at the ball so mortifying?

   • She dances with an officer who talks only of Wickham's absence, which leaves her visibly upset and distracted
   • No gentleman asks her to dance, and she must sit beside Charlotte Lucas while her sisters take the floor
   • Correct answer: Mr. Collins is her partner, and he is awkward, solemn, and frequently moves wrong without realizing it
   • Mr. Darcy watches her critically from across the room, making her self-conscious about every step

   Collins is "awkward and solemn, apologising instead of attending, and often moving wrong without being aware of it," giving Elizabeth "all the shame and misery which a disagreeable partner for a couple of dances can give."

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3. 3

   Question 3. How does Elizabeth come to accept Darcy's invitation to dance?

   • Elizabeth asks Darcy to dance first as a deliberate strategy to question him about Wickham's story
   • Correct answer: Darcy takes her so much by surprise that she accepts without knowing what she is doing
   • Mrs. Bennet instructs Elizabeth to accept, hoping to make Darcy jealous of Wickham's attention
   • Charlotte Lucas arranges the introduction and persuades Elizabeth it would be rude to decline

   Darcy "took her so much by surprise in his application for her hand, that, without knowing what she did, she accepted him." She is immediately left to "fret over her own want of presence of mind."

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4. 4

   Question 4. What does Elizabeth say she and Darcy have in common during their dance?

   • A shared tendency to judge people too quickly and then to hold to their first impressions far too long
   • A deep concern for propriety and social decorum that makes them both uneasy at public balls and large assemblies
   • A love of books and reading, which Darcy proposes as their next subject of conversation
   • Correct answer: An unsocial, taciturn disposition, unwilling to speak unless they can say something that will amaze the room

   Elizabeth says archly that they are "each of an unsocial, taciturn disposition, unwilling to speak, unless we expect to say something that will amaze the whole room, and be handed down to posterity with all the eclat of a proverb."

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5. 5

   Question 5. How does Darcy respond when Elizabeth alludes to meeting Wickham in Meryton?

   • He calmly changes the subject to books and refuses to acknowledge that he has ever heard of Mr. Wickham at all
   • He becomes openly angry and accuses Elizabeth of believing the lies of a steward's son of low character
   • He immediately denies any wrongdoing and explains to her the full history of his quarrel with Wickham at Pemberley
   • Correct answer: A deeper shade of hauteur overspreads his features and he says Wickham is good at making friends but less capable of retaining them

   "A deeper shade of hauteur overspread his features" and he says: "Mr. Wickham is blessed with such happy manners as may ensure his making friends--whether he may be equally capable of retaining them, is less certain."

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6. 6

   Question 6. What does Sir William Lucas hint at during the ball that visibly affects Darcy?

   • That Wickham has spread unfavorable rumors about Darcy throughout the neighborhood of Meryton
   • Correct answer: That a "certain desirable event" between Jane and Bingley will bring congratulations flowing in
   • That Lady Catherine de Bourgh would disapprove of Darcy's attendance at such a provincial assembly
   • That Elizabeth and Darcy make a handsome couple and should consider a courtship together

   Sir William glances at Jane and Bingley and speaks of "a certain desirable event" and "what congratulations will then flow in!" Darcy's eyes turn toward Bingley and Jane "with a very serious expression," foreshadowing his later interference.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What does the narrator reveal about Darcy's feelings after he and Elizabeth part ways on the dance floor?

   • That Darcy admires Elizabeth's wit but considers her family connections an insurmountable obstacle
   • That Darcy feels humiliated and resolves never to speak to Elizabeth again at any future gathering
   • Correct answer: That Darcy harbors a "tolerable powerful feeling" toward Elizabeth that soon procures her pardon
   • That Darcy is completely indifferent and turns his attention immediately to Miss Bingley instead

   The narrator says they parted "on each side dissatisfied, though not to an equal degree, for in Darcy's breast there was a tolerable powerful feeling towards her, which soon procured her pardon, and directed all his anger against another."

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8. 8

   Question 8. What does Miss Bingley claim about Wickham's relationship with Darcy?

   • Correct answer: That Darcy has always been remarkably kind to Wickham, and it is Wickham who has treated Darcy infamously
   • That Wickham and Darcy were once close friends but fell out over a gambling debt at university
   • That Darcy did use Wickham ill, as he claims, but that Wickham was too imprudent to deserve any better
   • That Wickham himself served as the late Mr. Darcy's steward at Pemberley and was dismissed for his dishonesty

   Miss Bingley tells Elizabeth that Darcy's "using him ill, it is perfectly false; for, on the contrary, he has always been remarkably kind to him, though George Wickham has treated Mr. Darcy in a most infamous manner."

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9. 9

   Question 9. How does Elizabeth respond to Miss Bingley's warning about Wickham?

   • She thanks Miss Bingley warmly for her concern and promises to give no further confidence to Wickham's assertions
   • Correct answer: She dismisses it entirely, seeing nothing in it but Miss Bingley's own willful ignorance and Darcy's malice
   • She is deeply shaken and begins to doubt Wickham's account of the living the late Mr. Darcy left him
   • She asks Miss Bingley for specific details so she can judge the situation fairly from both sides

   Elizabeth thinks to herself: "I see nothing in it but your own wilful ignorance and the malice of Mr. Darcy." She attributes Miss Bingley's warning to class snobbery and loyalty to Darcy.

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10. 10

    Question 10. Why does Mr. Collins insist on introducing himself to Mr. Darcy?

    • Because Elizabeth recommends the introduction, assuring him Mr. Darcy would consider it a compliment to his aunt, Lady Catherine
    • Because Mrs. Bennet instructs him to make connections with wealthy gentlemen for the family's benefit
    • Correct answer: Because he overhears Darcy mention Lady Catherine de Bourgh and considers it his clerical duty to pay respects to her nephew
    • Because Charlotte Lucas suggests it would be a good opportunity to improve his social standing in the county

    Collins overhears Darcy mention "his cousin Miss de Bourgh, and of her mother Lady Catherine" and declares it his duty to pay respects, saying he trusts Darcy "will excuse my not having done it before."

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does Mrs. Bennet talk about loudly at supper, and who overhears her?

    • She discusses Elizabeth's interest in Mr. Wickham with Lady Lucas, and Miss Bingley overhears every word of it
    • She complains about the cold ham and chicken served at supper, and Mrs. Hurst overhears and takes visible offense
    • She boasts that Elizabeth will soon marry Mr. Collins, while Lady Lucas listens and Mr. Bingley overhears
    • Correct answer: She predicts Jane will soon marry Bingley and enumerates the match's advantages, while Mr. Darcy sits opposite and overhears

    Mrs. Bennet talks "freely, openly, and of nothing else but her expectation that Jane would soon be married to Mr. Bingley" while Darcy sits opposite. Elizabeth watches his expression change "from indignant contempt to a composed and steady gravity."

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12. 12

    Question 12. How does Mr. Bennet stop Mary from singing a third song at the ball?

    • Correct answer: He says aloud: "That will do extremely well, child. You have delighted us long enough. Let the other young ladies have time to exhibit."
    • He sends Elizabeth to tell Mary quietly that the carriage has come and the family must now take its leave
    • He politely asks the musicians to begin another dance, so that the company may return to the ball-room floor
    • He whispers to Mrs. Bennet, who gently suggests that Mary should rest and let Miss Bingley play for the company

    After Mary finishes her second song and prepares for another, Mr. Bennet says publicly: "That will do extremely well, child. You have delighted us long enough. Let the other young ladies have time to exhibit."

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13. 13

    Question 13. What prevents Elizabeth from dancing with anyone else for the rest of the evening?

    • Correct answer: Mr. Collins stations himself at her side the entire evening, blocking other partners despite her refusals to dance with him again
    • Mr. Darcy stands near her all evening, and his cold demeanor discourages every officer and gentleman from approaching her
    • Mrs. Bennet keeps her at the supper table to hear about Jane's match until the dancing is nearly over
    • She is so ashamed of her family's behaviour that she retreats to sit beside Charlotte Lucas for the rest of the night

    Though Elizabeth refuses to dance with Collins again, he stays by her side all evening, claiming "his chief object was by delicate attentions to recommend himself to her." Charlotte Lucas relieves Elizabeth by engaging Collins in conversation.

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14. 14

    Question 14. What is Mrs. Bennet confident of as she leaves the Netherfield ball?

    • That Mr. Bennet will invite Bingley to hunt at Longbourn, cementing the family alliance
    • That Mr. Darcy will propose to Elizabeth within the month, uniting the two families in a grand match
    • Correct answer: That Jane will be settled at Netherfield within months and that Elizabeth will marry Mr. Collins
    • That Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley will soon call at Longbourn to welcome Jane into their family

    Mrs. Bennet leaves "under the delightful persuasion" that Jane will be settled at Netherfield "in the course of three or four months" and thinks "with equal certainty" that Elizabeth will marry Collins, though with less pleasure since "Elizabeth was the least dear to her of all her children."

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15. 15

    Question 15. What literary technique does Austen use in Elizabeth's remark that she and Darcy share "an unsocial, taciturn disposition"?

    • Foreshadowing, because this accurately predicts their eventual withdrawal from society together
    • Correct answer: Irony, because the description clearly fits Darcy but is the opposite of Elizabeth's lively, sociable nature
    • Hyperbole, because Austen exaggerates both characters' shyness to create comedy in the scene
    • Symbolism, because their long silence during the dance represents the barriers of rank and class that divide them

    The remark is ironic because Elizabeth is the opposite of unsocial and taciturn--she is lively, talkative, and socially confident. Darcy recognizes this too, saying "This is no very striking resemblance of your own character, I am sure." Elizabeth is using self-deprecating wit to tease him.

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