Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 50 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Why had the Bennet family failed to save money before Lydia's crisis?

   • Mr. Collins had generously promised to support the widow and daughters
   • Mr. Bennet had lost much of his fortune through unfortunate investments
   • They expected Jane's marriage to a wealthy gentleman to provide for them
   • Correct answer: They expected a son who would break the entail and provide for the family

   The Bennets always expected a son who would join in cutting off the entail, making saving seem unnecessary. After five daughters, it was too late.

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2. 2

   Question 2. How much does the marriage arrangement cost Mr. Bennet per year beyond his current expenses?

   • Fifty pounds
   • Correct answer: Scarcely ten pounds
   • Five hundred pounds
   • One hundred pounds

   Mr. Bennet calculates he would "scarcely be ten pounds a year the loser" since Lydia's existing allowances and gifts already approached the hundred pounds promised.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • Did Mrs. Bennet feel any shame about Lydia's elopement when celebrating the marriage news?

     Didn't happen

     The narrator states explicitly: "No sentiment of shame gave a damp to her triumph." Mrs. Bennet was entirely consumed by wedding preparations.

   • Did Mr. Bennet immediately agree to let Lydia and Wickham visit Longbourn?

     Didn't happen

     Mr. Bennet initially gave "an absolute negative" and refused to receive them. Jane and Elizabeth had to persuade him earnestly before he relented.

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4. 4

   Question 4. What does the word "dilatory" mean as used to describe Mr. Bennet?

   • Tending to widen; expanding or enlarging
   • Quick to act; eager to begin immediately
   • Correct answer: Slow to act; inclined to procrastinate
   • Careless; inclined to neglect one's duties

   "Though dilatory in undertaking business, he was quick in its execution" — meaning Mr. Bennet procrastinates starting tasks but finishes them quickly once begun.

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5. 5

   Question 5. What does Elizabeth believe would be Darcy's reaction if he knew she now welcomed his proposal?

   • Correct answer: He would feel triumphant satisfaction
   • He would be too generous to feel victorious
   • He would pity her family's misfortune
   • He would eagerly repeat his proposal

   Elizabeth thinks "What a triumph for him" if he knew his rejected proposals "would now have been most gladly and gratefully received."

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6. 6

   Question 6. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • Did Elizabeth fear that Darcy would spread news of Lydia's elopement?

     Didn't happen

     Elizabeth had no fear of the news spreading through Darcy, noting "there were few people on whose secrecy she would have more confidently depended."

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7. 7

   Question 7. What military position is arranged for Wickham?

   • Correct answer: An ensigncy in a regular regiment in the North
   • A lieutenancy in Colonel Forster's regiment
   • A place in the militia regiment quartered at Meryton
   • A captaincy in his old militia regiment at Brighton

   Mr. Gardiner arranges an ensigncy (the lowest commissioned officer rank) in a regular regiment quartered in the North, deliberately far from the scene of scandal.

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8. 8

   Question 8. What does "connubial felicity" mean in the context of Elizabeth's reflections?

   • Social approval of a union
   • Correct answer: Marital happiness and bliss
   • A formal wedding ceremony
   • Financial security in marriage

   Elizabeth reflects that her imagined marriage with Darcy could have shown the world "what connubial felicity really was" — meaning true marital happiness.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Why does Elizabeth consider Darcy the ideal partner for her?

   • His temper and opinions were exactly like her own — both of them lively, playful and quick to laugh
   • His social position made him suitable — no other gentleman of her acquaintance was so distinguished
   • His fortune would rescue her family — providing for her mother and unmarried sisters in the future
   • Correct answer: His disposition and talents would complement hers — her liveliness softening him, his judgment benefiting her

   Elizabeth reflects that "by her ease and liveliness, his mind might have been softened" and "from his judgement, information, and knowledge of the world, she must have received benefit of greater importance."

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10. 10

    Question 10. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

    • Did the Meryton neighbors react with genuine goodwill toward Lydia's marriage?

      Didn't happen

      The neighbors' supposed good wishes barely changed, since "with such an husband her misery was considered certain." The narrator notes they would have preferred a more scandalous outcome for better gossip.

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does Mrs. Bennet consider more disgraceful than Lydia's elopement?

    • Mr. Bennet's refusal to receive the couple at Longbourn
    • Lydia's removal to a regiment in the distant North
    • Correct answer: Mr. Bennet's refusal to buy Lydia wedding clothes
    • Wickham's numerous debts to the Meryton tradesmen

    Mrs. Bennet "was more alive to the disgrace which her want of new clothes must reflect on her daughter's nuptials, than to any sense of shame at her eloping."

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12. 12

    Question 12. Who pledges to pay Wickham's creditors in Brighton?

    • Mr. Bennet
    • Mr. Darcy
    • Correct answer: Mr. Gardiner
    • Colonel Forster

    Mr. Gardiner writes that he has "pledged myself" to provide "assurances of speedy payment" to Wickham's various creditors in and near Brighton.

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