Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 57 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Why did Lady Catherine de Bourgh visit Longbourn?

   • To congratulate the Bennets on Jane's engagement to Bingley
   • Correct answer: To demand Elizabeth renounce any attachment to Mr. Darcy
   • To invite Elizabeth to stay at Rosings again in the spring
   • To bring Elizabeth news of Charlotte and Mr. Collins

   Lady Catherine traveled from Rosings "for the sole purpose of breaking off her supposed engagement with Mr. Darcy."

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2. 2

   Question 2. How did the rumor of Elizabeth and Darcy's engagement originate?

   • Lady Catherine invented the rumor herself as a way to test Elizabeth
   • Darcy told Bingley about his intentions, and Bingley told Jane
   • Elizabeth confided her feelings to Charlotte in a letter to Hunsford
   • Correct answer: Neighborhood gossip linked them because Darcy is Bingley's friend and Elizabeth is Jane's sister

   Elizabeth deduced that "his being the intimate friend of Bingley, and her being the sister of Jane" made everyone assume a second wedding would follow.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Through which chain of people did the engagement rumor reach Lady Catherine?

   • Charlotte Lucas directly to Lady Catherine
   • Mrs. Bennet to Lady Lucas to Mr. Collins to Lady Catherine
   • Correct answer: The Lucases to the Collinses to Lady Catherine
   • Mr. Wickham to Colonel Fitzwilliam to Lady Catherine

   Elizabeth concluded the report reached Lady Catherine "through their communication with the Collinses"—the Lucases told Collins, who told Lady Catherine.

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4. 4

   Question 4. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • True or False: Elizabeth fears that Lady Catherine's arguments, which she herself found weak, might carry weight with Darcy.

     Happened

     Elizabeth worries that "with his notions of dignity, he would probably feel that the arguments, which to Elizabeth had appeared weak and ridiculous, contained much good sense and solid reasoning."

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5. 5

   Question 5. Who wrote the letter that Mr. Bennet shares with Elizabeth?

   • Correct answer: Mr. Collins
   • Mr. Bingley
   • Mr. Darcy
   • Lady Catherine de Bourgh

   Mr. Bennet reveals: "This letter is from Mr. Collins," surprising Elizabeth who expected it from either the aunt or the nephew.

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6. 6

   Question 6. How does Mr. Collins describe Darcy in his letter?

   • An unworthy suitor whose aunt has already promised him to her own daughter
   • A proud and disagreeable man whom no sensible young woman could wish to marry
   • Correct answer: One of the most illustrious personages in this land, blessed with splendid property, noble kindred, and extensive patronage
   • A gentleman of moderate fortune and good character, though of no great family

   Collins lavishly describes Darcy as "blessed, in a peculiar way, with every thing the heart of mortal can most desire."

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7. 7

   Question 7. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

   • True or False: Mr. Bennet immediately realizes that the rumor about Elizabeth and Darcy might be true.

     Didn't happen

     Mr. Bennet finds the idea utterly laughable, citing Darcy's supposed "perfect indifference" and Elizabeth's "pointed dislike" as proof the rumor is absurd.

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8. 8

   Question 8. What does "discomposure" mean as used in: "The discomposure of spirits which this extraordinary visit threw Elizabeth into"?

   • A feeling of overwhelming sorrow and grief
   • The gradual decay or rotting of animal matter
   • Calm, settled, and untroubled composure
   • Correct answer: A state of agitation and disturbed composure

   "Discomposure" means a loss of calm composure—a state of emotional agitation and unease.

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9. 9

   Question 9. What resolution does Elizabeth make if Darcy does not return to Netherfield?

   • She will travel to London to confront Lady Catherine
   • Correct answer: She will give up all hope and stop regretting him
   • She will ask Jane to persuade Bingley to bring him back
   • She will write to Darcy herself and explain her feelings

   Elizabeth resolves: "I shall then give over every expectation, every wish of his constancy. If he is satisfied with only regretting me... I shall soon cease to regret him at all."

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does "sagacity" mean as used in: "I may defy even your sagacity, to discover the name of your admirer"?

    • Correct answer: Keen mental discernment and shrewdness
    • Reckless boldness and impudence
    • Foolishness, ignorance, and poor judgment
    • Skill in reciting heroic legends

    "Sagacity" means keen mental discernment and good judgment—Mr. Bennet compliments Elizabeth's perceptiveness while challenging her to guess.

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11. 11

    Question 11. Which of these events actually happened in this chapter?

    • True or False: Mr. Collins's letter approves of the Bennets receiving Lydia and Wickham into their home after the marriage.

      Didn't happen

      Collins declares "It was an encouragement of vice" and says he would have "very strenuously opposed it" had he been rector of Longbourn.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What famous line does Mr. Bennet deliver in this chapter about the purpose of life?

    • Correct answer: "For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?"
    • "There are few people whom I really love, and still fewer of whom I think well."
    • "I have been a selfish being all my life, in practice, though not in principle."
    • "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."

    This line captures Mr. Bennet's detached, witty philosophy of treating life as entertainment.

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13. 13

    Question 13. Why does Elizabeth force herself to laugh at the end of the chapter?

    • She genuinely finds Mr. Collins's letter and its warnings amusing
    • She wants to encourage her father to share more of the gossip
    • Correct answer: She must conceal her real feelings about Darcy from her father
    • She thinks Lady Catherine's visit was too absurd to take seriously

    Austen writes: "It was necessary to laugh, when she would rather have cried. Her father had most cruelly mortified her, by what he said of Mr. Darcy's indifference."

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