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English Literature Quiz - Pride and Prejudice - Context (Questions)

Understand the world behind Pride and Prejudice. Explore Regency society, class expectations and marriage laws so you can explain how context shapes characters, plot and Austen’s message.

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Fascinating Fact:

The Bennet estate is entailed to a male heir, meaning it must pass to Mr Collins, which reflects real inheritance laws that limited women’s financial security.

In GCSE English Literature, studying the context of Pride and Prejudice helps you understand Regency class structures, marriage pressures, property laws and gender expectations, and how these shape the Bennet family’s choices.

Key Terms

  • Regency era: The early nineteenth-century period in Britain when Austen was writing, marked by strict social classes and formal manners.
  • Entailment: A legal rule that forces land to pass to a particular heir, often preventing daughters from inheriting an estate.
  • Patriarchal society: A system in which men hold most legal, economic and social power, especially over property and family decisions.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What historical period is Pride and Prejudice set in?

Pride and Prejudice is set in the Regency era in early nineteenth-century England. This context explains the focus on manners, reputation, social visiting, balls and carefully arranged marriages.

How do inheritance laws affect the Bennet sisters?

Because the family estate is legally tied to a male line, the Bennet sisters cannot inherit it. This makes financially secure marriage vital and increases tension around Mr Collins and Mr Darcy.

Why are class and social rank important in Pride and Prejudice?

Class and rank influence who may visit, dance or marry whom. Characters such as Darcy, Lady Catherine and the Bennets show how money, family name and connections shape opportunity and prejudice.

Try These Related Quizzes

1. When was Pride and Prejudice first published?
[ ] 1743
[ ] 1783
[ ] 1813
[ ] 1853
2. Which of the following is correct?
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published anonymously
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published under a female pseudonym
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published under a male pseudonym
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published under Jane Austen's own name
3. What wars were taking place in Europe at the time the novel was written?
[ ] The Hundred Years' War
[ ] The Thirty Years' War
[ ] The Napoleonic Wars
[ ] The Crimean War
4. Which of the following is correct?
[ ] Austen was never educated
[ ] Austen received some private tutoring and spent some time at boarding school
[ ] Austen was educated until the age of eighteen in her local school
[ ] Austen attended University at Oxford
5. What was the profession of Austen's father?
[ ] Soldier
[ ] Doctor
[ ] Professor
[ ] Clergyman
6. Jane, her sister and her mother spent a few years without a permanent residence. What was the cause?
[ ] They lost their home through fire
[ ] Jane's father died
[ ] The family lost their home through debt
[ ] Jane's work as an author involved much travel
7. How did Austen earn her living?
[ ] As an author
[ ] As a governess
[ ] As a teacher in a boarding school
[ ] She married a wealthy gentleman instead of earning a living
8. Which of the following literary forms is associated with, and became very popular during, the eighteenth century?
[ ] Narrative poetry
[ ] Tragedy
[ ] The novel
[ ] The comic book
9. Austen was writing during which era?
[ ] The Elizabethan
[ ] The Restoration
[ ] The Regency
[ ] The Victorian
10. In the novel, Mr Collins is given a "living" by Lady Catherine and Mr Wickham claims to have been cheated of a "living" by Mr Darcy. To which of the following does this term refer?
[ ] The inheritance promised to a clergyman
[ ] The land and money which a clergyman received as income to support his work in the church and parish
[ ] The house and its furnishings given to a clergyman as his permanent possession
[ ] An hourly rate paid to clergymen for their work in the church and the parish
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English Literature Quiz - Pride and Prejudice - Context (Answers)
1. When was Pride and Prejudice first published?
[ ] 1743
[ ] 1783
[x] 1813
[ ] 1853
The novel was first published in January 1813, and is possibly a heavily revised version of an earlier unpublished work from the 1790s, First Impressions
2. Which of the following is correct?
[x] Pride and Prejudice was first published anonymously
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published under a female pseudonym
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published under a male pseudonym
[ ] Pride and Prejudice was first published under Jane Austen's own name
The original title page offers this identification: "by the Author of 'Sense and Sensibility'"
3. What wars were taking place in Europe at the time the novel was written?
[ ] The Hundred Years' War
[ ] The Thirty Years' War
[x] The Napoleonic Wars
[ ] The Crimean War
Soldiers and officers feature in many of Austen's novels and are a disruptive presence in the fictional Meryton
4. Which of the following is correct?
[ ] Austen was never educated
[x] Austen received some private tutoring and spent some time at boarding school
[ ] Austen was educated until the age of eighteen in her local school
[ ] Austen attended University at Oxford
Education for girls was a luxury even for a well-off family such as the Austens. Jane and her only sister received some private tuition and a single year at boarding school
5. What was the profession of Austen's father?
[ ] Soldier
[ ] Doctor
[ ] Professor
[x] Clergyman
Having grown up in a Rectory, Austen would have met with many clergymen. Two of her brothers also were ordained. Does this knowledge affect your view of the fictional Mr Collins and his alternately fawning and pompous behaviour?
6. Jane, her sister and her mother spent a few years without a permanent residence. What was the cause?
[ ] They lost their home through fire
[x] Jane's father died
[ ] The family lost their home through debt
[ ] Jane's work as an author involved much travel
The women of the family had very little income and lived with friends and various family members for several years before finally settling in Chawton (through the help of one of Jane's brothers). Many unmarried women of this class led lives of insecurity in contrast to those who could rely on a father or a husband for financial support
7. How did Austen earn her living?
[x] As an author
[ ] As a governess
[ ] As a teacher in a boarding school
[ ] She married a wealthy gentleman instead of earning a living
While her characters agonise over how a family of five daughters can survive unless the daughters marry well, Jane herself became a professional author. She was not entirely able to support herself, her mother and her sister through her writing, however, and they continued to depend on the generosity of male family members
8. Which of the following literary forms is associated with, and became very popular during, the eighteenth century?
[ ] Narrative poetry
[ ] Tragedy
[x] The novel
[ ] The comic book
Jane Austen read widely, especially enjoying novels, which were a relatively new art form. Her heroine, Elizabeth, unwillingly draws attention to herself by her appreciation of books
9. Austen was writing during which era?
[ ] The Elizabethan
[ ] The Restoration
[x] The Regency
[ ] The Victorian
The "Regency" refers to the time during which George III's insanity left him unfit to rule the country; his son, who acted in his place as ruler, was known as the Prince Regent
10. In the novel, Mr Collins is given a "living" by Lady Catherine and Mr Wickham claims to have been cheated of a "living" by Mr Darcy. To which of the following does this term refer?
[ ] The inheritance promised to a clergyman
[x] The land and money which a clergyman received as income to support his work in the church and parish
[ ] The house and its furnishings given to a clergyman as his permanent possession
[ ] An hourly rate paid to clergymen for their work in the church and the parish
A clergyman's income depended entirely on the wealth of the parish and on the goodwill of his patron. Wickham claims to have been promised a good living. Mr Collins panders shamelessly to Lady Catherine in the awareness that his financial well-being is entirely dependent on her. Austen's family would have depended on the living her father was given as a clergyman
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