Chapter 43 Summary

Elizabeth is so stunned by the grandeur of the Pemberley estate that she nearly regrets turning down Darcy’s proposal; she finds herself fantasizing about being the mistress of the house. Mrs. Reynolds, the housekeeper, takes the visitors on a tour of the estate. She is all praise about Darcy and Georgiana. She also speaks glowingly of Darcy’s affection for his sister and tells the visitors how well he treats her. Elizabeth’s opinion of Darcy improves further.

The visitors are out in the garden when, rather unexpectedly, Darcy arrives. This sudden meeting makes Darcy and Elizabeth uncomfortable. However, Darcy exchanges polite curtsies with the visitors, but excuses himself after a while. Elizabeth is embarrassed; she fears Darcy might think that she has come to meet him. Meanwhile, Darcy joins the guests again. The Gardiners and Darcy introduce themselves to each other. Darcy is very polite toward the Gardiners; in fact, Elizabeth notices that he is not condescending toward them despite their lower social status.

Walking together through the garden, Elizabeth tells Darcy that she did not expect to see him. Darcy tells her that he had to arrive early to make preparations for some more guests who are expected the following day. He asks Elizabeth if she wants to meet Georgiana; Elizabeth is surprised but accepts. The Gardiners are impressed by Darcy’s politeness, although they still believe Wickham’s version of events. Knowing as much, Elizabeth tries to subtly suggest that Wickham’s version might not be accurate.

Chapter 44 Summary

The next day, Darcy and Georgiana meet Elizabeth at the inn where she is put up. Elizabeth becomes cautious and self-conscious; she wants to make a good first impression on Georgiana. She is relieved to find that Georgiana is equally anxious. Ms. Darcy comes across as a timid, humble, and well-manned woman to Elizabeth. However, she also notices that Ms. Darcy seems a little too eager to please people. Mr. Bingley joins them a little later and greets them in his usual courteous and polite manner. He is in fact so well-mannered that Elizabeth is willing to cut him some slack and forgive him for his mistakes.

The Gardiners think Mr. Darcy is in love with Elizabeth, who in turn notices a conspicuous lack of affection between Mr. Bingley and Georgiana. Mr. Bingley asks Elizabeth about Jane in private, and he also apologizes for not visiting her for so long. Darcy then invites Elizabeth and the Gardiners for dinner. The Gardiners grow more convinced that Darcy is in love with Elizabeth. Elizabeth herself is surprised and impressed at Darcy’s politeness toward the Gardiners. She is equally impressed by his sustained love for her despite her rude rejection.

Chapter 45 Summary

With much civility and warmth, Georgiana welcomes Elizabeth and the Gardiners at Pemberley. Ms. Bingley and Mrs. Hurst are present, too; they reluctantly curtsy and enquire about Mrs. Bennet’s health. They do not converse much with the Gardiners and Elizabeth. Darcy arrives, and all heads turn toward him. Elizabeth tries to be as comfortable as possible in Darcy’s presence. Seeing Darcy trying to facilitate a conversation between Elizabeth and Georgiana, Caroline Bingley alludes to Wickham in her bid to cause some discomfort to Georgiana and Darcy. However, Elizabeth handles the situation deftly; she does not allow this topic to flourish. Darcy in turn is deeply impressed by Elizabeth’s deft handling of this situation.

When the guests leave, Ms. Bingley seeks out Georgiana to criticize Elizabeth, but Elizabeth has already made a good impression on Georgiana. Ms. Bingley then tries to taunt Darcy for having liked Elizabeth. However, much to Ms. Bingley’s dismay, Darcy states that he still finds Elizabeth very handsome.

On their way back, Elizabeth is too shy to ask Mrs. Gardiner about her opinion of Darcy. Meanwhile, Mrs. Gardiner, too, wants to tell Elizabeth what she thinks of Darcy, but thinks it would be proper to wait for Elizabeth to bring up the topic.

Chapter 46 Summary

Elizabeth receives two letters from Jane; they inform her that Lydia has eloped from Brighton with Wickham and that the Fosters believe they might have run away to Scotland. Jane asks Elizabeth and the Gardiners to return at once to Longbourn to help Mr. Bennet look for Lydia. The family thinks Wickham might not actually intend to marry Lydia. Elizabeth feels the same way as well; in fact, she is certain that Wickham must have misled the gullible Lydia.

Having received the terrible news, Elizabeth rushes out to summon the Gardiners, only to find Darcy outside. Looking at her terrible state, Darcy enquires if all is well. He then sends his servant to fetch the Gardiners and tries to console a distraught Elizabeth. Darcy wonders if he should have told the townsfolk the truth about Wickham much earlier. He thinks this catastrophe might not have happened had he done so. Elizabeth realizes that this scandal will prevent Darcy from proposing once again. She also realizes that she is in love with Darcy, who takes leave after swearing to keep the scandal a secret. When the Gardiners arrive, they decide to leave for Longbourn immediately.

Chapter 47 Summary

On their way to Longbourn, the Gardiners try to console Elizabeth by telling her that Wickham will eventually marry Lydia. Elizabeth is not convinced of this, however. She blames herself for not revealing the truth about Wickham to her family earlier. The Bennets are relieved to see them. They have no further information regarding Lydia. Mr. Bennet plans to look for them in London. Mrs. Bennet is devastated and blames the Fosters for not taking proper care of Lydia. She is also worried that Mr. Bennet, out of anger, might get involved in a physical confrontation with Wickham, though Mr. Bennet is ill suited for physical contests. Meanwhile, Mr. Gardiner promises to help Mr. Bennet look for Lydia in London.

Jane and Elizabeth privately discuss this development at length. Jane shows Elizabeth the letter Lydia had left before eloping. In the letter, Lydia has hinted at getting married to Wickham.

Chapter 48 Summary

Mr. Gardiner leaves for London to help Mr. Bennet, whereas Mrs. Gardiner decides to stay back at Longbourn to help the Bennets. After reaching London, Mr. Gardiner writes a letter detailing Mr. Bennet’s plan to search every hotel in London. Mr. Bennet also intends to ask Mr. Foster for help in finding out information about the eloped couple. Meanwhile, Collins writes to the Bennets to condemn the Bennets’ lack of parental attention and even alludes that he is thankful that Elizabeth had turned down his proposal.

Mr. Gardiner writes another letter to the Bennets informing them that Mr. Foster had been unable to gather information about Lydia and Wickham. He also informs them that Wickham has an active debt of one thousand pounds. Meanwhile, Mr. Bennet returns to Longbourn, leaving the search to Mr. Gardiner altogether. When he speaks to Elizabeth, he blames himself for this turn of events.

Elizabeth remains anxious; she is concerned that the scandal might ruin her prospects of getting married to Darcy.

Chapter 49 Summary

Mr. Gardiner sends an express letter to Mr. Bennet, letting him know that he has found Wickham, who has agreed to marry Lydia in exchange for her fortune after Mr. Bennet’s death. Wickham has also demanded an annual sum of one hundred pounds. Mr. Bennet thinks Mr. Gardiner must have paid a hefty sum to Wickham to persuade him to marry Lydia. He finds himself feeling grateful to Mr. Gardiner.

Chapter 50 Summary

Wanting to repay Mr. Gardiner, Mr. Bennet plans to find out how much Mr. Gardiner might have paid Wickham. Nonetheless, he is still reluctant to welcome Lydia and Wickham to Longbourn, and also refuses to pay for her wedding dress.

Elizabeth believes that a future with Darcy is now impossible, since Wickham is now a part of their family. Mr. Gardiner informs the Bennets in a letter that Wickham is quitting military service to work as an ensign in the North. Wickham has also promised to pay off his debts. Meanwhile, Jane and Elizabeth convince Mr. Bennet to welcome the newlywed couple to Longbourn.

Chapter 51 Summary

When Lydia and Wickham arrive in Longbourn, they show no shame or regret. Jane and Elizabeth are appalled by Lydia’s conduct. With Elizabeth, Lydia discusses the details of her wedding, during which time she seems entirely ungrateful toward the Gardiners for their pivotal role in her wedding. She even complains that the Gardiners restricted her movements, preventing her from leaving the house. She mentions in passing that Darcy had attended the wedding, but immediately regrets telling Elizabeth this. Elizabeth is shocked to learn about Darcy’s attendance. She writes a letter to Mrs. Gardiner detailing Darcy’s involvement in the matter.

Chapter 52 Summary

In her letter to Elizabeth, Mrs. Gardiner details the events that had transpired in London. Believing himself partly responsible for Lydia’s elopement, Darcy had gone to London to look for the couple, the letter reveals. Darcy knew that Wickham had a friend in London, and it was this friend who helped him locate the couple. Darcy had also settled all of Wickham’s debts, and after consultation with Mr. Gardiner, Darcy had also provided money for the wedding. He attended the wedding merely to avoid further mishaps, the letter states.

Darcy, moreover, did not wish for people to find out about his selflessness; he’d wished that Mr. Gardiner would take all the credit. In her letter, Mrs. Gardiner also mentions that Darcy had done all this on account of his love for Elizabeth, who realizes that it must have been extremely hard for Darcy to set apart his pride and search for Wickham and Lydia. Meanwhile, Wickham visits Elizabeth in a bid to find out just how much she knows about him. Elizabeth lets Wickham know that she is fully aware of the truth, which stuns Wickham. For Lydia’s sake, Elizabeth eventually decides that reconciliation and forgiveness might be the best course of action.

Chapters 43–52 Analysis

This section shows that Elizabeth does after all regret suspecting Darcy. In fact, her opinion of Darcy changes to the extent that she finds herself increasingly in love with him. During her time at Pemberley, she gets reports of Darcy’s good character from minor characters in the novel, such as housekeepers and the Gardiners. When she encounters Darcy again, she is forced to re-evaluate her opinion of him. Elizabeth, notably, also wins Ms. Darcy’s favor. Another major turning point in this section is the news of Wickham’s elopement with Lydia. Although this elopement is a disgrace for the Bennet family, it is an opportunity for Darcy to grow closer to Elizabeth and win her trust and love. Elizabeth and Jane are convinced that Wickham does not intend to marry Lydia. Indeed, their suspicions are confirmed when he demands Lydia’s share of her meagre inheritance to repay his debts. This worries Elizabeth, who fears that this scandal might convince Darcy to not propose marriage to her. However, she later learns that it was Darcy himself who had discovered Wickham’s whereabouts and even paid off his debts to secure Wickham’s marriage to Lydia.

By extension, this section also sheds light on the transformations in Darcy’s personality. He grows to realize that personal relations are more important than social status. This is evident when his love for Elizabeth remains unaffected by Lydia’s elopement. Lydia’s shallowness shows that the pursuit of material interests at the cost of personal relationships and intellectual growth is another factor that sustains patriarchy.