Mr. Darcy

I must confess: I'm a little in love with Mr. Darcy. As a literary character, he can't be beaten. Quiet, brooding, misunderstood, handsome, rich. Hmmm-mmm.

(for those of you who have no idea who I'm talking about: Mr. Darcy is from Pride and Prejudice)

Anyway, I have loved P&P since the first time I read it in high school. I was the only one to actually read it at first, everyone else thought it was lame. That is, until I started to rave about it. After that, I think some of the guys even read it. I loved the tension, the romance, the strength of the characters. I read it and fell in love.

I was completely taken in by Wickham. (poor Lizzie) I was annoyed by Mrs. Bennett. ( "Oh my poor nerves") I was cracked up by Mr. Bennett. (he's so superior and sarcastic) I wanted to strangle Lydia. (stupid girl) I recognized a little of myself in Lizzie. (think before you speak) But above all, I wanted to marry Mr. Darcy. He was so strong.

And then I did. There are so many similarities in my relationship with Chris. I'll list them.
1. I despised Chris when I first met him. He was arrogant.
2. I thought I knew everything.
3. I was dating a "Wickham" when Chris and I met. Humiliating.
4. My mother didn't like Chris either.
5. Chris' family was much more educated and wealthier than mine. His great grandfather was
the first mayor of Leeds. He has doctors and engineers in his family. I come from farmers and coal miners.
6. When Chris asked me out for the first time, I didn't even realize it was a date. He was so far above me, it never crossed my mind that he would be interested in me.
7. Once we really knew each other, it was completely obvious that we were made for each other.
8. Chris is a deep thinker and prone to being misunderstood.
9. He was the only man that I ever dated. The rest were all boys.
10. Chris is handsome. Alas, he is not rich.

I'm sure that I could go on and on but I won't bore you any more.

The only cinematic telling of the book that pleases me is the BBC mini-series version. It's almost 6 hours long and gets much of its dialogue directly from the book. Maggie and I watch it together. Probably too much. At least 3 or 4 times a year. Just the thought of it makes me sigh with supressed pleasure.

So now I have the joy of watching my sweet daughter fall in love with Mr. Darcy. As we watch the last hour of the mini-series, we have the exact same goofy smile on our face. Such a great story!