Pride and Prejudice and Letters to Alice Speech Good Morning class, Today I would like to talk to you

about the value of education in personal relationships. Education is taken for granted by many people across Australia. However, what most people do not realise is that education can have a high impact in personal relationships So what is education? Some say that education is the process of gaining knowledge, while others say that it is simply a matter of going to school. The English standard dictionary defines education, and I quote, as the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction By studying and comparing Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice and Fey Weldons Letters to Alice on first reading Jane Austen, we can conclude that by balancing the knowledge gained from education and real-life experiences can lead to successful relationships in life. During the Augustan period, education for men and women differed. The education that men received was similar to that of today while the educated women were more commonly known as accomplished women. An accomplished women must have a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing and the modern languages unlike the men who studied science, history, geography, mathematics and literature. This shows an inequality in the education between men and women. Since, education did not change the circumstances of women in this society, marriage was considered more valuable than proper education. As a result, womens education became another way to entrap wealthy men into marriage; by the allusion of the accomplished woman, and such was the marriage of Mr and Mrs Bennet. Mr Bennet, a clever and insightful man, made a mistake by marrying Mrs Bennet. He was captivated by youth and beauty, and the appearance of good humour. However, Mrs Bennet was in fact described as a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper. This had soon put an end to all affection for her that Mr Bennet had. This shows that Austen is implicitly satirizing the notion of the uneducated woman, or more commonly the known as the accomplished woman. Similarly, Weldon described the accomplished women of her time as the Angel of the House citing Virginia Woolf. This angel was described as never had a mind or a wish of her own and would encourage to flatter, deceive, and use all the arts and wiles of our [female] sex. This was a stereotyped, very acceptable image for the perfect woman and mother; just like Mrs Bennet was. Weldon, just like Austen is mocking this notion, however, she does so explicitly. This shows that by not being fully educated, the chances of having successful relationships in life is lower than most.

By properly balancing the knowledge gained, with life experiences can help to build positive relationships with others. Mrs Gardiners and Elizabeth Bennets relationship with each other in Pride and Prejudice can be described thus. Mrs Gardiner is an amiable, intelligent, elegant woman, suggesting that she is a well-educated person. Upon her arrival at Longbourn, the first thing she did was to distribute her presents and describe the newest fashions; signifying that she is a woman who is aware of the world around her. Since Elizabeth is our protagonist, we know that she is a well-read young woman who likes to discuss books as well as other matters with her villagers. Elizabeths portrayal of the Gardiners is affectionate and positive. This is reinforced by her reference to Mrs Gardiner as My dear aunt on numerous occasions, suggesting a closer, happier relationship between the two. Likewise, in Letters to Alice, this idea of properly balancing education with life experiences is explored through Alices parents marital relationship. Enid, Aunt Fays sister, is a well-educated woman who is aware of the world around her, just like Mrs Gardiner. We, as the reader, can see that she is an educated woman in letter six, when Aunt Fay accuses her of not instilling the enthusiasm for reading Emma by Jane Austen into the little punk head Alice. Aunt Fays words a book [Emma] I know you have read and loved implies that Enid is a woman who reads literature with the capital L. However, the words, Your mother reads books on tennis, I know shows that she does not simply read Literature books but has a balance between the types of books she reads. Aunt Fays jealousy in Enids relationship with her husband, Edward, is shown in letter six, with her words, It is true you must set the dough to rise before going to bed so that Edward can have fresh home-baked bread rolls for breakfastbut, because you do that, must no writer ever write about it? Can you own it, because you do it? Here, Weldon is implicitly suggesting that Aunt Fay is jealous over the life her sister is leading. Therefore, combining both Mrs Gardiners and Enids relationships and their similarities; we can conclude that properly balancing education and life experiences can lead to successful relationships in life. In conclusion, happiness and good relationships in life can be affected by our education and how we apply it to the world. By studying the two texts, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and Letters to Alice on First Reading Jane Austen by Fay Weldon, we can see this idea is reinforced; through many characters and is applicable to different contexts. Thank You.