Pride and Prejudice - Sociological Analysis

I picked this movie, first because I just love it, but second because I think it does a great job of showing how people interact with their surroundings based on how they interpret the world.  This story follows several characters from varying socioeconomic standings in English society in the 1800's.  These characters, throughout the course of the story, must confront the ways that they interpret their worlds and must reassess their outlooks.  The main two characters, Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy, are both prideful and prejudicial - but their outlooks in this way are incredibly circumstantial to the ways in which they were raised and their current surroundings (it takes their meeting to change each other's perspectives).  Elizabeth is a child of a lower, middle class family struggling to secure their future.  Mr Darcy, in contrast, comes from a very wealthy family, but that has been through periods of betrayal at the expense of the ones he loves.  The meanings and value that these two both place in their worlds revolve around family and protecting the ones they love. Initially these two do not like each other, but after slowly learning of each other's loyalty and integrity towards their family, they come to respect and eventually love one another.  Both of these characters are guided by strong values and connections to family - that is what drives them and that is what the overarching message of the story comes to be, that family is essential.