Comparing Pride and Prejudice to Macbeth

In the first few chapters of ‘Pride and Prejudice’, Jane Austen portrays Fitzwilliam Darcy as: â€Å"so high and conceited†, â€Å"a most disagreeable man† and possessed of â€Å"shocking madness†. This is conveyed to the audience through Elizabeth Bennet’s eavesdropping and the Bennet family’s first impression of Darcy. At the start of ‘Macbeth’ however, the central character, Macbeth, is portrayed by William Shakespeare as a hero. In Scotland he is loved, trusted and admired: â€Å"Oh valiant cousin, worthy gentleman†, â€Å"brave Macbeth†.Nevertheless by the end of both works, the audience’s own opinion of each character has changed to the complete opposite. Their opinion has been altered by the authors who try to confute the audience’s initial understanding of both characters. Many characters throughout ‘Pride and Prejudice’ change in one way or another. They especially change ot her people’s impressions of them. A good example of this is Mr Wickham. When Wickham is first introduced into the novel, he is portrayed as a good, kind man who was unfortunate enough to have lived with Darcy: â€Å"Wickham was the happy man towards whom almost every female eye was turned†¦ As the novel progresses Elizabeth begins to find out about his true characteristics. The way in which Jane Austen changes our opinion of Wickham is initially through the letter that Darcy sends to Elizabeth after she has declined his first offer of marriage. The letter she receives explains why Darcy dislikes Wickham. It tells her of the ungentleman like things that Wickham has done in the past. It explains how he became a â€Å"wild one† as one of Darcy’s housemaids told Elizabeth when she made a visit to Pemberley.On the other hand in ‘Macbeth’, the character who undergoes the most change throughout the play is in fact Macbeth himself. At first, he was a very honourable and noble man, both on and off the battlefields of Scotland. This is shown we he is appointed to becoming Thane of Cawdor: â€Å"He bade me, from him, call thee Thane of Cawdor†. Macbeth however, was a very ambitious man as well, and this was part of the reason for his change of character and downfall: â€Å"I have no spur†¦but only vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself†.It was Shakespeare’s portrayal of Macbeth’s ambition that allowed him to have the ability to change the audience’s opinion of Macbeth completely. Pushed by the idea that he could become king, his growing ambition and misplace confidence in the prophecies and Lady Macbeth, Macbeth begins to become an evil, murderous tyrant lacking any sense of mind. Another way in which Jane Austen changes ideas and characters in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ is through the actions and words of Mr Bennet. Mr Bennet undergoes one of the most significant changes thr oughout the course of the novel.When he is first introduced he is one of the primary characters offering comic relief and as the beginning of the story progresses, we see that his primary characteristics revolve around poking fun at his wife; â€Å"I have the utmost respect for your nerves. They've been my constant companion these twenty years. † He also stays aloof from his daughters, and does not care about serious matters of love. As the novel progresses, most especially after Lydia's elopement and arranged marriage, we see Mr. Bennet's character begin to change.The weight of his careless attitude finally sits heavy enough on his shoulders that he can no longer ignore it. While he still pokes fun at his wife, he understands that his daughters need a firm father if they are to curb their wild natures. With Lydia, it was too late, but he wasted no time in turning on Kitty and immediately laying down the law of his house: â€Å" This shows the audience that he realises that he hasn’t brought up his daughters how he wanted to and her wants to change that with kitty.

Wish You Well by David Baldacci

Character development is an important part of all novels. A character's mindset can change throughout the story as they go through events that may change there mindset. In Wish You Well by David Baldacci, Oz's personality and attitude change from the beginning to the end of the novel. His point of view alone effects the story. As the book starts off Oz is a little immature boy. He is not self efficient and relies completely on his mother Amanda and his older sister Lou. â€Å"Fortunately, his fearful cries would be replaced by a smile when Oz would at last focused on her, and she would want to hold her son always, keep him safe always. (Baldacci p. 4) Amanda had protected Oz his entire life and made him feel a sense of attachment. He never had to make his own decisions or face an event where his hope or faith was challenged. Until the car accident, his mother was severely injured and his father was killed. â€Å"Oz reached for his mother, incomprehension the only thing between the little boy and possibly fatal panic. † (Baldacci p. 14) This was the first and only time in the story that we see Oz in panic. Lou being older feels she understood more about the world and life than Oz. She had loved her father but clearly did not have the same type of relationship with her mother. After the accident and her father was dead, Lou seemed to get a negative outlook. She never once had a positive thought that possibly her mother could might get better and regain consciousness. Oz on the other hand never lost his faith. He always though positively. Throughout the novel Oz makes comment to his grandmother, diamond, and Lou that his mother could and was getting better. His love for her was so strong that even though deep down he knew the reality of her healing was not likely, he would do whatever he could to make it possibly come true. Oz thinks that wishing for his mother to regain her health at the wishing well will make her better. â€Å"I wish that my mother will wake up and love me again. He paused and then added solemnly, And Lou too. † (Baldacci p. 131) Oz truly cared about his mother and sister and risked his fear to try and make them all happy again. He was truly a caring character who changes from being a shy innocent boy. Into a caring self confident young man. Lou and Oz both loved each other and there mother. However, each characters point of view was different regarding the citation. Lou was kind of angry and tried to think about things realistic. She knew the odds of her mother getting well and there family going back to normal was limited. She realized it and tried to move on. As opposed to Oz who hoped and wished that his mother and Lou would get better and things could go back to the way they were. In the end even though both character's points of view where vastly different, they each helped each other get through some tragic events in the novel together, through love and perseverance.