After now seeing the Nolan Batman Trilogy (Twice) and a
brief discussion with a well known Professor in film, literature and
bulllshittery it came to us that there is a clear distinction between Nolan’s
Gotham and Austin’s Meryton. This is a distinction that we could not ignore and
must discuss.
*I will avoid writing spoilers about Dark Knight Rises, but
if something comes out, I do apologise. There are definite spoilers from the
first two and Pride and Prejudice, but statute of limitations apply.
Relationship between Protagonist
and Love Interest
This is probably the most clearest of distinctions between
the two novels. I do not want to say that there was some kind of plagiarism between
the two, but you would have to question whether Austin had used the plot lines
seen in the highly successful Batman series. In Batman Begins we see Bruce
Wayne as two different personas, firstly as Bruce Wayne, a billionaire playboy
who uses his power and his wealth to manipulate his surrounds. His other,
Batman, a masked man who uses this anonymity to punish criminals and bring good
to Gotham. His love interest, Rachel Dawes, can only see his Wayne persona and
hates his for it. Not until she finds out the good he has done anonymously did
she really love him. It was the willingness of the protagonist to do these good
things without expecting reward that let Dawes to really love him.
This is similar to the Pride and Prejudice. Elizabeth Bennet
only saw Mr Darcy for his arrogance. His wealth and power manipulated his surrounds.
He stopped Mr Bingley from marrying Jane Bennet due to his distaste for the
family. This provided Elizabeth with a dislike for Darcy similar to Dawes when
she saw Wayne buying restaurants and swimming with models in restaurant pools.
Various Antagonists
Within both universes there are various antagonists. Each
antagonist has a different role to play and a different level of evilness. The parallels
between the universes are distinct. George Wickham, who starts off as a good
person slowly becomes evil. His love for Elizabeth is shown early on, much to
the dislike of Darcy, maybe through jealousy. He then becomes evil eloping with
Lydia Bennet. His true colours are shown, he could almost be told he is a bit
two-faced (see what I did there). This parallels with the Harvey Dent character
and his relationship with Wayne.
William Collins, the sole heir of the Bennet fortune, while
not as evil as Doctor Crane (Scarecrow) has some similarities. Knowing his
power due to his inheritance/role as Arkham Asylum he uses this to get what he
wants. Also why he has some a set back (being rejected/getting his own poison
to the face) he still lingers and does play a small menace throughout. He also
benefits from a major benefactor (Lady Catherine de Bourgh/Ra’s ul Ghul).
Lady Catherine de Bourgh is a larger than life powerful
figure that plays as a central figure throughout the book. Her power and
influence plays a major part in the Pride and Prejudice universe. While she is
seen as an unlikeable character at the start she is seen as harmless. It is not
until the end when a major confrontation halts her power. This is the same as Ra’s
ul Ghul.
Fictional Settings
Gotham is probably the most well known of fictional
settings, probably the reason why Austin decided to steal the ideal from Nolan.
Meryton is too fictional. Both Gotham and Meryton both are well known for their
large wealthy homes, there is a level of poverty explained in each. While these
town exist fictionally, they exsist in real place. Gotham in the US and Meryton
in England. Both the major characters, Bennet and Wayne, travel outside these
fictional places to real world locations. Bennet to London and Wayne to Hong
Kong.
Darcy has a Batmoblie
While not explicitly stated in the novel at the start it is
clear that Austin wanted to imply that Darcy had a Batmobile. While the
Bennets, Bingley, de Bough and the Gardiner’s all had carriages, Darcy does
not. At no point in the novel are Darcy’s carriages talked about. It can only
be assumed that he doesn’t have on, instead he has a Batmobile. It is not until
later in the novel, in Chapter 10, when the quote “.... does it come in black?”
is it more explicitly stated. The whole thing is given away in Chapter 12 when
Darcy turns to Elizabeth and says “Get in my Batmobile, I’ll drive you from
Netherfield to Longbourne”.
Conclusion
To summarise there is many
similarities between the two stories. Probably considered one of the best
written, well loved, the Batman Trilogy will go down in history as the greatest
romance stories ever told. Pride and Prejudice has been rocketed from almost relatively
unknown to popularity off the back of Nolan’s Batman success. Similar to the way
Twilight and Hunger Games have fed off Harry Potter and Tolstoy’s War and
Peace.
