‘I Like Her Eyes’: Darcy’s Voice in Paul Gordon’s Pride and Prejudice: A New Musical

Jane Austen began Pride and Prejudice with a tongue in cheek statement reflecting the worldview of her protagonist’s mother. The claim, ‘that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife’[1], establishes Mrs. Bennet’s primary fixation: to see her five daughters married well. Whilst Mrs. Bennet’s behaviour is somewhat farcical throughout the novel, her desires are shrewd. ‘Economics [had] a great deal to do with marriage’[2] for women of the early nineteenth century England. Indeed, they were highly reliant upon marriage for economic stability. In opening the novel by highlighting the reality for the female characters, predominantly the Bennet sisters and Charlotte Lucas, Austen asserts the female perspective as being central to the narrative immediately. It is the male characters such as Wickham and Darcy whose inner worlds and pasts are unravelled later due to Elizabeth’s growing association with them. Due to the emotional intimacy inherently available in musical theatre, musical adaptations of Pride and Prejudice often open Darcy up to the audience before Lizzy sees beyond his pride and prejudice. Interestingly, three adaptations focus on Darcy’s reaction to Lizzy’s eyes. In Austen’s Pride, an adaptation which features both the plot of Pride and Prejudice and Austen herself as a character writing the novel, we witness Darcy’s growing feelings in the solo, ‘Fine Eyes’[3]. Bernard J. Taylor’s musical features Darcy’s number ‘Isn’t it Strange’ which, according to the script, is the first song in which he takes part. Here, he sings, ‘Isn’t it strange how an eye / Can send your senses reeling’[4], after Lizzie arrives at Netherfield. Meanwhile, in his musical adaptation of the novel, composer and lyricist Paul Gordon utilises a more comedic angle in his interpretation of Darcy’s realisation.

Adapting Jane Austen’s famous words, ‘I have been meditating on the very great pleasure which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can bestow’[5], Gordon’s Darcy utters, ‘Oh, dear God / I like her eyes!’[6] This line is referenced in the finale, where Darcy admits, ‘I like your eyes / and I don’t care who knows it’[7]. This is not the first adaptation of Austen’s novel to filter this line through a contemporary lens. Indeed, the web series The Lizzy Bennet Diaries features a 2012 version of Lizzy exclaiming, ‘Who says that?!’[8] Gordon’s comedic take on the line casts Darcy as a slightly less brooding version of his novel counterpart. Critic Christopher Nagle has condemned musical adaptations of Austen’s works, stating that, ‘The form itself calls for amplification at the cost of subtlety, and distinctive nuances of tone crucial to Austen's voice are challenged when characters sacrifice silence and introspection to erupt into song.’[9] Whilst this disregard for musical adaptations as a whole rings false given that soliloquies to the audience are often utilised in moments of introspection, this criticism holds some truth here given the more light-hearted take on Darcy, who feels comfortable enough to laugh at Lizzy’s joke at Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s expense[10]. Following Lizzy’s refusal of his first proposal in the novel, Austen’s Darcy declares, ‘I perfectly comprehend your feelings, and have now only to be ashamed of what my own have been. Forgive me for having taken up so much of your time’[11]. Meanwhile, in Gordon’s musical, Darcy reacts with a ballad in which he belts out, ‘You invade my thoughts / you were always there / and in anguish now that you’ll never go’[12]. Here, Darcy appears more emotionally open and whilst stating that his own feelings are, ‘not [his] choice’[13], he admits to audiences that they still persist even after she has rejected him. Ultimately, the levity which Darcy brings to the narrative may allow audiences to identify with him, but they undermine Austen’s characterisation of the man. In Austen’s novel, she describes him as being, ‘Rich, aloof, but fundamentally generous and capable of emotional growth’[14]. Yet, he comes across as less ‘aloof’ given the more intimate relationship he gains with audiences due to his comedy moments and, crucially, in his musical addresses.

Darcy’s inflated sense of self remains a part of his characterisation in Gordon’s Pride and Prejudice: A New Musical. In his first solo, Darcy muses that, ‘The world we live in is the world they long for / that’s the common leaning of the crowd’[15]. Viewing his own lifestyle as something to be desired, Darcy separates himself from ‘the crowd’; the lower-class citizens around him. Gordon depicts Darcy as prideful in this assumption that he is to be the subject of jealousy, establishing his superiority complex. This is evident in these lyrics, in which Darcy casually excludes the rest of the ‘world’, of which Lizzy is a part given her lesser social standing, from the social company he keeps, who are represented in ‘we’. Yet, despite Darcy’s classism, Gordon displays hints that he is at war with himself in regards to his attraction to Lizzy. Darcy elects to, ‘conceal [his] sympathies, hide humanity’ to uphold society’s class divide and endeavour not to marry into someone he believes to be beneath himself. Whilst this is evidently classist, it is also apparent that to maintain social structures, he must give up a piece of himself. His ‘sympathies’ and ‘humanity’ are the price to pay and reveal Darcy’s inner world under his stoic exterior. Compare this solo to that of Darcy’s first words in Austen’s novel. Speaking to Bingley at the ball, he grumbles, ‘Your sisters are engaged, and there is not another woman in the room whom it would not be a punishment to me to stand up with.’[16] The free indirect discourse utilised by Austen ensures that readers are introduced to the characters through Lizzy’s point of view. Our experience is greatly influenced by Lizzy’s experiences, as Austen’s ‘writing enables individual characters’ perspectives to infiltrate…the third-person narrative’[17]. As a result, Darcy becomes more sympathetic as the novel progresses and both she and readers understand him deeper. Yet, Gordon’s lyrics humanise him much earlier in the narrative by unveiling an inner conflict and alluding to a painful past in ‘never letting on what you’ve undergone’[18] in reference to Wickham. Ultimately Gordon’s soliloquys for Darcy depict him as a lovestruck romantic hero from early in the musical. His pride remains central to depiction, yet it is also evident that being an agent for this social hierarchy which has been the cause of such pride also holds him back from real happiness. Gordon’s centring of Darcy’s emotional journey was likely highlighted due to the musical theatre form.

The unfolding of Darcy’s character is sacrificed in the musical due to Darcy being emotionally honest with his audience and the intimacy this relationship is afforded. In describing ‘I Want’ songs in musicals, Howard Ashman specified that, ‘the leading lady sits downs on something [onstage] and sings about what she wants in life’[19]. In Gordon’s musical, whilst Lizzy does have her own ‘I Want’ song, ‘Headstrong’, Darcy’s solos, ‘Against My Will’ and ‘Bravado’, also serve as his own versions of this trope. In both, he reveals his feelings for Lizzy and ultimately, endeavours to supress his desires for his own comfort. In the latter song, he reflects that, ‘I like her wit…what I mean to say, Miss Bennet / is wishing you good day and that is all / for she will never see / she’s taken the bravado out of me’[20]. Whilst the word ‘bravado’ never appears in Austen’s text, Gordon defines Darcy’s behaviour to those around him up to this point as a false veneer, which he now allows the audience to see beyond. Towards the musical’s conclusion, Darcy admits to Lizzy that she has, ‘made a better man of me’[21], becoming outwardly self-critical, it is significant that he notes this just prior to the live audience. Indeed, in a prior solo, Darcy states that, ‘my self-importance / and my world of privilege / have kept me lonely for so long’[22], recognising that his pride and prejudice of Lizzy have not added to his own happiness. Ultimately, the openness Darcy is afforded, particularly in his solos and duets with Lizzy, propels Darcy’s narrative to being core to the musical’s emotional centre. In the novel, he initially plays an antagonistic role, appearing when Lizzy attends balls or visits Jane at Netherfield Park. Yet, in the musical, his emotions are no secret from audiences. As such, Gordon utilises the musical theatre form to give Darcy’s voice more prominence from the beginning, making Darcy more of an equal protagonist next to Lizzy.

Ultimately, Gordon’s depiction of Darcy breaks down the walls between him and audiences much earlier than in Austen’s novel. Whilst in the novel he states that his ‘feelings will not be repressed’[23], these ‘feelings’ bubble more under the surface for readers given Darcy’s distance from the narrative voice. In Gordon’s musical, Darcy is afforded moments of self-reflection in his soliloquys. For instance, he reveals that he has developed romantic feelings for Lizzy soon after their first meeting, admitting only to himself and his audience that, ‘thoughts will always lead me to you’[24]. To return to Ashman’s discussion of ‘I Want’ songs, these tunes identify whom the primary protagonist is in musicals. Whilst Lizzy is the first to sing such a number, Darcy’s ‘Bravado’ also serves as an ‘I Want’ song. As such, Gordon evidently utilises this musical theatre trope to paint Darcy as sympathetic due to his framing as a co-protagonist. Whilst this humanises the man for audiences, making Darcy open up to audiences reduces the air of mystery which he is known to have in popular culture. Through bearing witness to Darcy’s inner world more immediately, we are consequently distanced from Lizzy’s point of view as the musical’s narrative voice is diluted. To return to the subject of free indirect discourse in Austen’s novel, ‘Blurring the line between the narrator and Elizabeth’s inner voice gives authorial weight’[25] to Elizabeth’s perspective. Bringing Darcy’s point of view to the centre of Gordon’s musical unavoidably dims Lizzy’s narrative voice and furthermore excuses Darcy for his role in sustaining the classist social structure. Darcy benefits from this classism in both the wealth he is afforded and the envy he perceives others to feel towards his status, as is explored in his first solo. Yet, Gordon’s musical also suggests that Darcy is a victim of this social structure. Early in the musical, he insists that he must, ‘stay within [his] ranks for they will never understand’[26]. He also refers to his ‘duty’[27] of marrying someone of a similar social standing. Here, Gordon paints Darcy in a sympathetic light as opposed to an agent of these systems within which he feels trapped. Indeed, he makes the ongoing decision to dismiss Lizzy due to her class and parentage, a decision which is criticised in Austen’s novel as much as Lizzy’s pride and prejudice are. Ultimately, this early humanisation of Darcy makes his growth throughout the narrative less powerful as we see less of a development in his character. In Austen’s novel, both halves of the primary romantic pairing have faults which they overcome, resulting in their union. Yet, Gordon’s depiction of Darcy seems trapped in a social structure he makes choices to perpetuate, interspersed with moments of light comedy. As such, this insight into his point of view reduces the impact of the central love story and signifies that Darcy’s faults ultimately was crucial for the success of Austen’s most beloved pair.

Sources [1] Jane Austen, 'Pride and Prejudice', in The Complete Works of Jane Austen (UK: Magpie Books, 1993), pp. 185-376 (p. 187). [2] Lynne Marie Kohm and Kathleen E. Akers, Law and Economics in Jane Austen (Lanham: Lexington Books, 2020), p. 11. [3] Lindsay Warren Baker and Amanda Jacobs, ‘Fine Eyes’, in Austen’s Pride (2019) <www.austensprideamusical.com/music> [4] Bernard J. Taylor, Pride and Prejudice: A Musical Adaptation (West Sussex: Stagescripts Ltd, 1994), p. 16 <issuu.com/stagescripts/docs/sa-0152_pride_and_prejudice_a4__rev_c_> [5] Austen, The Complete Works of Jane Austen, p. 199. [6] Paul Gordon, ‘Bravado’, in Pride and Prejudice: A New Musical (2020). [7] Gordon, ‘Happiness in Marriage (Reprise)’, in Pride and Prejudice. [8] The Lizzy Bennet Diaries, Happiness in the Pursuit of Life - Ep: 16, online video recording, YouTube, 31 May 2012 <www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpCzkeDY4jc&list=PL6690D980D8A65D08&index=16> [9] Christopher Nagle, ‘Austen's Present Future Stagings’, Texas Studies in Literature and Language, 61.4 (2019), 472-474 (p. 472) <muse.jhu.edu/article/741210/summary> [10] Gordon, ‘Her Ladyship’s Praise’, in Pride and Prejudice. [11] Austen, The Complete Works of Jane Austen, p. 281. [12] Gordon, ‘Against My Will’, in Pride and Prejudice. [13] Ibid. [14] Carol Dyhouse, Hearthrobs: A History of Women and Desire (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017), p. 52 [15] Gordon, ‘The World We Live in’, in Pride and Prejudice. [16] Austen, The Complete Works of Jane Austen, p. 191. [17] Joe Bray, The Language of Jane Austen (UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017), p. 4. [18] Gordon, ‘The World We Live in’, in Pride and Prejudice. [19] Crystal Bell, ‘Ranking Disney’s ‘I Want’ Songs From Worst To Best’, MTV (2016) <www.mtv.com/news/4gas3u/disney-i-want-songs-ranked> [20] Gordon, ‘Bravado’, in Pride and Prejudice. [21] Gordon, ‘Happiness in Marriage (Reprise)’, in Pride and Prejudice. [22] Gordon, ‘The World She Lives in’, in Pride and Prejudice. [23] Austen, The Complete Works of Jane Austen, p. 279. [24] Gordon, ‘Bravado’, in Pride and Prejudice. [25] Ruth Perry, ‘Sleeping with Mr. Collins’, in Jane Austen and Co.: Remaking the Past in Contemporary Culture, ed. by Suzanne R. Pucci and James Thompson (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2003), pp. 213-? (p. 213). [26] Gordon, ‘The World We Live in’’, in Pride and Prejudice. [27] Ibid.