The 18th century
genteel class raised their
daughters to not just be well-mannered but also to be
accomplished. Since the home was the woman's domain, young
ladies were raised to essentially be the household entertainers. Since all entertainment
was live, it was the woman's domain to entertain. Hence,
any tool that would enable a woman to be conversational and entertaining was an
essential element in her education and a significant part
of her upbringing.
One way in which women
entertained in the home was by learning how to play music and
sing, making music an essential part of a woman's education. In
Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth actually informs both the reader and
Lady Catherine that all five Bennet daughters were raised without a governess and,
therefore, only the girls who wanted to learn educated themselves. As a consequence,
only Elizabeth and Mary learned how to play the piano, and, though Mary tries, only
Elizabeth knows how to sing.
A second part of a woman's education and
upbringing to learn to be entertaining is to learn art.
Women were encouraged to learn to draw and paint, partially to entertain guests with the
finished product and partially because the activity is entertaining itself. Women were
also educated to learn foreign languages. One reason is
that knowing foreign languages would assist with their abilities to converse with
guests, making the study of foreign languages another tool for entertaining.
Other elements of a woman's education assist in her abilities to
make the home both attractive and beautiful. Bingley
expresses a woman's necessary education when he praises women's accomplishments,
saying:
It is
amazing to me ... how young ladies can have patience to be so very accomplished ... They
all paint tables, cover skreens, and net purses. (Ch.
8)
Darcy further adds his
insight as to how a young lady should be educated, and therefore raised when he
replies:
A
woman must have a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, and the modern
languages ... she must possess a certain something in her air and manner of walking, the
tone of her voice, her address and expressions. (Ch.
8)
Hence, we see that in the
18th century, daughters were educated and raised to make the home nice and to be
entertainers.
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