Fandom: Pride and Prejudice
Introduction
Why is there such a collection of fan fiction on the internet today that is based on a book by Jane Austen? The answer is simple. In 1995, the BBC aired its famous production of Pride and Prejudice.
Elizabeth Bennet, the heroine, was portrayed by Jennifer Ehle. They cast Colin Firth as the brooding, smoldering, sexy Mr. Darcy. They took a little poetic license and added a scene where he dives into a pond. Immediately after, he happens upon Elizabeth Bennet again for the first time in months and his shirt is wet. She gets flustered at the sight of him (I would say she got wet at the sight of him, but that's just crass! ;) ), as did fangirls around the world, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Poor Colin Firth has since been elevated to pop icon status. He can't seem to escape Mr. Darcy and, according to recent interviews (as well as his willingness to play Mark Darcy, an homage to the original Mr. Darcy, in not one, but two Bridget Jones' Diary movies), it looks like he's actually stopped trying.
I'd say that it is reasonable to assume that most of the P&P fic out there was largely inspired by this BBC production, commonly referred to as P&P2.
It should be noted that there are two major types of Pride and Prejudice fan fiction. The first type are stories that are set in regency-era England, like the novel. They are generally either meant as epilogues or retellings of the original. The second type are stories set in modern times. While they generally contain the same themes and resemble the plot of the original story, they can greatly differ in style and tone, etc.
All of the other general things we know and love about fan fiction apply for both types. While most stories center on the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth, others explore some of the minor characters in-depth or create unorthodox couples. There are het and slash pairings and ratings vary from CHILD though to MATURE. There are also some genuinely wonderful original characters, as well as plenty of "Mary Sues."
I hate to say it, but there isn't really much Pride and Prejudice fic being posted on LiveJournal (not that I've found yet anyway). There are plenty of communities (see below) where you can meet up with other fans and discuss the book, the movies, the characters, and the actors who portray them, though.
It should also be noted that the communities are also now discussing, iconing and squeeing re: the 2005 P&P movie, staring Keira Knightly and Matthew Macfadyen as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy.
Information
A complete overview of the original work as well as the BBC miniseries, including characterdescriptions, plot synopsis, and links to fan fiction and other sites, can be found on my Pride and Prejudice fan site.
(Cautionary note: The information found in the above places contain general spoilers for the book and the BBC film adaptation.)
Communities
The following are LiveJournal communities (seemingly active as of 6/20/2006) where you can get a Pride and Prejudice fix!
Specifically for Pride and Prejudice
pridenprejudice - large community with 350+ members for fans of Pride and Prejudice in all of its incarnations; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
prideprej05 - a community solely dedicated to the Pride and Prejudice '05 movie with Knightly and Macfayden.
prideandprej - general fan community for Pride and Prejudice; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
pandp_anonymous - another fan community for Pride and Prejudice; fangirlish squee.
Related to Jane Austen
janeaustenfans - a general fan community for all things Austen -- her life and works.
austenicons - an icon community for all things Austen.
austen_icons - an icon community for all things Austen.
austen_stills - icon and banner theme contests for all things Austen.
Related to the Character of Mr. Darcy
oh_darcy - general community for fans of the Mr. Darcy character (Fitzwilliam or Mark); fangirlish squee.
Related to the actor Colin Firth
colinfirth - general Colin Firth fan community; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
firth_daily - general Colin Firth fan community; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
firth_stills - icon contest community for images of Colin Firth.
Other communities where Pride and Prejudice may often be mentioned
crack_van - multifandom fic recommendations community.
vintagefic - fic based on older works of literature, such as Pride and Prejudice.
historicons - "an icon community for historical/pre-WWI icons; focused mainly on historical films, television series, and books, but icons of other historical things are also accepted (artwork, poetry, archaeological finds, photographs...)."
regency - "This is a community for the appreciation of all aspects of the Regency Era." (1789--1830)
regencyclothing - "Community for those interested in early nineteenth century clothing, Regency and Romantic Era, spanning approximately the 1790's through the 1840's."
bridgetjones - general community for fans of the Bridget Jones' Diary movies; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
If the above isn't enough for you, you can find all of the communities and users who list Pride and Prejudice as an interest in their user info, here.
Last updated: June 21, 2006 (imacartwright)
Why is there such a collection of fan fiction on the internet today that is based on a book by Jane Austen? The answer is simple. In 1995, the BBC aired its famous production of Pride and Prejudice.
Elizabeth Bennet, the heroine, was portrayed by Jennifer Ehle. They cast Colin Firth as the brooding, smoldering, sexy Mr. Darcy. They took a little poetic license and added a scene where he dives into a pond. Immediately after, he happens upon Elizabeth Bennet again for the first time in months and his shirt is wet. She gets flustered at the sight of him (I would say she got wet at the sight of him, but that's just crass! ;) ), as did fangirls around the world, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Poor Colin Firth has since been elevated to pop icon status. He can't seem to escape Mr. Darcy and, according to recent interviews (as well as his willingness to play Mark Darcy, an homage to the original Mr. Darcy, in not one, but two Bridget Jones' Diary movies), it looks like he's actually stopped trying.
I'd say that it is reasonable to assume that most of the P&P fic out there was largely inspired by this BBC production, commonly referred to as P&P2.
It should be noted that there are two major types of Pride and Prejudice fan fiction. The first type are stories that are set in regency-era England, like the novel. They are generally either meant as epilogues or retellings of the original. The second type are stories set in modern times. While they generally contain the same themes and resemble the plot of the original story, they can greatly differ in style and tone, etc.
All of the other general things we know and love about fan fiction apply for both types. While most stories center on the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth, others explore some of the minor characters in-depth or create unorthodox couples. There are het and slash pairings and ratings vary from CHILD though to MATURE. There are also some genuinely wonderful original characters, as well as plenty of "Mary Sues."
I hate to say it, but there isn't really much Pride and Prejudice fic being posted on LiveJournal (not that I've found yet anyway). There are plenty of communities (see below) where you can meet up with other fans and discuss the book, the movies, the characters, and the actors who portray them, though.
It should also be noted that the communities are also now discussing, iconing and squeeing re: the 2005 P&P movie, staring Keira Knightly and Matthew Macfadyen as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy.
Information
A complete overview of the original work as well as the BBC miniseries, including characterdescriptions, plot synopsis, and links to fan fiction and other sites, can be found on my Pride and Prejudice fan site.
(Cautionary note: The information found in the above places contain general spoilers for the book and the BBC film adaptation.)
Communities
The following are LiveJournal communities (seemingly active as of 6/20/2006) where you can get a Pride and Prejudice fix!
Specifically for Pride and Prejudice
pridenprejudice - large community with 350+ members for fans of Pride and Prejudice in all of its incarnations; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
prideprej05 - a community solely dedicated to the Pride and Prejudice '05 movie with Knightly and Macfayden.
prideandprej - general fan community for Pride and Prejudice; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
pandp_anonymous - another fan community for Pride and Prejudice; fangirlish squee.
Related to Jane Austen
janeaustenfans - a general fan community for all things Austen -- her life and works.
austenicons - an icon community for all things Austen.
austen_icons - an icon community for all things Austen.
austen_stills - icon and banner theme contests for all things Austen.
Related to the Character of Mr. Darcy
oh_darcy - general community for fans of the Mr. Darcy character (Fitzwilliam or Mark); fangirlish squee.
Related to the actor Colin Firth
colinfirth - general Colin Firth fan community; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
firth_daily - general Colin Firth fan community; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
firth_stills - icon contest community for images of Colin Firth.
Other communities where Pride and Prejudice may often be mentioned
crack_van - multifandom fic recommendations community.
vintagefic - fic based on older works of literature, such as Pride and Prejudice.
historicons - "an icon community for historical/pre-WWI icons; focused mainly on historical films, television series, and books, but icons of other historical things are also accepted (artwork, poetry, archaeological finds, photographs...)."
regency - "This is a community for the appreciation of all aspects of the Regency Era." (1789--1830)
regencyclothing - "Community for those interested in early nineteenth century clothing, Regency and Romantic Era, spanning approximately the 1790's through the 1840's."
bridgetjones - general community for fans of the Bridget Jones' Diary movies; icons, pics, general posts, and fangirlish squee.
If the above isn't enough for you, you can find all of the communities and users who list Pride and Prejudice as an interest in their user info, here.
Last updated: June 21, 2006 (imacartwright)