Female Roles in "Pride and Prejudice"

I think that "Pride and Prejudice" (the movie) reveals a lot about the roles and expectations that women are expected to hold, even in today's society. In the clip I have attached, Lady Katherine, who is a very rich and a high status woman, questions the main character, Elizabeth Bennett, about her "skills." Lady Catherine asks Lizzie if she can draw, if she plays the piano, and about more typical feminist roles. Lizzie replies with a "no" to all of the questions that Lady Katherine asks her, which makes Lady Katherine look down on her even more. I would say that Lizzie is already considered to be in the middle to upper working class, so she already had strikes against her in Lady Katherine's eyes. "Pride and Prejudice" was set in a time period where these roles were much more prevalent for women in society, and they were regarded as important skills that women should master; while today's society typically does not place so much emphasis on women learning skills like playing the piano and painting, it still shows how women are expected to do certain things. If women do not do these socially valued things, they are typically seen as "weird" or "unaccomplished." Lizzie is an untypical woman of her time, which I think is very cool. She doesn't dress or look quite like women of her time period and she has a mind of her own. She is very opinionated and does not let anyone step all over her. I think an important message in "Pride and Prejudice" is that obstacles can be conquered, and anything is possible. Women should embrace this message and realize that they can break through oppression. They should realize that they have a voice, and if they use it, anything can happen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yElIQDAEtOg