{"id":"01KJRRE0N9D54SGJWS3AS21YHD","cid":"bafkreibcqgadfujnpvmhrueajuxz7ikcibmm3hvhgizmaws67kphujdlme","type":"text_chunk","properties":{"char_end":236328,"char_start":228469,"chunk_index":32,"chunk_total":108,"estimated_tokens":1965,"label":"flatter myself it will not sink me in your esteem.","source_file_key":"pride-and-prejudice","text":"flatter myself it will not sink me in your esteem. And now nothing\r\nremains for me but to assure you in the most animated language of the\r\nviolence of my affection. To fortune I am perfectly indifferent, and\r\nshall make no demand of that nature on your father, since I am well\r\naware that it could not be complied with; and that one thousand pounds\r\nin the 4 per cents., which will not be yours till after your mother’s\r\ndecease, is all that you may ever be entitled to. On that head,\r\ntherefore, I shall be uniformly silent: and you may assure yourself that\r\nno ungenerous reproach shall ever pass my lips when we are married.”\r\n\r\nIt was absolutely necessary to interrupt him now.\r\n\r\n“You are too hasty, sir,” she cried. “You forget that I have made no\r\nanswer. Let me do it without further loss of time. Accept my thanks for\r\nthe compliment you are paying me. I am very sensible of the honour of\r\nyour proposals, but it is impossible for me to do otherwise than decline\r\nthem.”\r\n\r\n“I am not now to learn,” replied Mr. Collins, with a formal wave of the\r\nhand, “that it is usual with young ladies to reject the addresses of the\r\nman whom they secretly mean to accept, when he first applies for their\r\nfavour; and that sometimes the refusal is repeated a second or even a\r\nthird time. I am, therefore, by no means discouraged by what you have\r\njust said, and shall hope to lead you to the altar ere long.”\r\n\r\n“Upon my word, sir,” cried Elizabeth, “your hope is rather an\r\nextraordinary one after my declaration. I do assure you that I am not\r\none of those young ladies (if such young ladies there are) who are so\r\ndaring as to risk their happiness on the chance of being asked a second\r\ntime. I am perfectly serious in my refusal. You could not make _me_\r\nhappy, and I am convinced that I am the last woman in the world who\r\nwould make _you_ so. Nay, were your friend Lady Catherine to know me, I\r\nam persuaded she would find me in every respect ill qualified for the\r\nsituation.”\r\n\r\n“Were it certain that Lady Catherine would think so,” said Mr. Collins,\r\nvery gravely--“but I cannot imagine that her Ladyship would at all\r\ndisapprove of you. And you may be certain that when I have the honour of\r\nseeing her again I shall speak in the highest terms of your modesty,\r\neconomy, and other amiable qualifications.”\r\n\r\n“Indeed, Mr. Collins, all praise of me will be unnecessary. You must\r\ngive me leave to judge for myself, and pay me the compliment of\r\nbelieving what I say. I wish you very happy and very rich, and by\r\nrefusing your hand, do all in my power to prevent your being otherwise.\r\nIn making me the offer, you must have satisfied the delicacy of your\r\nfeelings with regard to my family, and may take possession of Longbourn\r\nestate whenever it falls, without any self-reproach. This matter may be\r\nconsidered, therefore, as finally settled.” And rising as she thus\r\nspoke, she would have quitted the room, had not Mr. Collins thus\r\naddressed her,--\r\n\r\n“When I do myself the honour of speaking to you next on the subject, I\r\nshall hope to receive a more favourable answer than you have now given\r\nme; though I am far from accusing you of cruelty at present, because I\r\nknow it to be the established custom of your sex to reject a man on the\r\nfirst application, and, perhaps, you have even now said as much to\r\nencourage my suit as would be consistent with the true delicacy of the\r\nfemale character.”\r\n\r\n“Really, Mr. Collins,” cried Elizabeth, with some warmth, “you puzzle me\r\nexceedingly. If what I have hitherto said can appear to you in the form\r\nof encouragement, I know not how to express my refusal in such a way as\r\nmay convince you of its being one.”\r\n\r\n“You must give me leave to flatter myself, my dear cousin, that your\r\nrefusal of my addresses are merely words of course. My reasons for\r\nbelieving it are briefly these:--It does not appear to me that my hand\r\nis unworthy of your acceptance, or that the establishment I can offer\r\nwould be any other than highly desirable. My situation in life, my\r\nconnections with the family of De Bourgh, and my relationship to your\r\nown, are circumstances highly in my favour; and you should take it into\r\nfurther consideration that, in spite of your manifold attractions, it is\r\nby no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made you.\r\nYour portion is unhappily so small, that it will in all likelihood undo\r\nthe effects of your loveliness and amiable qualifications. As I must,\r\ntherefore, conclude that you are not serious in your rejection of me, I\r\nshall choose to attribute it to your wish of increasing my love by\r\nsuspense, according to the usual practice of elegant females.”\r\n\r\n“I do assure you, sir, that I have no pretensions whatever to that kind\r\nof elegance which consists in tormenting a respectable man. I would\r\nrather be paid the compliment of being believed sincere. I thank you\r\nagain and again for the honour you have done me in your proposals, but\r\nto accept them is absolutely impossible. My feelings in every respect\r\nforbid it. Can I speak plainer? Do not consider me now as an elegant\r\nfemale intending to plague you, but as a rational creature speaking the\r\ntruth from her heart.”\r\n\r\n“You are uniformly charming!” cried he, with an air of awkward\r\ngallantry; “and I am persuaded that, when sanctioned by the express\r\nauthority of both your excellent parents, my proposals will not fail of\r\nbeing acceptable.”\r\n\r\nTo such perseverance in wilful self-deception Elizabeth would make no\r\nreply, and immediately and in silence withdrew; determined, that if he\r\npersisted in considering her repeated refusals as flattering\r\nencouragement, to apply to her father, whose negative might be uttered\r\nin such a manner as must be decisive, and whose behaviour at least could\r\nnot be mistaken for the affectation and coquetry of an elegant female.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n[Illustration]\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nCHAPTER XX.\r\n\r\n\r\n[Illustration]\r\n\r\nMr. Collins was not left long to the silent contemplation of his\r\nsuccessful love; for Mrs. Bennet, having dawdled about in the vestibule\r\nto watch for the end of the conference, no sooner saw Elizabeth open the\r\ndoor and with quick step pass her towards the staircase, than she\r\nentered the breakfast-room, and congratulated both him and herself in\r\nwarm terms on the happy prospect of their nearer connection. Mr. Collins\r\nreceived and returned these felicitations with equal pleasure, and then\r\nproceeded to relate the particulars of their interview, with the result\r\nof which he trusted he had every reason to be satisfied, since the\r\nrefusal which his cousin had steadfastly given him would naturally flow\r\nfrom her bashful modesty and the genuine delicacy of her character.\r\n\r\nThis information, however, startled Mrs. Bennet: she would have been\r\nglad to be equally satisfied that her daughter had meant to encourage\r\nhim by protesting against his proposals, but she dared not believe it,\r\nand could not help saying so.\r\n\r\n“But depend upon it, Mr. Collins,” she added, “that Lizzy shall be\r\nbrought to reason. I will speak to her about it myself directly. She is\r\na very headstrong, foolish girl, and does not know her own interest; but\r\nI will _make_ her know it.”\r\n\r\n“Pardon me for interrupting you, madam,” cried Mr. Collins; “but if she\r\nis really headstrong and foolish, I know not whether she would\r\naltogether be a very desirable wife to a man in my situation, who\r\nnaturally looks for happiness in the marriage state. If, therefore, she\r\nactually persists in rejecting my suit, perhaps it were better not to\r\nforce her into accepting me, because, if liable to such defects of\r\ntemper, she could not contribute much to my felicity.”\r\n\r\n“Sir, you quite misunderstand me,” said Mrs. Bennet, alarmed. “Lizzy is\r\nonly headstrong in such matters as these. In everything else she is as\r\ngood-natured a girl as ever lived. I will go directly to Mr."},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KJRRD3TNE5A6AKAVXSRFT9RC","peer_label":"pride-and-prejudice","peer_type":"text","predicate":"derived_from"},{"peer":"01KJRRC2C7K6XERRJES8143XGV","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KJRREY5S38CP9RKK4A7C9TCQ","peer_label":"elizabeth bennet","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"person","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREY7G184NZ401P9V4JV87","peer_label":"lady catherine de bourgh","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"person","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREY6ZWGAT4FYVDEM6VE2E","peer_label":"mr collins","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"person","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREY6J1B27DVQGPM70W7C2","peer_label":"mrs bennet","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"person","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREY5YH5B23QR8XCHZSM2R","peer_label":"mr bennet","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"person","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREYBBFVZYJA03S3Y70QZY","peer_label":"longbourn estate","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"property","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREYAS43KW5M44X2BD3JDM","peer_label":"de bourgh family","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"family","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREYAQDBP15KJEACJWD5VZ","peer_label":"mr collinss marriage proposal","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"event","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}},{"peer":"01KJRREYV6MN64WD5GDJP74TK9","peer_label":"chapter xx","predicate":"extracted_entity","properties":{"entity_type":"document_section","extracted_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:33.626Z"}}],"ver":2,"created_at":"2026-03-03T02:29:01.225Z","ts":"2026-03-03T02:29:34.474Z","edited_by":{"method":"system","user_id":"01KJ60XQBHJ0GBGTP9X8HXAPPM"}}