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1 hope, my dear," said Mr. Bennet to his wife, as they were at breakfast the next morning, "that you have ordered a good dinner to-day, because I have reason to expect an addition to our family party. . . . The person of whom I speak, is a gentleman and a stranger." Mrs. Bennet's eyes sparkled. "A gentleman and a stranger! It is Mr. Bingley I am sure." (68)
The dinner guest is not Mr. Bingley, as it turns out, but Mrs. Bennet's confident assumption is revealing. Mr. Bingley is a stranger to the community centered on the town of Meryton, and all signs-his leasing of Netherfield Park, his coach-and-four, and (not least) his income-point to his being a gentleman. Yet, as more is learned about Mr. Bingley, certain facts make his status debatable: the fortune that supports him and his two sisters was "acquired by trade," and, although he is newly established as the tenant of a fine house, he lacks property of his own (16-17).
Bingley's social status deserves a closer look. Austen's original readers, picking up on clues in the narrative and considering Bingley and his sisters in the context of the real world, would likely have made inferences about their background that differ from the unquestioning acceptance shown by the people of Meryton. The ambiguity built into the novel adds nuance to Austen's exploration of individual worth, the mutability of social status, and seeming versus being
The Bingley siblings are rich; the sisters have inherited £20,000 each, and Charles's legacy from his father amounts to nearly £ 100,000. He probably holds investments in stocks or government funds, yielding the £4,000 to £5,000 a year that Mrs. Bennet reports as his income. Nothing suggests his involvement in an ongoing enterprise: Bingley writes no letters of business, has no apparent responsibilities, and has no ties to any geographical area.
The Bingleys' wealth is new money, acquired so recently that their father "had intended to purchase an estate, but did not live to do it" (16). Nor do the Bingleys have a London house. Adding to the impression of newness are hints that they seem to be relatively recent arrivals in Darcy's circle: Bingley has been around long enough for Darcy to have...