Women tend to fall in love with celebrity men and pronounce a sort of claim on them. Ben Affleck belongs to my best friend, Jude Law to my sister and Benicio Del Toro to my Aunt. Ever since I saw Cry Baby when I was nine, I had dibs on Johnny Depp. Until I picked up a Jane Austen book and then everything changed.
Up until a month ago I was an Austen virgin. I've now come to realise two things. Jane Austen is an engaging writer and her books were probably how the term 'sexual tension' was coined. Secondly, nothing is more attractive than a sexy character in a novel. I'm sorry Johnny but I have fallen for Mr Darcy and here's why:
Mr Darcy is rich, well-dressed, good looking and a loyal friend. But there's a catch. He is so arrogant that on his first meeting with our heroine, Elizabeth, he calls her plain and refuses to dance with her. However, throughout the novel he falls desperately in love with her.
There are so many delectable things about Mr Darcy. He communicates via mail. How romantic would it be to receive a three-page letter from a potential lover? And he accepts Elizabeth and her dysfunctional family even though it goes against his upbringing and social standing. And what is sexier than a man who is willing to change for their woman and risk their fortunes for love? Maybe it is soppy but it's obviously a timeless desire for many women readers. And if you read Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones, you will definitely see parallels between the two Darcys.
Mr Darcy is a character who should continue to be reinvented, many times over, for all our reading pleasures.
