For [Jane Austen and the readers of Pride and Prejudice], as for Mr. Darcy, [Elizabeth Bennett's] solitary walks express the independence that literally takes the heroine out of the social sphere of the houses and their inhabitants, into a larger, lonelier world where she is free to think: walking articulates both physical and mental freedom. Rebecca Solnit
About This Quote

Jane Austen's famous novel, Pride and Prejudice, begins with the heroine, Elizabeth Bennett, walking through the English countryside. She is on a solitary walk because her family has decided to remain in the city during the winter season. The idea of walking as an expression of independence is particularly important to the story because it is the heroine's only outlet for freedom during that time.

Source: Wanderlust: A History Of Walking

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