Carly Ermer Interviews Dr. John Kainer

Upon interviewing Dr. John Kainer, a Sociology professor at the University of the Incarnate Word, it was no surprise that he would have well-informed comments surrounding how Jane Austen addresses societal standards in Pride and Prejudice.

Dr. Kainer shared that while growing up, his sisters used to watch the films; however, he had not had his own experience until his wife had introduced him to the novel. When Dr. Kainer read Pride and Prejudice, he loved it. Dr. Kainer stated with a laugh, “Darcy was a buffoon,” though he admitted to Mr. Darcy being his favorite character because of how Austen wrote humility into Darcy. Dr. Kainer went further to state that, though Darcy expressed his love for Elizabeth in a terrible manner, overcoming his pride was no small act.

Dr. Kainer stated that humility is necessary for love, “because the social graces at the time were allowed to get in the way of deeply sharing yourself…when it comes to the parts you are not proud of yourself for.” Furthermore, Dr. Kainer said how Darcy and Elizabeth were able to overcome social graces and find the virtues they loved about each other, forcing Elizabeth and Darcy to drop their pride and prejudices toward each other, discovering that they were more similar than they had previously believed themselves to be.

Dr. Kainer was intrigued by how Austen deeply understood human sociology and how she made her social commentary with humor and wit. He found these techniques displayed not only in Darcy and Elizabeth’s relationship, but also in Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet’s relationship. Dr. Kainer shared that he and his wife have opposing opinions on the married couple, stating that he finds Mr. Bennet to be realistic in recognizing his wife’s lack of smarts, whereas his wife finds Mr. Bennet to be a terrible and absent father and husband.