Pride: A Pride and Prejudice Remix

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Who is Jane Austen, and when did she live? What kinds of subjects and themes did she write about? What is the basic premise of her novel Pride and Prejudice? Why might this book have such lasting popularity?

Teaching Suggestion: Pride can be appreciated on its own, but students’ experience will be richer if they understand the novel as a response to Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. This prompt allows you to assess what students already know about this seminal novel; you can fill in any gaps in their knowledge using these and similar resources.

• This page, maintained by the trust that preserves Jane Austen’s home, offers insights into why Austen continues to be so highly regarded today. (You may want to instruct students to scroll past the video and click on the individually linked topics at the bottom of the page, as these are more informative.)
• Columbia College offers information on the historical events and societal hierarchy in Pride and Prejudice in “Historical Context for Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.”

2. In literature, what is a “pastiche”? How does a pastiche compare to an “adaptation”? Is fanfiction an example of pastiche? Is pastiche a form of plagiarism?

Teaching Suggestion: Students may not have much familiarity with the term “pastiche”; it might be helpful to remind students that the term “adaptation” is often used outside of academic contexts to refer to both forms. If your students are ready for a more nuanced discussion, you might also ask them to consider how terms like “parody,” “sequel,” “homage,” and “companion novel” are related to the idea of pastiche. The final resource in the list below can be used to evaluate students’ understanding of any new terms; you might discuss or ask students to write about whether the book read in this video is a pastiche, an adaptation, or a parody.

• This definition explains what pastiche is and how this term differs from related terms.
• This definition from Oxford Reference explains the term “adaptation.”
• This Masterclass article focuses on the difference between pastiche and parody.
• This 5-minute video is a reading of Jon Scieszka’s The True Story of the Three Little Pigs.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

What pastiches or adaptations have you personally read, watched, or played? When experiencing a pastiche, what are some benefits for audience members? Do you enjoy works like this? Why or why not?

Teaching Suggestion: Students may enjoy sharing examples of pastiche and adaptation aloud in whole-class or small-group discussions. You might reserve some time for such a discussion, reserving the third and fourth questions in this prompt for individual written responses in which students can express personal preferences without being influenced by more vocal peers.