#she was making it pretty god damn clear that wickham is a predator in all respects

[sweetfirebird]

Jane Austen in 17-whatever: I am going to depict the behaviors of not just a fuck boy, oh no, but an actual predator in all respects. A man who uses his friends, who betrays the trust of a superior officer, who leaves debts to businesses that needed the money with no intention of ever paying them, who lies easily for his own gain, and who preyed upon (and groomed into trusting him) two young girls who were not adequately protected, but actually paid someone to help him forcibly dishonor and marry one of them for her fortune. The language to describe men like this in those terms does not really exist in my time because sexism but as a woman from the time, we knew about men like this and to not trust them around young girls, and by God, I am going to make it clear that he is a villain who lacks conscience and a user and should never be trusted.

So many professional Pride and Prejudice adaptations and AU since then: what if Wickham wasn't that bad though, and silly Austen just didn't understand bad boys?