"Pride and Prejudice" has become one of the most popular novels in English literature, and receives considerable attention from literary scholars. Though the story's setting is characteristically turn-of-the-19th-century, it retains a fascination for modern readers.
The story follows the main character Elizabeth Bennet as she deals with issues of manners, upbringing, morality, education and marriage in the society of the landed gentry of early 19th-century England. Elizabeth is the second of five daughters of a country gentleman, living near the fictional town of Meryton in Hertfordshire, near London.
Modern interest in the book has resulted in a number of dramatic adaptations and an abundance of novels and stories imitating Austen's memorable characters or themes. To date, the book has sold some 20 million copies worldwide.