Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Jane Austen consumed by her popularity

Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of the novel Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (Seth Grahame-Smith, 2009), a parody of Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice (1813), and the movie with the same title released in 2016. It begins with a reflection about Austen’s popularity through an examination of the current increasing publication of sequels and adaptations of her novels, a phenomenon that, among other consequences, has consolidated an image of her work as naïve love stories for women and the initiator of the modern ‘chick lit’. Next, it moves to the study of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies that includes the origins and entrance into popular culture of the zombie figure and a presentation of some excerpts from this parody in order to observe the changes made to the original and how these changes are related to contemporary values and concepts, which contribute to the weakening of Austen’s work through the erasure of her irony and social criticism. Finally, a brief analysis of the movie will be conducted not only in relation to the original novel and its parody but also to the characteristics expected from the universe built by Austen’s fans.