While Lady Catherine does not possess the obvious character flaws of Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice, she is the object of much eye-rolling by both...

is a
widowed and wealthy aristocrat who is so used to being in charge that she can't imagine her
opinion could be wrong or that anyone would not obey her imperious commands. She is dictatorial
and controlling, with a strong desire to micromanage the lives of those in her orbit.is critical
of all these aspects of her character. She is also critical of Lady Catherine as a snob who
thinks being an aristocrat makes her superior in all ways to others and gives her a right to
criticize them.

In and to some extent, CharlotteLady de Bourgh has met the
perfect enablers. Mr. Collins, a servile, flattering, fawning sycophant, is as sure of Lady
Catherine's extraordinary worth and genius as she is. He kowtows to her every wish as if she is
a goddess. Charlotte, a 27-year-old bride who was not expected to get married, is used to
catering to other people, so she too gets along well with Lady Catherine. Both feed Lady
Catherine's delusions of grandeur.

, who is underwhelmed by Lady Catherine's
magnificence and also less than impressed by her nosiness and judgments, is more inclined from
the start to stand up to this formidable, and in many ways, silly woman. For example, when Lady
Catherine is highly critical of the Bennet girls not having a governess, Elizabeth does not
crumple, but defends the choice.

Lady de Bourgh meets her match in Elizabeth
when she hears the rumor of Lizzie's engagement to . Not only has Lady de Bourgh planned for
Darcy to marry her own daughter, she is outraged that a person she considers a social inferior
would dare to step on her exalted turf. She comes to Elizabeth's home in her carriage, and
taking her off on walk, forbids her to marry Darcy, insulting her in the process, something we
know Elizabeth does not like. Elizabeth lets her have it in a memorable scene. First, Lady
Catherine insists her daughter is to marry Darcy, saying:

They are destined for each other by the voice of every member of their respective
houses; and what is to divide them? The upstart pretensions of a young woman without family,
connections, or fortune. Is this to be endured! But it must not, shall not be. If you were
sensible of your own good, you would not wish to quit the sphere in which you have been brought
up.

Elizabeth responds without fear:

In marrying your nephew, I should not consider myself as quitting
that sphere. He is a gentleman; I am a gentleman's daughter; so far we are equal.

Elizabeth utterly disdains any idea that she would listen to Lady
Catherine.

Austen's depiction of Lady Catherine reveals her critique of
narrow-minded aristocrats who are, in reality, no better than anyone else and yet become deluded
by their position in society to think they are actually superior and have the right to dictate
to everyone else. As a member of the gentry classthe class of ladies and gentlemen who were
below the aristocracyit seems likely that Austen chafed under the snobbish and dictatorial
behavior of the aristocracy, and enjoyed, through Elizabeth Bennett, putting them in their
place. Love based on mutual esteem wins out over false social pretensions in this novel, where
we are also likely to be happy that the arrogant Lady de Bourgh has been
bested.