Dearest Mr. Darcy,

I pray that this letter finds you in spirits better than our latest meeting. It is my hope that you will read this letter with not the feelings that my actions of late must have stirred, but rather with an open mind. My feelings towards you are now definitely positive, but their level is unknown even to myself. I had never thought that our interactions gave you anything more than an opinion to squabble with, so I was naturally taken aback by your proposal. Upon reading the letter you so graciously wrote to me, I was forced to reevaluate my less than amiable actions with regard to yourself. But with this letter I make no move as to pardon myself from the way I judged you. What I do move to regret was my blind trust in the outline of your character I was given, without allowing you to color it in yourself. I believe that in reading this letter you will come to see my side, and to better understand the conclusions that I so irrationally arrived at.

I know better than may outwardly appear the impropriety of my family’s behavior. I also acknowledge that our place in society is far less lofty than yours. But to me, they are family; the only one I can ever have. I cannot look always to pardon them, and I cannot be blamed for feeling defensive when they come into question. When in your proposal you spoke so freely of your disdain for them, I could not help but be taken aback despite my resigned agreement on many of your points. As for one particular member of my family, I feel that she has no reason to be pardoned, but in fact if I may be so bold, you should be seeking pardon from her. This member is of course my dear sister Jane. Her heart, as a result of your influence over Mr. Bingley refuses to be mended. She is a reserved person, but this does not make her less of a suitable wife. With that said, I now see why your actions were so. You were looking out for the best interest of your friend, as I did the same for my sister. I cannot fault you now that I know of your motives. At the time, it was impressed upon me that you wanted Mr. Bingley for your sister. This conclusion had been reached from correspondence between my sister and Miss Bingley as well as through conversing with your cousin. She is a kind soul who would never look to hurt a bee, yet I had to watch a melancholy air take hold of her, as a result of your hand. I hope that you can see now the reasons for my disdain for you in regard to her.

The next object of my ridicule for you was the affair between Mr. Wickham and yourself. I oblige you to understand that as the affair was relayed to me, you had deeply wronged not only a fellow man, but a comrade from youth of whom your late, revered father was so fond. From what Mr. Wickham so earnestly implored to me, you had taken his bright future and wiped it away in total disregard of your father’s wishes. I found this offense to be verily horrific. To not only leave a childhood companion out to the streets, but also to go against the wishes of such a kind and respected gentleman as your father was something that I could only see as a fault. Had I been not so blind as to see the manner of Mr. Wickham, or had I been as magnanimous as to hear your side of the affair before passing judgment, this account would not be in question now, and for that I do apologize.

These affairs for which I have accounted my reasoning and judgment only reinforced the first impression that I had of you. Your pride commanded the attention of all whom laid eyes on you in Hertfordshire. Your airs were taken as carrying a self-importance that was unparalleled by any other man we had seen. At this time I saw you as vain, and wanted nothing more to do with you. The more I saw of you, the more reasons I found to believe you were arrogant and haughty. Now that I have heard your side of the events I so harshly judged your character by, and now that I have heard those who know you well speak of you rather than the town gossips, I now see how wrong I was. I see that what I saw to be pride and a feeling of superiority was your lack of social comfort in a dauntingly new circle. What I saw to be the hasty splitting of two happy individuals for selfish reasons was really one looking out for the interests of his naive friend. What I saw to be the disregard of a childhood companion in pursuit of self- advancement was really the protection of the family fortune and legacy from being squandered away. Had I given you a chance, pain could have been spared all the parties involved. Had you made your true self better known, the same result would have been found. I have trouble in the admittance of my wrongdoings, but in this instance, my reconsiderations have beyond a doubt made me feel remorseful.

I hope that my previous feelings and actions towards you can be considered more justified now that you have read of my reasoning, but if this letter has proved no consolation, I apologize that I have not the skill to persuade you that I am not as artificial as you must now see me. However, there is nothing more that I can do. What is done is done. I close with the hopes that this letter will not be taken out of context, and the knowledge that lessons have been learned by both the sender and the receiver. My idea of you has changed indefinitely, but I do hope yours of me has not.

Ever cordially yours,
Miss Elizabeth Bennet