Everyone's a Damsel, Everyone's a Knight: Gender Roles in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies poster (figure 1)

A Classic Romance with a Zombie Twist

In the 2016 film Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, whose poster is shown in figure 1, Jane Austen's classic romance gets a rather unusual twist: zombies. The film is an adaptation of the 2009 parody novel of Pride and Prejudice that shares the name Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, making this film an adaptation of an adaptation. Set in Regency-era England, as in Jane Austen's original work, the story still follows Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters, but this time, as they navigate society's expectations, they do so while fighting to survive a zombie outbreak. Although the setting remains historical, the film presents its story to a modern audience. Elizabeth still meets Darcy, and their relationship develops much as it does in Austen's story, with plenty of misunderstandings, clashing personalities, and romantic tension. However, instead of simply attending balls and navigating courtship, the characters must also train to fight the undead. The result is a strange but entertaining combination of period romance, action, and horror. By 2016, when this was released, audiences were already familiar with female action heroes, and physically strong women skilled in fighting were already common in movies, as were zombies. Mixing a classic novel with two common movie premises of today makes the story feel more accessible and entertaining to modern audiences.

Ladies with Swords and Men Who Need Saving

The Bennet sisters fighting zombies (figure 2)

Unlike many traditional period romances, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies uses zombies as a device to portray women as capable fighters rather than people who must depend on men for protection. The military still exists and is composed of men, but the Bennet sisters, as shown in figure 2, and other female characters, like Lady Catherine, who is famous in the film for being a deadly swordswoman, receive combat training and actively fight zombies. As I watched the film, I counted how many zombies were killed by men and how many were killed by women. Though it is difficult to count the kills in scenes where multiple people fight at once and I could not determine an exact number, women clearly kill more zombies on screen than men do. This demonstrates the capability that the women in this story have and gives them an air of dominance over the men in this area. 

Elizabeth kills Darcy's flies (figure 3)

Further, Elizabeth is still as independent in this story as she is in Austen's novel, but her independence has a greater weight in this film. In Austen's novel, when she walks to Netherfield to see Jane, she does so regardless of appearance. In this film, however, a new level of boldness is added to this action because she walks through zombie-infested wilderness to get there despite Jane's earlier attack in the same wilderness—and Jane travels on horseback. Rather than allowing either social expectations or clear danger to prevent her from going, Elizabeth takes matters into her own hands and goes boldly forward to be with her sister. Once at Netherfield, as shown in figure 3, she undermines Darcy's methods by killing his flies that detect dead flesh to protect her sister, who Darcy fears might be infected by the zombie that attacked her. What might be even more interesting is that Darcy lets her do this. He makes no attempt to stop or scold her, letting her have the power in this scene. These scenes challenge the traditional gender roles of the period by presenting women as physically strong, resourceful, and capable of protecting themselves and others. 

Who Saves Whom?

Collins watches the Bennet sisters kill a zombie (figure 4)

The film specifically challenges traditional gender roles by allowing both men and women to be both protectors and damsels in distress. Darcy saves Elizabeth and Lydia among others, but Jane also has a moment where she saves Bingley, and Elizabeth has the scene where she saves Darcy. Interestingly, each time Darcy "saves" Elizabeth, she is not in immediate danger. He swoops in and kills the zombies before her, even though, having already proven her capabilities, she likely could have handled those situations on her own. However, when Elizabeth saves Darcy during the battle, he is in imminent need of help (as seen in the video below), showing that her role as a protector might be even more necessary in this film than Darcy's. Rather than portraying women as helpless damsels waiting for men to come and save them, the film allows its characters to depend on one another. Elizabeth can fight for herself and save others, but she can also accept help when she needs it. Likewise, Darcy's strength as a fighter does not mean he is always the one doing the rescuing. Some women are even outright recognized as amazing warriors, like Lady Catherine. Other men, like Mr. Collins, show a certain amount of cowardice, as he literally lets the Bennet sisters handle the threat while he hides behind a tree, which can be seen in figure 4. He then proceeds to not help Elizabeth carry any of the weapons. Within this film, bravery and vulnerability are not exclusive to either gender. For modern audiences, this reversal challenges the still-present image of a man as the permanent protector and a woman as the one who needs saving. Instead, the film suggests that both partners can be strong, which appeals to many modern audiences who seek equality.

Strong Fighters, Traditional Expectations

Darcy and Elizabeth's and Bingley and Jane's wedding (figure 5)

Although Pride and Prejudice and Zombies challenges traditional gender roles, it does not completely abandon the expectations of its historical setting. Marriage, courtship, and social classes still play important roles in the story, and the characters must navigate many of the social pressures that appear in Austen's original novel. Women are still expected to marry, often giving up their warrior skills when they do so. As Mr. Collins suggests in his proposal to Elizabeth, he will "of course" require her to give up her skills as a warrior if they wed, suggesting that, following marriage, women are to adhere to more traditional gendered roles. Even so, some women, like Charlotte, actively think about marriage, but as the Bennet sisters show, women have the freedom to wield swords, fight zombies, and make decisions for themselves while still pursuing a romance. Interestingly enough, in terms of violence committed on screen, more male zombies are shown to be violent than the female zombies. Although female zombies are implied to be violent, as when Jane gets attacked offscreen, their violence is rarely shown, suggesting that traditional gender roles persist even among zombies. Further, the dual wedding at the end, as shown in figure 5, differs from Austen's tale and brings the traditional plot of marriage front and center. Even in a story where women are given greater physical independence, gender still has some influence on how characters and events are portrayed.

Differing from Austen's own story, the character of Elizabeth in this film is also far more emotional. She is confident and deadly, but she also is deeply hurt by Darcy's comments at the ball, and she lashes out at him in anger, and cries following their fight. She is still bold and sharp, but this adaptation makes the choice to include a more sensitive and less composed Elizabeth than Austen's original novel, adding a female stereotype that is not previously part of Elizabeth's character. However, at the same time, the film challenges the very stereotype it brings in, as Darcy notes that for a young lady to be accomplished by his standards, she must both be astute in the "female arts" and be deadly. While excluding deadliness from the "female arts" seems to suggest that deadliness is not associated with females, making it an expectation for them suggests otherwise. Even so, traditional gender roles are heavily implied, though modified for even greater expectations on behalf of women, and the more emotional changes give modern audiences the clear emotional moments that many viewers look for, and adding the fulfilled marriages to the story gives modern viewers the sense of romantic fulfillment that has become an expectation in modern film and television even while adding the entertainment that is slaying zombies.

Conclusion

Darcy and Elizabeth's fight (figure 6)

Ultimately, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies takes a familiar romance and gives its characters a chance to challenge traditional gender roles while fighting zombies. The women are more than damsels in distress, and the men are not always the knights who come to save them. Elizabeth can fight for herself and save Darcy, just as Darcy can fight for himself and save Elizabeth, and the fight between them, shown in figure 6, demonstrates how evenly matched they are in more than just matters of the mind. Both strength and vulnerability are shared among characters rather than belonging to one gender. Although the film holds tight to some of the traditional expectations around courtship and marriage, it offers a different idea of what men and women are capable of doing. After all, being a hero does not mean never needing help. Sometimes, everyone gets to be the knight, and everyone gets to be the damsel.