In the time of Pride and Predjudice?

I started a new personal project this week. The project still needs a name, but it has a goal. I want to know and read one of each of my friends' most favorite books.

My first phase is Margaret's book, Pride and Predjudice. Normally, I don't care for "period" books, but I decided to follow my own project rules and give it a try. So far, I'm on page 73 and I find the book to be facinating. I love the subtle dialogue that expresses and exposes social norms and desires. The characters all have so many social rules that they must follow.

At one dance, Elizabeth gets snubbed by Mr. Darcy (and everyone knows it.) At a later dance, she refuses to dance with him. She has a rep to protect! In the world of P&P, a guy couldn't ask a girl to dance, even if they've been to several of the same occasions, unless someone else intimate with both parties introduced them.

"What a bore!" I thought, "I'm so glad we don't have to follow social rules like that today!"

Until I went out to a swing dance club last night.

When I got roped into dancing with a robot named Mork, who danced embarrassingly slow to a mambo beat and couldn't give me a twirl if his life depended on it, when an acquainted man-friend left my friend and I as wilting wall flowers for 100 songs even though he is a great dancer, I was thinking about Pride and Predjudice.

How would these events at the swing dance be seen through the lens of P&P?
Probably, I would have know all about robo-mork and been able to turn him down for a dance to spare myself the awkwardness.

And the man friend? The social slight would not have gone unnoticed. All the society ladies would be talking about what a bad countenance and temperament and manners he had. Well, they would say that to me and my friend until we left the room.

Then, when talking to him, those bitches would talk about my friend and I in the same way.