In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen utilizes free indirect discourse in many ways. She communicates to the reader what the characters do not express and gives explanation of plot and setting where required.
Austen makes use of free indirect discourse for another, less functional, purpose - to humor the reader. For instance, when characters convene for breakfast in Chapter VIII, she makes a risible contrast between two men: "(Mr. Darcy) was divided between admiration of the brilliancy which exercise had given to her complexion, and doubt as to the occasion's justifying her coming so far alone. (Mr. Hurst) was thinking only of his breakfast" (24). Preceded by the description of Mr. Darcy's inquisitiveness, the description of Mr. Hurst's simplicity exaggerates this quality. Following the complex, multiclaused sentence pertaining to Mr. Darcy with a short one referring to Mr. Hurst accentuates the contrast Austen chooses to demonstrate.
Austen achieves the same effect in informing the reader of the characters' activities as Jane remains ill: "Elizabeth did not quit her room for a moment, nor were the other ladies often absent; the gentlemen being out, they had in fact nothing to do elsewhere" (24). Explaining the gentlemen's absence with a commitment to do nothing is humorous in itself. Placing this after a description of the women's attentiveness and activity makes a contrast makes the men look even sillier.
These two instances are humorous, but at the same time, they are cutting: Austen clearly holds little regard for Mr. Hurst, and she disapproves of the men's waisting time with no worries as others make themselves useful, out of genuine concern. Austen's humorous writing may entertain the reader, but it also provides an outlet for her cynicism and criticism. It is these risible moments when Austen makes her stance most clear, barely veiling it with a laugh.
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