Elizabeth's decision to visit her friend Charlotte Collins is taken reluctantly and regretted quickly when she hears that Mr Darcy — the last man in the world she wishes to see — is expected to visit his aunt at the same time.

Her past interactions with the gentleman — from the first time they met at the Meryton assembly and he called her tolerable — have proved to Elizabeth that he is exceedingly proud, arrogant, and resentful. She believes he is also cruel and disloyal since he disregarded his father's dying wish and sentenced his childhood friend Mr Wickham to poverty.

In Kent, after an awkward first meeting, Elizabeth happens upon Mr Darcy several times on her solitary walks, and circumstances arise that present him in a different light.

With disbelief, she observes Mr Darcy showing kindness and gentleness to creatures whom she believed he would never notice, affection to his cousins, friendly politeness to Charlotte, and a strange interest in her, which puzzles and distresses Elizabeth.

With each such situation, she becomes more confused and more uncertain of her judgment and estimation of his character. The various reports make her wonder who the real Mr Darcy is.

By the time Mr Darcy comes to the Parsonage with his marriage proposal, Elizabeth's opinion of him is significantly improved and her feelings no different than his.