Duty and Desire Duty and Desire Duty and Desire is a 2004 historical Romance novel by Pamela Aidan. The second in the "Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman" trilogy, the novel examines Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" from the perspective of Fitzwilliam Darcy, the central male character of that novel. In relation to "Pride and Prejudice", on which the novel is based, "Duty and Desire" takes place between Darcy's initial leaving of Hertfordshire and his reappearance in "Pride"'s narrative at Rosings Park. Following on from the events of "An Assembly Such as This", the novel opens with Fitzwilliam Darcy preparing for the Christmas season with his
Pride and Prejudice (1940 film) wealthy, eligible bachelors, which excites Mrs. Bennet. Collecting her other daughters, Mrs. Bennet returns home, where she tries to make Mr. Bennet see Mr. Bingley, but he refuses, having already made his acquaintance. At the next ball, Elizabeth sees how proud Darcy is when she overhears him refusing to dance with her, and also meets Mr. Wickham, who tells Elizabeth how Darcy did him a terrible wrong. When Darcy does ask her to dance with him, she refuses, but when Wickham asks her in front of Darcy, she accepts. The Bennets' cousin, Mr. Collins (Melville Cooper), who will inherit the