For everyone, there is this one book that reignites the reader inside. Mine was Pride and Prejudice. Once I read that, I reread it and then realized that I love Jane Austen. I read every book of hers and binged on all the adaptations. Some would say I was obsessed but well what do they know. Jane Austen created romance and gave life to the trope Enemies to Lovers.
The trope that has swept over the internet and has become highly beloved. The trope itself can satisfy the entire plot; it has the tension a book requires, then the conflict is their enmity and the resolution is their love. Simplicity is both the advantage and the disadvantage. It has the possibility to make the book a wild success or a cringe-read. The tension is key to the book and so is the slow burn.
On top of that, the relation between them and the dynamics need to be so perfect that it is almost particular to the mindset of the reader. With the growing interest in unveiling toxicity in the normalcy of life, many have realized that the bar for love is incredibly low. Take the example of stories that have the “I Can Fix You” trope. The love in such stories stems from the character being so bad that their love interest fixes them into becoming a normal person. They fall in love because of a project. Many times we often find this trope with the enemies to lovers trope and all I can do then is roll my eyes.
Pride and Prejudice Is The Best
This is the reason why Pride and Prejudice is not only the original enemies to lovers but also the most perfect one. Mr. Darcy is a perfect man, he didn’t need to be fixed but even if he did, Elizabeth had no intention to do it. She hated him but respected him enough to know that he is capable of living his life on his terms. He despised her but then when he fell for her; he loved her enough to grow from the love and become a better man for her. That is beautiful and that is love.
By the time anything happened between them, we knew the two characters well without their love clouding our perception. They both did something or the other than made them equally good and irritable. Jane Austen created slow burn and angst. In conclusion, for anyone who says they love enemies to lovers, they need to read Pride and Prejudice.
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