Even if you're not a huge Austen fan, you probably have seen or read (or both) some version of "Pride and Prejudice." By far Austen's best-known novel, it's also probably the closest one to our modern ideas of the romance and romantic-comedy genres (even if it was published in 1813). The memorable protagonist is Elizabeth Bennet, the second of five sisters in a country gentry family. With no son to carry on the estate, everything will pass to a (rather obnoxious) man cousin when Mr. Bennet dies, meaning that Mrs. Bennet's sole focus in life is ensuring her daughters all get married sooner rather than later.
Elizabeth and her older sister, Jane, cross paths with the wealthy newcomers to the neighborhood: sweet Mr. Bingley, his two-faced sister Caroline, and his snobby friend Mr. Darcy. Jane and Bingley fall for each other almost instantly, while Elizabeth and Darcy dislike each other almost as instantly, and their enmity only escalates with the arrival of a charming soldier, Mr. Wickham.
"Pride and Prejudice" definitely has the largest number of memorable adaptations, too. Most fans prefer either the 1995 BBC miniseries, starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth, or the 2005 film with Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen.
