Wasn't Jane Austen famous for insisting that her novels didn't have morals? (Not in the sense that they were amoral. You know what I mean.) I'm thinking of the end of Northanger Abbey. I think this statement, like so much else that she said or wrote, is poking fun at the society in which she lived. Certainly her novels are not without a point, but they were a thousand miles away from the moral stories of the time (Mary's literature of choice).

It's just that her lessons were not exactly the same as the lessons being taught at the time. I feel that the principal theme is to approach attitudes such as pride and prejudice with caution and awareness. However, as a modern reader, I compare the actions of the heroine with the environment in which she lived, and the message that I take away is this: think for yourself. Make informed decisions and act based on your idea of what is right.

And, most importantly, for the sake of the species, please, please, please do not be a "silly" girl.