George Wickham

George Wickham, mostly known by his last name, is the primary antagonist of Pride and Prejudice. He is not afraid to lie, cheat, and manipulate to get what he wants, and as his name suggests, is generally an all-round “wicked” man. On the surface, however, Wickham is charming, handsome, and charismatic, making him likeable and easily able to conceal his true nature. Elizabeth in particular falls victim to this, as he flirts with her and she begins to consider Wickham as a possible marriage candidate; “whatever he said, was said well; and whatever he did, done gracefully. Elizabeth went away with her head full of him.” This relationship luckily reaches an abrupt conclusion when he goes off chasing the wealthier Miss King, with hardly any hurt feelings on Elizabeth’s part. He also is partly responsible for turning Elizabeth completely against Darcy by lying about being cast out of the family and deprived of his inheritance by him.