--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?\" Darcy: \"Not if…" description: "\"Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?\" Darcy: \"Not if I can help it!\" Sir William: \"What a charming amusement for young people this is, Mr. Darcy! There is nothing ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg" --- # Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?" Darcy: "Not if I can help it!"… ![“Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?" Darcy: "Not if I can help it!" Sir William: "What a charming amusement for young people this is, Mr. Darcy! There is nothing like dancing, after all. I consider it as one of the first refinements of polished societies." Mr. Darcy: "Certainly, sir; and it has the advantage…” quote by Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg) > “Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?" Darcy: "Not if I can help it!" Sir William: "What a charming amusement for young people this is, Mr. Darcy! There is nothing like dancing, after all. I consider it as one of the first refinements of polished societies." Mr. Darcy: "Certainly, sir; and it has the advantage also of being in vogue amongst the less polished societies of the world; every savage can dance.” [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The dialogue humorously contrasts social expectations of dancing with personal reluctance, highlighting class and cultural refinement. **In simple terms:** Dancing is seen as a polite pastime, but some resist it. Key Takeaway Recognize personal preferences despite social pressure. Themes social class culture etiquette individualism Mood playful lighthearted ironic Type literary dialogue social commentary When to use this quote - high society gatherings - dance lessons - family events - personal boundaries Key Concepts refinement social norms class dynamics Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel forced to conform to social activities? - How do personal tastes clash with expectations? A Different Perspective Not everyone enjoys dancing; pressure can feel superficial. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advantage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advantage/) [Amusement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amusement/) [Dance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dance/) [Dancing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dancing/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Refinement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/refinement/) [Savages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/savages/) [Vogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vogue/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Young people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-people/) ## Related quotes > [Every savage can dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/every-savage-can-dance/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“She gritted her teeth. The man dances like a clod. I’d rather dance with Mr Jenkins, who can barely move. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-f-stewart/she-gritted-her-teeth-the-man-dances-like-a-clod-i-d-rather-dance/) [A.F. Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-f-stewart/) > [I am happier than Jane; she only smiles, I laugh. Mr. Darcy sends you all the love in the world, that he can spare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-am-happier-than-jane-she-only-smiles-i-laugh-mr-darcy-sends-you-all/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [It taught me to hope," said he, "as I had scarcely ever allowed myself to hope before." Mr. Darcy - Pride and Prejudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-taught-me-to-hope-said-he-as-i-had-scarcely-ever-allowed-myself-to/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [It taught me to hope, as I had scarcely ever allowed myself to hope before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-taught-me-to-hope-as-i-had-scarcely-ever-allowed-myself-to-hope/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [I particularly recollect your saying one night, after they had been dining at Netherfield, 'SHE a beauty!--I should as soon call her mother a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-particularly-recollect-your-saying-one-night-after-they-had-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [I have faults enough, but they are not, I hope, of understanding. My temper I dare not vouch for. It is, I believe, too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-have-faults-enough-but-they-are-not-i-hope-of-understanding-my/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [The power of doing any thing with quickness is always much prized by the possessor, and often without any attention to the imperfection of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/the-power-of-doing-any-thing-with-quickness-is-always-much-prized-by/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“For herself she was humbled; but she was proud of him. Proud that in a cause of compassion and honour, he had been able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/for-herself-she-was-humbled-but-she-was-proud-of-him-proud-that-in-a/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [My object then," replied Darcy, "was to show you, by every civility in my power, that I was not so mean as to resent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/my-object-then-replied-darcy-was-to-show-you-by-every-civility-in-my/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [You are mistaken, Mr. Darcy, if you suppose that the mode of your declaration affected me in any other way, than as it spared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/you-are-mistaken-mr-darcy-if-you-suppose-that-the-mode-of-your/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [It is your turn to say something now, Mr. Darcy. I talked about the dance, and you ought to make some kind of remark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-is-your-turn-to-say-something-now-mr-darcy-i-talked-about-the/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [I have been used to consider poetry as "the food of love" said Darcy. "Of a fine, stout, healthy love it may. Everything nourishes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-have-been-used-to-consider-poetry-as-the-food-of-love-said-darcy-of/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Elizabeth had never been more at a loss to make her feelings appear what they were not. It was necessary to laugh, when she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/elizabeth-had-never-been-more-at-a-loss-to-make-her-feelings-appear/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [They parted at last with mutual civility, and possibly a mutual desire of never meeting again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/they-parted-at-last-with-mutual-civility-and-possibly-a-mutual-desire/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## More by Jane Austen > [Let us have the luxury of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/let-us-have-the-luxury-of-silence/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“How earnestly did she then wish that her former opinions had been more reasonable, more moderate!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/how-earnestly-did-she-then-wish-that-her-former-opinions-had-been/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“it is very well worth-while to be tormented for two or three years of one's life, for the sake of being able to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-is-very-well-worth-while-to-be-tormented-for-two-or-three-years-of/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [ “Everybody is taken in at some period or another. \[...\] In marriage especially. \[...\] There is not one in a hundred of either sex,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/everybody-is-taken-in-at-some-period-or-another-in-marriage/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [She knew that what Marianne and her mother conjectured one moment, they believed the next: that with them, to wish was to hope, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/she-knew-that-what-marianne-and-her-mother-conjectured-one-moment/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“…for I look upon the Frasers to be about as unhappy as most other married people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/for-i-look-upon-the-frasers-to-be-about-as-unhappy-as-most-other/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“It raises my spleen more than any thing, to have the pretence of being asked, of being given a choice, and at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/it-raises-my-spleen-more-than-any-thing-to-have-the-pretence-of-being/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [her spirits wanted the solitude and silence which only numbers could give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/her-spirits-wanted-the-solitude-and-silence-which-only-numbers-could/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“But in such cases as these a good memory is unpardonable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/but-in-such-cases-as-these-a-good-memory-is-unpardonable/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“...the pleasantness of an employment does not always evince its propriety.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/the-pleasantness-of-an-employment-does-not-always-evince-its-propriety/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [Such squeamish youths as cannot bear to be connected with a little absurdity are not worth a regret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/such-squeamish-youths-as-cannot-bear-to-be-connected-with-a-little/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“I must tell you what you will not ask, though I may wish it unsaid the next moment”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/i-must-tell-you-what-you-will-not-ask-though-i-may-wish-it-unsaid-the/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Lady Catherine seemed quite astonished at not receiving a direct answer; and Elizabeth suspected herself to be the first creature who had ever dared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/lady-catherine-seemed-quite-astonished-at-not-receiving-a-direct/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“He had suffered, and he had learnt to think, two advantages that he had never known before…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/he-had-suffered-and-he-had-learnt-to-think-two-advantages-that-he-had/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Eliot's character; vanity of person and of situation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/vanity-was-the-beginning-and-the-end-of-sir-walter-eliot-s-character/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) [Explore all 2,013 Jane Austen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) ## More Advantage quotes > [Dogmatists have one advantage: they are poor listeners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/dogmatists-have-one-advantage-they-are-poor-listeners/) [Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/) > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then \[these?\],… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in-england-in-1624-and-in-this/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Talented people can predict with great accuracy what's about to happen just a tiny bit ahead of their competitors. It might be two seconds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-maney/talented-people-can-predict-with-great-accuracy-what-s-about-to/) [Kevin Maney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-maney/) > [All I ever wanted was an unfair advantage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-wynn/all-i-ever-wanted-was-an-unfair-advantage/) [Garrison Wynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-wynn/) > [Part of the advantage, and part of the result of trying to be a producer and director, are the practical things, you find. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/campbell-scott/part-of-the-advantage-and-part-of-the-result-of-trying-to-be-a/) [Campbell Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/campbell-scott/) > [I was born with a silver microphone in my mouth, and that was an advantage. My father wrote books and was also a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-dimbleby/i-was-born-with-a-silver-microphone-in-my-mouth-and-that-was-an/) [Jonathan Dimbleby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-dimbleby/) > [Like funny men, skilled diners are apparently perceived to have an evolutionary advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/like-funny-men-skilled-diners-are-apparently-perceived-to-have-an/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [For some reason when I decide to pursue something, I never have any fear that it won't happen. I think it's just ingrained in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-blatz/for-some-reason-when-i-decide-to-pursue-something-i-never-have-any/) [Kelly Blatz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-blatz/) > [I think I have good hands, so I try to use them to my advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-andreescu/i-think-i-have-good-hands-so-i-try-to-use-them-to-my-advantage/) [Bianca Andreescu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-andreescu/) > [My influences are jazz, blues, European classical music; they are rock music and pop music. So many kinds of music. World music from different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rokia-traore/my-influences-are-jazz-blues-european-classical-music-they-are-rock/) [Rokia Traore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rokia-traore/) > [Baseball needs to put the steroids era behind it by having and enforcing tough rules against all kinds of artificial advantages, so that spring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-olasky/baseball-needs-to-put-the-steroids-era-behind-it-by-having-and/) [Marvin Olasky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-olasky/) > [Daily contact with some teachers is itself all-sided ethical education for the child without a spoken precept. Here, too, the real advantage of male…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/daily-contact-with-some-teachers-is-itself-all-sided-ethical/) [G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/) > [ If \[Donald\] Trump throws 20 million off of health care, that's going to be - if he handles this badly - and it's very… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/if-donald-trump-throws-20-million-off-of-health-care-that-s-going-to/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) > [Live in the world you inhabit. Look upon things as they are. Take them as you find them. Make the best of them. Turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/live-in-the-world-you-inhabit-look-upon-things-as-they-are-take-them/) [Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/) > [I always tell women that the fact that you're different and that you're noticed, because there are few of us in the tech industry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padmasree-warrior/i-always-tell-women-that-the-fact-that-you-re-different-and-that-you/) [Padmasree Warrior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padmasree-warrior/) [Browse all 3,503 Advantage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advantage/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?\" Darcy: \"Not if I can help it!\" Sir William: \"What a charming amusement for young people this is, Mr. Darcy! There is nothing like dancing, after all. I consider it as one of the first refinements of polished societies.\" Mr. Darcy: \"Certainly, sir; and it has the advantage also of being in vogue amongst the less polished societies of the world; every savage can dance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jane Austen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can-help-it-sir-william-what-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Advantage" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can-help-it-sir-william-what-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a94/jane-austen-39_advantage_do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can_1610204.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?\" Darcy: \"Not if I can help it!\" Sir William: \"What a charming amusement for young…” — Jane Austen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jane Austen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Do you dance, Mr. Darcy?\" Darcy:...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can-help-it-sir-william-what-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/do-you-dance-mr-darcy-darcy-not-if-i-can-help-it-sir-william-what-a/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```