“But He says you play so well!” The Role of Music and Emotions in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice Soundtrack

Among the most celebrated authors of recent times Jane Austen undoubtedly stands out. Her creations have inspired countless works, including rewritings, film and television readaptations, theatrical productions and video games, creating a remarkable social phenomenon that gathers thousands of enthusiasts from all over the globe. Film adaptations can be identified as one of the most effective tools for the dissemination of Austen’s stories, as they captivate the viewers’ imagination and shape their emotional response. Among the most successful film adaptations, is Pride and Prejudice, directed by Joe Wright and released in theatres in 2005. This version is characterized by its poetic qualities and its fidelity to the novel’s spirit, but above all by its unforgettable soundtrack. The aim of this dissertation is, therefore, to explore the effects that the soundtrack and the background noises have on the entire cinematic work and how they interact not only with the emotional rendering of the characters but, most importantly, how they influence the audience’s perception. The paper, after contextualizing the novel’s historical context, delving into the aspect of adaptations and illustrating the relationship between image and sound, will focus on a more in-depth analysis of the effects that music has on the cognitive and emotional spheres. In particular, this thesis seeks to demonstrate how the soundtrack and background sounds are not only a fundamental part of the cinematic work but most importantly, an indispensable element in the transmission of emotions in the audience.