Austen August: A Pride and Prejudice Read-A-Long discussion

Mr Collins is over the moon at being invited to dine at Rosings with Lady Catherine, and won't shut up about their good fortune. In the entire lead up to actually going to Rosing for dinner, Mr Collins gives them a lengthy detailed description of what to expect, what it will be like, how to behave etc etc.

He makes a hilarious comment to Lizzie about her wardrobe, basically telling her “just wear whatever you have best, don't feel bad about your appearance as it can't be helped”- wait, what?

As they got nearer to Rosing, walking across the grounds, the others appear to get more nervous but Lizzie is quite calm about it as she is not scared of Lady Catherine- she doesn't believe she has a reason to be after all the nice things Mr Collins has told her.

Lizzie spent the dinner seated between Charlotte and Miss De Bough, and since Charlotte spent a lot of the time talking to Lady Catherine and Miss De Bough didn't say a word, Lizzie stayed quiet.
During the time after dinner, Lady Catherine voices her opinions on every subject possible and pries into Charlotte's family life. Lady Catherine has such an air of authority and a way of speaking, it's as if no other opinion is even possible or matters at all. She moves on to asking Lizzie about her family, her sisters – are they older, younger? Educated? Pretty? Likely to be married? What was her mother's maiden name? You'd think this was an interrogation! Lady Catherine notes to Charlotte that Lizzie is a “pretty and genteel girl”. She asks whether the Bennet sisters all play or draw, and upon finding out they never had a governess, Lady Catherine seems almost scandalised!

She is also shocked that all of the Bennet sisters are “out” (as in, to society) while the two elder sisters aren't even married. Elizabeth voices a concern which I think is probably very much an opinion of Austen, in that she finds it daft that the younger sisters should suffer as to having no social life because the elder sisters have little or no inclination to marry.

By the end of the grilling, Elizabeth shocks Lady Catherine by being “impertinent” and not giving her a direct answer when asked her age.

I'm starting to think Lady Catherine needs such a “grand” manor only to house her huge ego.

I thought Mr. Collins was arrogant, but Lady Catherine takes the cake. Earlier Mr. Collins says, "She likes to have the distinction of rank preserved", and after the conversation (or interrogation as you aptly call it), I'm convinced there is no better description of the woman.

her ego has been fed and flattered far too much by Collins!

Mmm... What about your family, Mr Darcy? Haha! I feel like if Darcy were in this scene, he would be so embarrassed of his own famyly! ;)

He likely would be!!