This Darcy-centric theme promoting his mystique is continued on the back cover, which sports a smaller version of the portrait on the front, next to which is the opening line from the book itself, implying that any man with money must be on the prowl for a female companion. Under this, we see a plot preview, which reads: “Mrs. Bennet is on a mission to marry off her five daughters to rich men. Enter, Mr. Bingley and his rather fit friend, Darcy. Love, loathing, and bittersweet romance follow…” With the promise of an eligible bachelor, passionate hatred, and, of course, romance, this cover promises a story heavy with interpersonal drama and romantic tension. The vague hints at the plot lure the viewer of the cover to read on in order to try and unveil the mystery that is Mr. Darcy’s character.
The stylistic choice of using a “pulp fiction,” or cheap, pre-war paperback novel theme highlights certain plot qualities and also touches on the reader's sense of humor. The traditional “pulp” style of novels is often associated with lowbrow, sensationalist storytelling, rife with violence, sexual tension, and simplistic plot structure (Vintage New Media). Because it is widely accepted that Pride and Prejudice is traditionally associated with very few of these things and predates the advent of this style by over a hundred years, the result of the cover’s design is more satirical than serious. The design has a certain self-aware humor that is even mentioned on the “Pulp! The Classics” website as “irreverent,” “fun,” and “wry.” Readers and viewers who appreciate this cover the most have a sense of irony and understand the humor that results from juxtaposing a heavily-lauded classic novel with the style of a paperback novel one might have found in a dime store in the mid-1960s. Additionally, the style’s focus on certain words such as “romance” and “loathing” on the back cover guide the reader toward these themes more so than any others. The cover’s scant yet carefully-curated word choice and focus on only Mr. Darcy encourages diving into the story with him and his drama in the forefront of one’s thought. As a result, a reader of this novel might focus more heavily on scenes which combine strong emotion with interactions with Mr. Darcy, such as Elizabeth’s passionate fight with him when he confesses his love to her in Hunsford. The cover is synonymous with Darcy exclaiming “You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you” (131) while his “countenance express[es] real security” (132) as it does in the cover portrait.