Mrs Louisa Hurst

[Mrs. Louisa Hurst]

MRS LOUISA HURST

FULL NAME AND TITLE: Mrs Louisa Hurst (nee Bingley)
GOES BY: Louisa (for her family and small group of intimate friends) and Mrs Hurst by everyone else.
AGE: 28
CLASS: Gentry (for now)
OCCUPATION: Fashionable lady
POSITION IN FAMILY: Manager of her husband’s affairs / Eldest Bingley sibling
FINANCES: Mr Hurst has £7000/Year

FACE CLAIM: Bryce Dallas Howard
EYE COLOR: Green
HAIR COLOR: Red
HEIGHT AND BUILD: 5’4”, slender

DESCRIPTION:
Mrs Hurst carries herself with all the grace and conceit that a woman of her situation may well assume to be her birth-right. On the taller side of convention as far as society goes, she uses her height to her advantage whenever possible, believing that she appears almost ethereal to the untrained eye and particularly refined to those with a little more taste. Louisa takes great pains about her appearance and never slouches or appears slovenly, even in apparently private moments. In terms of dress, she fancies herself quite the revolutionary when it comes to fashion and she would much rather set a trend than follow one. Her attire is always bold, always makes a statement and (she fancies) always talked of.

Her high cheekbones and sharp look are practically a family hallmark; Louisa again making her mark and leaving her younger siblings to follow along behind her. Her full lips counter an almost indelicate nose, and her pointed chin balances the shrewd quality often displayed in her calculating green eyes. She wears her burnished-copper hair in the latest of fashions, and loves donning rather radical hats in order to show it off all the better. She never fails to look people in the eye (which marks her deep-seated, inner hubris), and where Caroline wears a mask to hide her true cutting-edge and Charles has nothing dark to keep secret about his personality in the first place, Louisa prefers to be herself. Her expressions largely show her real feelings on matters… unless she is intent on impressing someone.

PERSONALITY:
Louisa is so much more than the typical well-bred young socialite. Her vanity is induced by virtue of her name, breeding and class, kindling within her a deep-seated arrogance that knows no bounds. She cares not who she offends (unless it expressly suits her to mind her manners) and she deems that all manner of nastiness can be forgiven when committed by the very rich or the exceptionally beautiful. She believes that money buys power, and that it is a sharp mind that maintains it – and Louisa is convinced that she possesses both in abundance. Her selfishness leads her to pursue her desires with a single-mindedness that would have been admirable in a man, but which in a woman is deemed cold and unfeeling. She employs her resourcefulness to full effect when in scheming mode; once she has her mind set on a matter she does not release it easily. In the (admittedly unlikely) event that things should turn sour, Louisa weathers the storm with an admirable resilience that sees her just as eager to try again – with gusto – once the dust has settled.

She delights in taking every opportunity to boast when it is presented, showcasing her insurmountable pride in not only her present situation and that of her upbringing, but also that of her future. Her elevated opinions of herself and her family serve to make her cruel to almost everyone else wholly unconnected with them; she has not the time for those who are undeserving of her attentions. Louisa has honed manipulation to a fine art and uses it to full effect on all those around her, including her younger siblings. She is no stranger to emotional blackmail, and isn’t above employing it if it will assist her in reaching her often dubious goals. She possesses a queer kind of honesty that can only be termed ‘double-edged’, and though it is the truth without a doubt, it may often be the kind of honesty that one could live well enough without hearing! Her boldness is second to none, and she makes no apologies for who and what she is, a sign of the fact that her reality is a far harsher one than many can lay claim to.

Having had to grow up quite quickly in order to make a life for herself, Louisa is uncharitable to the nth degree. She believes that those less fortunate are there by choice; if she could do what needed to be done in order to provide a good life for herself then she is certain that horrid, grubby little gypsies could show a little more backbone (for, after all, they are not married to Mr. Hurst!). She is largely insensitive to the plight of the everyman, but this does not stop her from thinking herself lacking in certain areas. Louisa tends towards possessiveness and jealousy when she truly cares for a person or object, and it brings out the ugliness in her the way black velvet sets a diamond to sparkling. However, once she is won to your side you can be sure of a blinding and unswerving loyalty that is second to none. Incredibly reliable, she is a very powerful ally, and a rather formidable foe.

RESIDENCES:
Oakwood Rise, Sussex – The Hursts’ country estate
10 Berkley Square, London – The Hursts’ town house

FAMILY MEMBERS:
Mr _____ Hurst – Husband – 35
Caroline Bingley – Sister – 25
Charles Bingley – Brother – 23


HISTORY:
With beginnings in life that she feels are better off forgotten entirely (and talked of even less than that), Louisa was a pretentious child who grew up to be a pretentious woman. Though the humble foundations of her family gave her no cause to seek to be better than she was, she always felt destined for something better and, once her father had managed to create something of a fortune for himself, she found that she could begin to propel herself onwards in search of it. She was provided with an excellent governess -- the best that her father could afford -- and learned a great deal from her. In time, she would share the woman’s attentions with Caroline, and be grateful for the ally her sister presented.

Upon the birth of their younger brother, Louisa felt a sense of rightness within the world. With herself and Caroline to steady his course, little Charles could hardly set a foot wrong (or, if he did, it was not long before he was corrected from two directions). With a vast love for her siblings, Louisa grew to be a loyal and concerned member of the family (though she wished she were infinitely farther removed from the unseemly source of their recently acquired wealth). Upon her coming out she was much pursued by several young men who, if they did not admire her for her money, would certainly admire her looks. She soon gained a reputation as a young lady who was notoriously hard to please, and therefore it stood to reason that the only gentleman who did not try to please her was the one who piqued her interest.

Mr Hurst was already wealthy by the time he came to be seen in the kind of circle that Louisa wished to make her own, and had he merely been another gentleman with vast amounts of money he might have only held a passing fancy for her. In fact, she had been willing to overlook him just as she had many others, and it was gossip that finally convinced her otherwise. It was said that he was a banker with almost a magical ability to predict investments; soon the whole of London was talking of him and Louisa (who was never one to miss out on any kind of opportunity) was soon talking of him also. Her goal in setting her cap for Mr Hurst was to marry a man whose fortune would not only help wash away some of the muddy taint left to her by virtue of her father’s trade, but also to connect herself to a man who might gain favour in other ways.

But she never intended for Hurst to be her everything, nor could she bear it if he was. She sees in him an inarticulate slob who talks of nothing but profits, and she is vastly tired of him now that they have been married these 5years. She is glad that he seems to have taken to drinking (though she does not know the true reasoning behind it – being that his finances have steadily been declining) and encourages him in all kinds of reckless pursuits wherever she can in the hopes that fate will take a hand in her life and make her a widow. She also takes active steps to prevent pregnancy, because she likes the idea of being able to remarry with better prospects should anything happen to Mr Hurst. Mr Hurst has begun pressuring her for an heir, and she is desperate to put him off.

YOUR NAME: Dash
YOUR AGE: Over 18.
YOUR RP EXPERIENCE: A significant amount.
YOUR SAMPLE: Please see either Nicholas Goulding or Felicity Cadwallader for my sample.