Why was Mrs. Bennet so desperate to see her daughters married?

Answer

Why was Mrs. Bennet so desperate to see her daughters married? [NU: 2016, 19] ★★★ 

Or, Why does Mrs. Bennet try to persuade Mr. Bennet to visit Mr. Bingley? [NU: 2015]

In Pride and Prejudice (1813), Jane Austen (1775-1817) shows Mrs. Bennet as a worried mother. She had five daughters, no sons, and no wealth of her own. In that society, marriage was the only way for girls to live safely and happily. That is why she was always busy finding husbands for her daughters.

No Son – Property Problem: Mr. Bennet had no son. So, after his death, their house and land would go to Mr. Collins, a distant cousin. This made Mrs. Bennet very afraid. If her daughters did not marry rich men, they might become poor. That is why Austen says,

“The business of her life was to get her daughters married.”

She wanted at least one daughter to marry a rich man. Then the others would also be safe.

Marriage – Social Status and Money: Austen begins the novel by saying,

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”

Austen is actually mocking the idea that wealthy men are always looking for wives. In reality, poor families like the Bennets are looking for a rich husband for their daughters. When Mr. Bingley, a rich man, came to the neighborhood, Mrs. Bennet got very excited. She imagined Jane becoming the mistress of Netherfield and Elizabeth marrying Mr. Darcy. 

She had a Narrow Mind: Mrs. Bennet was not very wise. She did not care about love or happiness. She only cared about marriage. She often pushed her daughters too much. She often acted foolishly, and her behavior made it hard for her daughters to find good matches. But her heart was in the right place. She just wanted a safe future for them.

Mrs. Bennet was worried because she feared poverty,