"I would not be so fastidious as you are," cried Bingley, "for a kingdom! (Chapter 3)

I actually do not think Darcy fooled Bingley about his character; in fact Bingley seems acutely aware of at least one of his friend’s faults and calls him on it at the assembly. The question of fooling Bingley was part of a larger argument and not meant to be taken as my opinion on the matter. I will try to explain myself better. Marilynn suggested “we need to not jump to conclusions regarding these first impressions of Mr. Darcy.” One of the reasons she gave for not rushing to judgment was that Darcy “is Mr. Bingley’s friend and a well respected friend.” Inferring, I guess, because Bingley respected Darcy then all should respect Darcy. Well, that is all well and good as far as it goes—which IMO is until Darcy acts like a jerk; then he must bear the brunt of the bad opinion his behavior has wrought alone. What I was asking by questioning if Bingley could be fooled by Darcy is better said this way, I hope: Can Bingley’s judgment of Darcy be so completely trusted in the early chapters that his friends bad behavior at the assembly should not be judged harshly. I do not think so. I judge Darcy on his actions alone. Bingley’s good opinion cannot save him when he behaves badly. ;D