My own strong reaction to the novel stemmed from Austen's depiction of society, a world of conspicuous consumption (Sir Walter Elliot cannot stand the idea of retrenching when he mismanages his finances and prefers to leave his house rather than be seen with a footman or a picture less) and his arrogant, good-looking daughter Elizabeth can't be seen without all the props, either.
In the five years since then, the W word has, it would be fair to say, been increasingly conspicuous by its absence from political rhetoric.
"Being a conspicuous presence at work not only means that the teachers you're responsible for know you're there to help, but students know that you're always around too.
To dodge the purge, many now avoid displays of conspicuous consumption, even if they got rich the legal way and even if to them golf is merely a means to network with the powerful.
Issues such as healthcare and the NHS, food banks, energy and the general cost of living were conspicuous by their absence.
And yet Harvey Weinstein was conspicuous by his absence; the ghost at the feast.
The flower produces a nectar reward for insects when they land but has a belt-and-braces approach to competing for pollinators' attention, luring them with conspicuous false nectaries.
Let's say Guardians of the Galaxy, as they're the most conspicuous, and it's nice to give the nod to a blockbuster every now and again.
In the most conspicuous case, in 1939 the three Baltic states asked to join the Soviet Union – which granted their wish.
The usual lopsided Bedford trucks, bullock carts, auto rickshaws, slaloming hatchbacks and scooter swarms that infest every highway I have ever travelled on in India were conspicuous by their absence.
With its 8ft wingspan and massive nests, it is conspicuous and, unlike the notoriously wary golden eagle, an inquisitive animal.
