Final answer:
Mr. Bennet's tone is sarcastic and playful as he jests about his sons-in-law, suggesting that while he jokingly claims Wickham as a favorite, he is actually pleased with Elizabeth's choice of husband.
Step-by-step explanation:
Mr. Bennet's tone when he tells Elizabeth, "I admire all my three sons-in-law highly. Wickham, perhaps, is my favorite; but I think I shall like your husband quite as well as Jane's", can be interpreted as sarcastic and playful. Mr. Bennet is known to be a character who delivers dry and witty comments, often using irony to convey his true feelings. Within the context of Pride and Prejudice, his fondness for Elizabeth's choice of husband and the less favorable view of Wickham, paired with his often sardonic view on the marriages of his daughters, suggests that he does not genuinely consider Wickham a favorite but is teasingly contrasting the choices his daughters have made in their respective spouses.