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Emma

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Emma is a comic novel by Jane Austen, first published in 1816, about the perils of misconstrued romance. The main character, Emma Woodhouse, is described in the opening paragraph as "handsome, clever, and rich" but is also rather spoiled. Prior to starting the novel, Austen wrote, "I am going to take a heroine whom no-one but myself will much like."

Contents

Plot Summary

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Emma Woodhouse is a handsome, clever, rich young woman in Regency England. She lives with Mr. Woodhouse, her father, and has — as the novel begins — just attended the marriage of Miss Taylor, her old governess. Having introduced Miss Taylor to her future husband Mr. Weston, Emma finds that she rather likes matchmaking. Emma tries to match her new friend, Harriet Smith (a sweet but simple girl of seventeen of unknown parentage) to the local minister, Mr. Elton; this plan backfires when it turns out that Mr. Elton aspires to greatly better himself by marrying Emma— not, as she had mistakenly thought, the poor and socially inferior Harriet. After Emma turns down his proposals, Mr. Elton goes on holiday. Harriet fancies herself heartbroken, though Emma does her best to convince Harriet that Mr. Elton (who will reveal himself to be more and more arrogant and pompous as the story continues) is beneath them both.

An interesting development for Emma is the arrival in the neighbourhood of Frank Churchill, the stepson of her ex-governess, whom she has never met but in whom she has a long-standing interest. Mr Elton returns with a vulgar wife who becomes part of Emma's social circle, even though the two women loathe each other. Another newcomer is Jane Fairfax, the reserved but beautiful niece of Emma's impoverished neighbour, the loquacious Miss Bates (another comical character who serves to lighten the scene). Emma envies Jane for her musical skills. Jane had lived with Miss Bates until she was nine, but Colonel Campbell, a friend indebted to her father for seeing him through a life-threatening illness, then welcomed her into his own home, where she became fast friends with his daughter and received a first-rate education. On the marriage of Miss Campbell, Jane returned to her relations to prepare to earn her living as a governess. In her eagerness to find some sort of fault with Jane — and also to find something to amuse her in her pleasant but dull village — Emma concocts a fantasy that Jane fancied Miss Campbell's husband, Mr. Dixon, and that it is for this reason she has returned home, rather than going to Ireland to visit them. This suspicion is further fuelled by the arrival of a piano for Jane from a mysterious, anonymous benefactor. Emma confides her suspicions to Frank, who encourages them.

The plot becomes quite complex as Emma tries to persuade herself to fall in love with Frank because everyone believes they make a very handsome couple. Emma initially imagines that she is in love with him, but ultimately decides that he would suit Harriet better after an episode where Frank saves her protegée from a band of gypsies. During this time, Mrs. Weston wonders if the Woodhouse's old, close friend, the bachelor Mr. George Knightley, the older brother of Mr. John Knightley who is married to Emma's sister Isabella, might have feelings for Jane. Emma promptly decides that she does not want him to marry anyone, but instead of considering why she reacts so strongly against the notion, she justifies it by saying that she did not want anyone other than her nephew Henry to inherit the family property. Having fallen out with Mr Knightley over an unintended insult to Miss Bates, she recognises serious failings in herself and sets out to heal the rift. Around this time, it becomes known that Jane and Frank have been secretly engaged for almost a year. When Harriet reveals that she thinks Mr. Knightley may be in love with her, jealousy forces Emma to realize that she loves him herself. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Knightley proposes to her, and the novel ends with their marriage.

Principal Characters

Emma Woodhouse, the protagonist of the story, is a pretty, high-spirited, intellectual, and slightly spoiled woman of 21. Though vowing she will never marry, she delights in making matches for others. It is only at the end of the novel that Emma realizes that she is in love with her longtime friend and connection, George Knightley.

Mr. George Knightley, a neighbor aged about 38, is the only person to find any fault with Emma. Knightley is highly respected and considered very much a gentleman, and there is a no-nonsense air about him. He is the standard against which all the men in Emma's life are measured. He is constantly disputing with Mrs. Weston about Emma's spoiled upbringing because of his long and deep-seated affection for her.

Mr. Frank Churchill, an amiable man who manages to be liked by everyone except for Mr. Knightley, who considers him quite immature. Frank thoroughly enjoys dancing and music and likes to live life to the fullest. Frank may be viewed as a less villainous version of characters from other Austen novels, such as Mr. Wickham from Pride and Prejudice or Willoughby from Sense and Sensibility.

Jane Fairfax, an orphan who only family consists of an aunt, Miss Bates, and a grandmother, Mrs. Bates. She is regarded as a very elegant woman with the best of manners and is also very well educated and exceptionally talented in singing and playing the piano; in fact, she is the sole person that Emma envies.

Harriet Smith, a young friend of Emma's, is a very pretty girl who is too easily led by others, especially Emma. The illegitimate daughter of unknown parents, Harriet has been educated at a nearby school; Emma takes her under her wing early in the novel, and she becomes the subject of some of Emma's misguided matchmaking attempts. Harriet initially rebuffs a marriage proposal from farmer Robert Martin because of Emma's belief that he is beneath her, despite Harriet's own humble origins. Ultimately, Harriet and Mr. Martin are wed despite Emma's meddling.

Philip Elton is the good-looking and ambitious young vicar. Emma wants him to marry Harriet; he wants to marry Emma. Mr. Elton displays his mercenary nature by quickly marrying another woman of means after Emma's rejection.

Augusta Elton is Mr. Elton's monied but abrasive wife. She is portrayed to be a very pretentious woman who always likes to be the center of attention and is generally disliked by Emma and her circle. She patronizes Jane, which earns Jane the sympathy of others.

Mrs. Weston, formerly Miss Taylor, was Emma's governess for sixteen years and remains her closest friend and confidante after she marries Mr. Weston in the opening chapter. Mrs. Weston acts as a surrogate mother to Emma and, occasionally, as a voice of moderation and reason.

Film and television adaptations

Emma has been the subject of many adaptations [link]:

Criticism and Themes

Emma Woodhouse is the first Jane Austen heroine with no financial concerns, which, she declares to the naïve Miss Smith, is the reason that she has no inducement to marry. This is a great departure from Austen's other novels where the quest for marriage is the main focus and theme of the story. Emma's ample financial resources are one of the factors that make this novel so much lighter than Austen's earlier works, such as Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice. Jane Fairfax's prospects, in contrast, are bleak.

Emma also proves surprisingly immune to romantic attraction and sexual desire. In contrast to Austen heroines like Elizabeth Bennet and Marianne Dashwood, who are attracted to the wrong man before they settle on the right one, Emma shows no romantic interest in the men she meets. She is genuinely surprised and somewhat disgusted when Mr. Elton declares his love for her. Her fancy for Frank Churchill represents more of a longing for a little drama in her life than a longing for romantic love. Notably, too, Emma utterly fails to understand Harriet Smith and Robert Martin's budding affection for each other; she interprets the prospective match solely in terms of financial settlements and social ambition. Only after Harriet Smith reveals her interest in Mr. Knightley does Emma realize her own feelings for him.

While Emma differs strikingly from Austen's other heroines in these two respects, she resembles Elizabeth Bennet and Anne Elliot, among others, in another respect: she is an intelligent young woman with too little to do and no ability to change her location or everyday routine. Though her family is loving and her economic circumstances comfortable, her everyday life is dull indeed, and she has few companions of her own age when the novel begins. Emma's determined and inept matchmaking may represent a muted protest against the narrow scope of a wealthy woman's life, especially that of a woman who is single and childless.

Further reading

External links

The text is now in the public domain.

Jane Austen's novels
Sense and Sensibility (1811) | Pride and Prejudice (1813) | Mansfield Park (1814) | Emma (1815) | Northanger Abbey (1818) | Persuasion (1818)

 

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