Emma by Jane Austen

In describing Emma (1815) Jane Austen famously wrote: "I am going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like”.  And over the years I have wondered about that quote.  What would I discover about Emma Woodhouse when I finally got around to reading the novel that would cause me to dislike her?  But now that I have read Emma is it possible that Jane Austen was teasing us?  I ask because despite her imperfections I liked Emma Woodhouse and I am sure many readers over the years have liked her as well.

All of this is not to say that Emma is without flaws.  She is a very wealthy 21 year old woman living with her father in their Hartfield Estate in Surrey England at the beginning of the 19th century.  Emma's mother died when she was very young and since then she has been raised by her father and her governess Miss Taylor and Emna is used to getting her own way. 

But when the novel opens Miss Taylor has just gotten married to Mr Weston.  Miss Taylor and Emma are sad to be parting but Emma is happy for Miss Taylor and she soon makes a new friend, Harriet Smith. Harriet is a sweet, pretty young woman.  Her parentage is unknown and the highborn Emma wants to do something nice for Harriet. Why not set up a great match for her new friend?

And so Emma convinces Harriet to reject a proposal of marriage from Robert Martin, a successful farmer who Harriet loves.  Emma feels that Harriet can do better.  She convinces Harriet to set her sites on the new vicar Mr. Elton and it doesn't go well.  Mr Elton is a scoundrel only interested in Emma and her wealth and social standing.  Emma discovers this when she and Mr. Elton are riding in a carriage together: 

Am I to believe that you have never sought to recommend yourself particularly to Miss Smith?—that you have never thought seriously of her?” 

“Never, madam,” cried he, affronted in his turn: “never, I assure you. I think seriously of Miss Smith!—Miss Smith is a very good sort of girl; and I should be happy to see her respectably settled. I wish her extremely well: and, no doubt, there are men who might not object to—Every body has their level: but as for myself, I am not, I think, quite so much at a loss. I need not so totally despair of an equal alliance, as to be addressing myself to Miss Smith!—No, madam, my visits to Hartfield have been for yourself only; and the encouragement I received—”

Emma rejects Mr. Elton's advances and feels terrible about having gotten Harriet's hopes up and this is an example of why I like Emma.  She can be vain, a bit of a snob and too sure of herself but Emma is also capable of impressive self-reflection and regret when she has done wrong.  She deeply regrets the harm she has caused Harriet and later in the book feels terrible about her cruel comment at the picnic to Miss Bates.  Emma is unaware at first of how badly she has hurt Miss Bates until Mr. George Knightley brings it to her attention.  Emma is mortified and tries to make amends.

Of course in every Jane Austen novel there is the romantic hero as well as the heroine and in Emma the hero is George Knightley.  Like Emma he is very wealthy with a great estate of his own.  Mr. Knightley has known Emma since she was a child and is not afraid to criticize her when he feels she is making a wrong decision.  And he is often right.  But I did wonder about Mr. Knightley.  He confesses at one point that he has loved Emma since she was thirteen and since Mr. Knightley is sixteen years her senior do the math on that one.  But if Jane Austen is okay with it so am I.

After I finished reading Emma I rated it five stars on goodreads.  For me nothing will compare with Pride and Prejudice and Mr. Darcy but Emma is a brilliant novel.  It's a rather long book so you do have to pace yourself but it is worth the effort.