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"Emma herself is never to be taken seriously, and it is only those who have not realised this who will be put off by her absurdities, her snobberies, her misdirected mischievous ingenuities" Do you agree?
In Jane Austens Emma the eponymous heroine is "handsome, clever, and rich" but she also suffers from arrogance and self deception. With the good judgement of Mr Knightley, and her own self scrutiny, Emma experiences a movement of psyche, from arrogance and vanity through the humiliation of self knowledge to clarity of judgement and fulfilment in marriage. The tone of the novel and the episodes where Emma is self deceived progresses from the light comedy of Mr Eltons gallantry and the eventual mortification to the sombre depression of Emmas belief that she has ruined her own chances of happiness by bringing Mr Knightley and Harriet together. Although at times the reader is able to laugh at her mistakes, as she moves slowly and uncertainly to self knowledge and maturity, the reader, like Mr Knightley, comes to take her seriously, for in the novel serious moral and social issues are dealt with, issues which directly concern her. ...
Perhaps the only character in the novel who takes Emma seriously is Mr Knightley. ... Under his influence, Emma comes to an awareness about her own mistakes and blunders, and finally attains the maturity to be able to find fulfilment in marriage. ...
Mr Knightley is put off by Emma taking on Harriet as a protegee, for she is simple minded and ignorant. He does not take her matchmaking powers seriously "you made a lucky guess; and that is all that can be said", and tries to discourage her from further matchmaking, knowing that "Elton will not do". He is highly mortified at recommending Mr Martin propose to Harriet, and angry that Emma has intervened in the affair. He tells Emma that she should make more of an effort to be nice to Jane Fairfax, a more suitable companion for her than Harriet, for she matches and even surpasses Emma in talent. ... Here Emma and Frank "flirted excessively", breaking social convention, and because Mr Knightley takes Emma seriously he believes that she is in love with Frank.
Approximate Word count = 1772
Approximate Pages = 7.1
(250 words per page double spaced)
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