Emma

 Emma By Jane Austen wiki by Kathryn G  Emma Woodhouse has been living comfortably with her father and her governess Miss Taylor for all her life. The story __Emma__ begins when Miss Taylor, who is like a sister to Emma, gets married to a man named Mr. Weston. Emma now lives alone with her father. Luckily, she has much to keep her preoccupied, including trying to find a husband for her new charming but dim friend Harriet, tolerating arrogant wives and rude misleading men, and her many visits from Mr. Knightley, who disapproves of Emma's matchmaking attempts. Throughout the story, Emma concerns herself with matchmaking for others. Will she ever be able to find someone for herself?

GENRE: 1800s, romance 344 PAGES

STYLE: Emma is written in third person omniscient point of view. The story follows Emma through her daily encounters, but as the reader you are also informed of some of the other character's thoughts when the narrator chooses to reveal them. For example, when Emma first meets her friend Harriet, the reader is informed that Harriet feels thrilled and honored to be able to shake hands with Emma Woodhouse. If the story weren't told from third person omniscient point of view, we wouldn't have been able to know that piece of information. The style of writing may seem a bit foreign to today's readers because it was written so long ago--the way Austen uses the language is typical for someone living in Britain in the 1800s, but we don't talk or write in the same way today. However, although the ideas are communicated a bit differently, it isn't too difficult to understand the meaning behind the words. Emma is an amusing, fun and light-hearted story, filled with many creatives idea and characters that Jane Austen enhances with her style of writing and way with words.

LITERARY ANALYSIS:  Jane Austen skillfully uses many key components to write __Emma.__ The mood conveyed throughout the story is generally light-hearted; although Emma does experience a few disappointments, the story mainly gives off a feeling of cheerfulness and enjoyment. The tone used by Austen is very formal and polite, adding to the mood. Additionally, the syntax of this story also helps contribute to the overall tone and mood—Austen tends to use lengthy sentences to describe the events and feelings occurring in the story. However, long, short, and medium sized sentences are all used to write the book. The mood, tone and syntax all help contribute to the overall feel of the story, and have helped craft __Emma__ into what is still a famous novel almost 200 years later.

MOOD: The mood of __Emma__ is fun and enjoyable. This mood is made possible by the clever scenarios and amusing characters. Emma, for example, is described as "handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition..." (1). Her friend Harriet, in contrast, "certainly was not clever, but had a sweet, docile, grateful disposition, was totally free from conceit, and only desiring to be guided by any one she looked up to" (23). By these two descriptions alone it can be inferred that Harriet, whos wants guidance from those she admires, will look to Emma--the clever, rich girl who is also her friend--for guidance. This sets up many potential scenarios. What will cause Harriet to come to Emma for advice? What will Emma advise her on? This unusual friendship is the base of the whole story and enhances each of the many encounters the two experience during Austen's intricate novel. Because of these two different and unique personalities, the interesting encounters are made possible, and these encounters are what make __Emma__ what it is--a light-hearted, drama-filled story. The setting also plays a key role. Although Austen does not go into much detail about the setting of Hartfield, she does mention at the beginning of the story, "Highbury, the large and populous village almost amounting to a town, to which Hartfield, in spite of its seperate lawn, and shrubberies, and name, did really belong, afforded her no equals" (6). Already, Austen introduces Hartfield, Emma's home, as being "seperate" and better than the rest of the community. Because of this, the Woodhouses are looked up to and automatically given much respect. This sets the stage for the rest of the story and effects how the other characters treat Emma and Mr. Woodhouse. The story would be very different if the Woodhouses lived in a tent in the woods--the Woodhouses would be given little to no respect, and therefore Emma would not experience some of the things she does get to experience. The setting of the well-to-do English countryside enables Emma's interesting encounters, and if it weren't for the setting the story would not be made possible. The characters and setting both enhance the mood, allowing for the rest of the story to unfold. The setting, characters and scenarios in __Emma__ all contribute to the mood and help make __Emma__ a light-hearted, enjoyable novel.

TONE: The formal diction used by Austen also contributes to the mood and overall feeling of __Emma.__ Before even picking up the book, it would be very easy to infer that Austen, living in the 1800s, would write with a much more old-fashioned style than is commonly used today. This style is very formal and polite, as is the way of life in the society that Emma lives in. This influences the tone and makes it tone formal as well. By reading Jane Austen, it is easy to travel back in time with Emma and experience the different way of life. This is very important--for example, if the tone were sarcastic, __Emma__ would have a very different feel and it would not flow with the setting and ideas expressed in the dialogue. The tone can also be described as playful. "Emma made as slight a reply as she could; but it was fully sufficient for Mr. Elton, who only wanted to be talking himself" (280). With this sentence, Austen skillfully incorporates subtle humor, as she does throughout the entire novel. The tone adds to the formal setting of __Emma__, which in turn enhances the overall feeling of __Emma.__

SENTENCE STRUCTURE: Austen’s syntax is very creative. To write __Emma,__ Jane used all different kinds of sentences, such as these sentences: “The loss of the ball—the loss of the young man—and all that the young man might be feeling! It was too wretched! Such a delightful evening as it would have been! Everybody so happy! And she and her partner the happiest" (182)! The last four sentences are very short and concise, and all five sentences end in exclamation. However, Austen mainly uses long sentences, such as this sentence, when Miss Bates is rambling on yet again, “…if I must speak on this subject, there is no denying that Mr. Frank Churchill might have—I do not mean to say that he did not dream it—I am sure I have sometimes the oddest dreams in the world—but if I am questioned about it, I must acknowledge that there was such an idea last spring; for Mrs. Perry herself mentioned it to my mother, and the Coles knew of it as well as ourselves—but it was quite a secret, known to nobody else, and only thought of about three days" (244). Her descriptions are generally described by lengthy sentences as well, although not quite as large. The way in which Austen structures her sentences is very important, because it allows the story to flow easily from point to point, and in some cases, such as the two sentences above, adds to the mood--the five exclamations help add to the excitement of the moment the dialogue occurs, and Miss Bates' long thoughts that are conveyed are very important to her character. Each character's traits contribute to the plot in an immense way. Austen's syntax is creative and helps the story flow, also contributing to the overall mood and feeling of __Emma__.

The mood, tone and syntax were all key components Jane used to make __Emma__ the successful novel it has become today.

CRITICISM: ★★★★.5/5 - I would give this book 4.5/5 stars. It was a very entertaining read. Emma is a great character and Jane Austen is really creative. It was so fun to follow Emma through all of her interesting encounters. The only reason I wouldn't give it 5/5 stars is because the book was written so long ago, and sometimes the old-fashioned language makes the book a bit less easy to read. I guess it is kind of unfair for me to say that because while the old-fashioned language makes the book harder to understand, it also adds to the overall feeling of the book and makes it so easy to travel back with Emma to the 1800s. Without this style of language that would have been much harder. But, admitantly it added difficulty. There were a few parts I had to read over a couple of times to understand. Also, something to keep in mind is that there are a lot of characters to keep track of, which is at first confusing. However, I actually found that I liked having so many characters to keep track of because it made the book very interesting, especially because they each have their own personality. It was a bit challenging at parts, but overall it was a great read!

If you like __Emma__ you might also enjoy:

Other novels by Jane Austen: · [|Sense and Sensibility] (1811) · [|Pride and Prejudice] (1813) · [|Mansfield Park] (1814) media type="file" key="Emma.wmv" width="293" height="277" align="right" Some of these books: Jane Eyre EM ... Little Women ... Little Men (Click on the book to go to the book, click on the text to go to the wiki page for Jane Eyre or Little Women)

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This is a short excerpt from the trailer for the movie "Emma," based on this novel. (You may have to click "run add-ons" at the top of your screen to view the clip.)

JANE AUSTEN (1775-1817) was born in Stevenson, (You may have to click "run add-ons" to view this excerpt from the movie "Emma," based on this novel) ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jane Austen was born in Steventon, Hampshire, England to George and Cassandra Austen on December 16, 1775. She had one sibling who was older than her, also named Cassandra. She attended boarding school for a year; however, she received most of her education at home where she learned to draw, sew, play the piano, and of course, write. Jane wrote her first novel __Love and Friendship__ at age 14. __Emma__ was published in 1816. As an adult, Jane participated in the normal social gatherings, had many acquaintences, and loved to dance. She was relatively normal, besides the fact the she was an exceptional writer. Although Jane is rumored to have once accepted a proposal, she was never married. Unfortunately, Jane passed away on July 18, 1817. It has never quite been determined what caused her to pass away at such a young age (41), although speculation reveals that some form of tuberculosis contributed to her death. Although she has long since passed on, her novels such as __Emma__ are not likely to be forgotten in the near future.

ALL INFO FROM: [] [] [] Thi "Let other pens dwell on guilt and misery." ~Jane Austen Quote from: [] s Jane Austen This is Jane Austen