Discuss the representations of class within "Emma".

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Discuss the representations of class within Emma.

Within Emma by Jane Austen, it can be said that the class system in the society of Highbury is depicted as a realistic portrait of the society which Austen lived in (Society in 'Emma,' CUNY Brooklyn). The text depicts the societal culture of the upper classes and its ideals through the interrelationships between characters and the social reception and perception of their actions within the text - more specifically, towards their ideas and actions towards marriage as a social institution. These ideals can be said to be dependent of the class in which the characters have said to be born into. Characters such as Emma Woodhouse and Harriet Smith reflect Austen's ideas about class and society through their social statuses. The importance of social class within their society and the difference between the upper and middle classes in the society in terms of the responsibilities of the two female characters reflects the inequality of the social system of Austen's time.

A major component of Emma Woodhouse's characterization within the text is the way in which her social class is described, reflecting ideas about the class system in Austen's time period;