Jane Austen's presentation of Emma as an unlikeable heroine

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 Candidate name: Mariam Jimoh                                           Centre name: Blackheath High School

Candidate number: 1517                                                                                    Centre number: 10606

Jane Austen wrote ‘I am going to take a heroine whom no-one but myself will much like.’ Explore Austen’s presentation of Emma in light of this statement, noting the effects of social, historical or cultural influences on the text as a whole.

In Austen’s Emma, the eponymous heroine emerges as an idol for the simple reason that Austen portrays her as being perfect. The definition of heroine is, according to the dictionary, ‘a) a main female character b) courageous, brave, superior qualities, noble, strong (mentally and physically)’. Emma is the main female character of the book thus making her one type of heroine but in the case of the definition courageous, brave and superior, we can not be sure she is a heroine. In the book many look up to her but readers see her faults. She has many layers and during the course of the book each one of these layers is torn away. On the outside she is perfect but each layer underneath exposes her imperfections. Austen’s fondness of Emma is because Emma has faults. Heroines are supposed to be perfect but she isn’t completely perfect once she’s explored into, this makes her more human and relates her more to readers. This makes her an idol to others but not because she is perfect, but for the simple reason that she has elements of perfection and imperfection, making her both excellent and awful.

When we first hear about Emma, she is described as being perfect. ‘Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition…’ Immediately this creates a certain liking towards Emma by the reader and an instant feeling of idolatry towards her. Alternatively this may cause an automatic dislike for this woman as perfect people are disliked by many because of their ability to be too perfect. Accompanying this, Emma is very relaxed and stress-free. She lives an easy life. ‘…with very little to distress her or vex her…’ As expected, this statement makes us think that Emma is heroic. The fact that neither anybody nor anything can distress her makes her seem on top of everything. Some might find her objectionable because she’s perfect and superior, while others may idolise her, but either way she is perfect and superior, making her a heroine. The novel mentions Emma became mistress of her house at a very early age. Such responsibility, which Emma takes on perfectly, is very difficult. This makes her a very strong character; she is able to look after herself and doesn’t rely on others. A heroine doesn’t need anyone to be their hero. Besides this, Emma is very optimistic. ‘“How often we shall be going to see them, and they coming to see us! We shall be always meeting!’” Though she is upset about Mrs. Weston’s departure, she claims they will see them all the time. She looks for a positive side in a negative situation. She is trying to help her father get over the loss but no-one will help her get over it, despite this she is willing to help others. Additionally, Emma doesn’t like to show any signs of weakness. ‘Emma turned away her head, divided between tears and smiles.’ This suggests that although she seems perfect she is just like everyone else. She doesn’t want to show any weakness because everyone expects her to be perfect she has to act as if she’s perfect but she might not be exactly that. Our first impressions of Emma make her very likeable. We can see from this that she surfaces as a heroine. As a reader, one may not relate to Emma very much by her first impression; she might be seen as someone of a higher calibre. This might make her seem less of a heroine. Austen doesn’t put much of her own input into the first impressions of Emma. She doesn’t give much of an opinion of Emma in her authorial voice. She wants Emma’s first impression to be up to the readers. In the first few chapters of Emma, Austen doesn’t comment much but we can see that she does seem to like her because she has put Emma in such a good situation.

The time period the character Emma lived in helped her situation and could justify the things she did. The Gentry class in the 19th century was upper class commoners with no need to work. The only thing that differentiated them from aristocracy was having a title. It was normally given to the younger sons of aristocrats who weren’t given a title as their older sons were. The class consisted of mainly of landowners. They were directly below the nobles and although a small group, they handled much power and wealth. Therefore Emma, being part of the Gentry class, would have had no job and spent her time doing as she pleased, making her extremely bored. In the 19th century women of Emma’s class stayed at home doing straightforward, feminine things. This was because it was a man’s obligation to have a job. Notwithstanding the fact that women’s roles were mainly similar through the classes; the upper class women would have more responsibility in the community. They would organise social events and visit the less fortunate to give charity. One could argue that Emma’s good qualities i.e. wanting to help people or match-making wasn’t because of the kindness of her heart but because she was bored. She wasn’t working class so there was no reason for her to work, as a consequence she would have had to find another way to entertain herself. Women in the 19th Century Gentry class were to be seen as educated women who could sing, play piano and embroider. Although upper class women had an aspiration to be feminine they did have more equal chances to men than that of earlier eras. Emma is very free; she is freer than a woman in that time should have been. She had a choice to do and say what she wanted. Emma doesn’t have the same social views as other women in her social situation. She doesn’t feel that getting married is essential. A lot of women in those times got married because of financial security but Emma doesn’t need that. As a result of her situation, she has quite modern views. She supports feminism and isn’t scared of what others think. This makes her a heroine because she is her own person. This makes her a heroine for today’s audience as well as 19th century audience women because it makes readers look up to her. Her relationship with Mr. Knightley is one very different to a relationship should have been between man and woman in those times, she doesn’t have to do what is expected of her.  Austen has shown Emma as the conventional upper class women but has included a modern side to her that many readers can relate to. Her independent capability can be seen as a quality of a heroine as she does not need a man to support her. This is a very modern view and this causes us to like Emma because she is a classic independent woman. Austen has made Emma different to anyone in this book and has perhaps made her more of a modern heroine, for our time. Besides this, her being more modern and having modern views makes her a heroine for her time.

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It is difficult to imagine that Emma was such a strong character, especially considering the time she was written in. She is a very strong figure in the book despite her being a woman. Women were considered second-class to men in that society. Nonetheless Emma is respected by all characters in the book, even men, which is unusual for those times. It was rare for a woman’s views to be taken seriously in 19th century England but Emma is praised and respected by everyone in the novel. ‘What two letters!-express perfection! - I am sure I do not know. Ah! ...

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