Character Analysis of Emma in Jane Austens...

`Emma was written by Jane Austen in 1816. In all her novels, she is primarily a moral writer, striving to establish criteria of sound judgement and right conduct in human life. In Emma she presents her lesson so astutely and so dramatically, with such a minimum of exposition, that she places extreme demands upon the readers perceptiveness. Emma was her fourth novel. Lord David Cecil described it as `Jane Austens profoundest comedy. It has frequently been applauded for its `engaging, dear, delicious, idiotic heroine, moving in `a place of laughter and nonsense, and excoriated because `it does not instruct ... does not teach the modern reader... how to be and move in our world. In her novel, Jane Austen criticizes the manners†¦show more content†¦Woodhouse, had hired Miss Taylor as Emmas governess, and the two became more like sisters, Emma being allowed to have things her way most of the time. For sixteen years Miss Taylor lived with the Woodhouse family, and she became a particular friend to Emma, in spirit more a sister. In chapter I, Miss Taylor has just been married to Mr. Weston, making what was a suitable match for both, and Emma is wondering how she will bear the change of not having Miss Taylor around. Luckily Mrs. Weston will only be half-mile away. Though it was a good match, and Emma had wanted this good fortune for her governess, she could not help but feel sadness. It is necessary for a 21st century reader of Austens work to be aware of some of the standards in society which Emma accepted as right and proper, but which Jane Austen realised were changing. Understanding of the society of the period helps you to place Emma Woodhouse and her development as a character in the context. In the early nineteenth century, arts and sciences flourished, and growing trade brought wealth into the country. The people believed at that time, that the Western civilization was at a higher level than ever before. People were optimistic and had a lot of self-confidence. It was a time of the French Revolution, the Napoleonic