What follows is yet another school practice essay that I have decided to publish here for the scrutiny of other lovers of literature. This time it's a discussion about Jane Austen's novel "Emma" and how, through her use of satire, she hints towards what she construes 'proper behaviour.'
Enjoy!
“Although Austen satirises individual characters, she never really criticises the values and conventions of the society she presents.” Do you agree?
Miss Jane Austen was a novelist who lived from 1775 to 1817 in an aristocratic society similar to the ones that she presents in her novels. In her novel ‘Emma,’ Jane Austen heavily uses the devices of irony and satire to convey her own points of view about certain characters and society at the time. However I do not believe that Jane Austen criticises the society as a whole, but more certain types of people that she sees as potentially improvable. In ‘Emma,’ Jane Austen seems more to show affection for the society she presents, despite some of its character’s faults - paralleling it to the one she lives in, similarly to how she causes the reader to feel genuine affection for Emma, the book’s flawed but ultimately charming heroine. The fault is found with the characters, not with society itself.
Emma is in fact the first character that she finds fault with. Emma we are told is “handsome, clever and rich, with a comfortable home and a happy disposition.” She lives at Hartfield and is well respected and revered throughout the village of Highbury. However, despite her position in society, she is prone to get things wrong especially when matchmaking, her first mistake being thinking that Mr Elton is after Harriet when in fact he is, rather ironically, after Emma. Mr Elton confesses: “No Madam, my visits to Hartfield have been for yourself only, and such encouragement I received!” This shows us a flaw in Emma’s personality, one that will reoccur many times later – her sense of judgement. We also see Emma’s merely adequate and unexceptional artistic flair, such as with her painting. Mr Knightley is an avuncular figure to Emma and also a character whose opinion is never unjustified or untrustworthy throughout the book. With regard to her artistic, Mr Knightley says quite bluntly: “You have made her too tall, Emma (portrait painting)” and compares her to Jane Fairfax: “Why she did not like Jane Fairfax might be a difficult question to answer; Mr Knightley had once told her it was because she saw in her the really accomplished young woman, which she wanted to be thought herself.” What this suggests to us as a reader is that Emma could possibly be lazy and does not take the time and effort to become truly accomplished like Jane Fairfax, the same way that she does not take the time to think her matchmaking through to its proper conclusions. However, the fact that she takes time to contemplate and realise her mistakes is something that makes us love her as a character, rather than thinking she is irresponsible, i.e. her inappropriate remark towards Miss Bates at Box Hill: “you must be sure to utter only three dull things…” and then going round to her house and apologising later. Here we see Miss Austen criticising a character, and not the values of society itself.
Frank Churchill is another character that is criticised. Duty is an important theme in ‘Emma,’ and Frank is one character who we see not fulfilling his. The theme is introduced to us in fact by a criticism of Frank Churchill when he fails to turn up. Mr Weston (his adoptive father) says: “There is one thing a man may do if he chuses, and that is his duty.” Contrary to all the positive criticism we have heard about Frank up until this point (his letter writing etc) this is the first point where we begin to think that Frank may not be as good a person as we have previously been told. The other point to make about Frank’s sense of duty is his attitude towards Jane Fairfax. We find out, near the end of the book, that Jane and Frank are engaged to be married. However, previously Frank has been flirting with Emma and making insulting remarks, all be them jovial, about Jane to Emma, behind Jane’s back, such as “perhaps I should ask her if it is and Irish fashion?” when talking about Jane’s dress sense. We later see his hypocrisy once the secret about him and Jane has been revealed in him saying: "Did you ever see such a skin?--such smoothness! such delicacy!... Just colour enough for beauty." This suggests to us Frank truly is not a dutiful creature, and Jane Austen heavily criticises him for it. Note however, despite the fact this could be construed as satire and criticising certain aspects of society, it is less society itself that Jane Austen is criticising, more certain characters who do not fulfil their duty in society. The values remain sound, but they are not always adhered to.
One character that is satirised heavily in the book is Mrs Elton, the overzealous and self absorbed wife of Mr Elton, the vicar of Highbury. She is a highly comic figure and is, to use a modern cross reference, very much like Hyacinth Bucket in ‘Keeping up Appearances’ in her way of wanting to organise everything, yet being highly inappropriate. For instance, Mr Knightley is referred to by her merely as “Knightley.” This disrespectful, condescending and without a doubt emasculating appellation is received furiously by Emma: ‘"Insufferable woman!" was her immediate exclamation. "Worse than I had supposed. Absolutely insufferable! Knightley! - I could not have believed it.”’ This sets our sympathies against her straight away. She then goes on to try and invite her own guests to Donwell Abbey. Mr Knightley cuts her short:
“There is but one married woman in the world whom I can ever allow to invite what guests she pleases to Donwell, and that one is--"
"--Mrs. Weston, I suppose," interrupted Mrs. Elton, rather mortified.
"No--Mrs. Knightley;--and till she is in being, I will manage such matters myself."
This extract shows Mrs Elton not getting the hint with the first comment, also causing us not to sympathise with her. The final thing that really makes us laugh at her is when she speaks about Frank Churchill at the ball: "A very fine young man indeed, Mr. Weston. I think him a very handsome young man, and his manners are precisely what I like and approve--so truly the gentleman, without the least conceit or puppyism.” This is highly ironic, as we have already judgements for ourselves about Frank’s puppyism after all that we have heard – specifically his venture to London, merely to get his haircut. What this shows us is that Mrs Elton is not as respectable, clever and as good a judge as she wants people to believe. This use of satire does criticise Mrs Elton as a character and arguably criticises certain members of Jane Austen’s own society at the time. However, this is not criticism of society’s values as a whole but rather a character going against them.
Mr Knightley and Jane Fairfax are used as the male and female role models in the book respectively. Mr Knightley’s judgement is never wrong and, in his avuncular way, is the only character to correct people (most importantly and commonly, Emma) and to put them in their place. We see this through all his reproaches such as his snub of Mrs Elton and his reprimand of Emma at Box Hill: “I assure you she took your full meaning” etc. He is dutiful towards the Bates’ by sending them his stock of apples, and by standing up for Miss Bates after Emma’s remark. Jane Fairfax is a woman who is poor yet is more accomplished artistically and knowledgably than the heroine of the book, Emma herself. She is dutiful to her fiancé, Frank, despite his undutifulness. Jane Austen uses them as an example of how people should be in society – dutiful, attentive, respectful and appropriate, as opposed to some of the characters she satirises, the inappropriate Mrs Elton, the hypocritical and undutiful Frank Churchill and the flawed yet still ultimately charming heroine, Emma.
In conclusion, Jane Austen does definitely criticise certain aspects of society through satirising several characters, using them to point out similarly flawed characters in the real world. However, as for the values and conventions of the society she presents, duty, class system, appropriate behaviour etc, she does not criticise them one but, but does in fact promote these ideals, through using Jane and Mr Knightley as role models. She shows in the end how everything can turn out fine if these values and rules are followed properly. Emma and Mr Knightley end up married as do Harriet and Mr Martin – both within their class range and both happily. Mr Woodhouse is appeased and contented. Mr and Mrs Elton, despite being dislikeable characters, could not be better suited for each other and so are contented in themselves and Frank and Jane, despite their ups and downs become happily married, he because he has a beautiful and clever wife, she because she is naturally attentive and dutiful. Miss Austen finds fault with society, but is glad of the values that are there, and believes they should be upheld more.
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