Love is a powerful emotion, yet surprisingly fickle and difficult in both course and nature. When under its spell, one often feels like they are flying at lightening speed, the thrill inducing an almost trance-like state of bliss. As Elvis Presley reminds listeners in “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” wise men say only fools rush in and find themselves ensnared in the different emotional dimensions of love. However, love is not something only the dunce of mind fall prey to, as it has an uncanny way of making fools of even the greatest of intellectuals, despite its mercuriality and lack of solidity. It is also plagued by societal influences and limitations that kindle the flame of fickleness and shed light on the oft foolish decisions people make
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These elements all contribute to love being more similar to an ocean in a violent storm than a smooth river. These conceptions of love are explored, in depth, by Jane Austen in her widely acclaimed novel, Emma, about a meddlesome but well-intentioned girl from Highbury who has high-handedly taken it upon herself to play the matchmaker of her hometown. The happenings in William Shakespeare’s plays A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo and Juliet point to the concept of love being fickle, challenging, and not blind or safe from external influences. Jane Austen novels generally conjure romantic images of Georgian society at the turn of the 19th century. Readers are lured in by fanciful scenes of high-class dinners, balls with titillating but innocent encounters, and mostly likeable heroines whose happy endings are famously inevitable. Yet the consistency of Austenean happy endings do not dilute the thematic depths of Austen’s writings. Even in Emma, which is generally read as a comedy, the road to love and happiness is by no means an easy one for any of the characters central to the plot, particularly Jane Fairfax, Harriet Smith, and Emma, who, despite being blessed with material and social comforts, …show more content…
Elton, only one of her many love interests. Throughout the novel, Harriet shifts her affections from Mr. Martin to Mr. Elton, and then to Knightley. When that does not work, Harriet finds herself once again in love with Mr. Martin. Harriet’s interest in Mr. Elton was induced by Emma. She only imagined herself in love with him, and therefore developed strong — but fickle — feelings for him. Even Emma, who is not prone to finding error in herself, admits that had she not “persuaded Harriet into liking the man,” she could have spared her the heartbreak and humiliation upon finding out that Mr. Elton is, in fact, in love with Emma. Mr. Elton’s grievances when rejected by Emma do not last long, for he soon finds a wife in Augusta Hawkins, a more suitable partner for the vicar in terms of social standing and modest wealth. In their changeability, Harriet and Mr. Elton are not unlike Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, who, despite declaring his hopeless and unrequited love for Rosaline, soon forgets all about her when he sees Juliet. Within seconds, his love for Rosaline disappears and she becomes inconsequential. The characters in A Midsummer Night’s Dream experience this same challenge. Puck’s love potion leads the four young Athenians (Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius, and Helena) astray. Lysander and Demetrius both desire Hermia, who only has eyes for Demetrius. Helena is in love with Demetrius, who rebuffs her
These elements all contribute to love being more similar to an ocean in a violent storm than a smooth river. These conceptions of love are explored, in depth, by Jane Austen in her widely acclaimed novel, Emma, about a meddlesome but well-intentioned girl from Highbury who has high-handedly taken it upon herself to play the matchmaker of her hometown. The happenings in William Shakespeare’s plays A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo and Juliet point to the concept of love being fickle, challenging, and not blind or safe from external influences. Jane Austen novels generally conjure romantic images of Georgian society at the turn of the 19th century. Readers are lured in by fanciful scenes of high-class dinners, balls with titillating but innocent encounters, and mostly likeable heroines whose happy endings are famously inevitable. Yet the consistency of Austenean happy endings do not dilute the thematic depths of Austen’s writings. Even in Emma, which is generally read as a comedy, the road to love and happiness is by no means an easy one for any of the characters central to the plot, particularly Jane Fairfax, Harriet Smith, and Emma, who, despite being blessed with material and social comforts, …show more content…
Elton, only one of her many love interests. Throughout the novel, Harriet shifts her affections from Mr. Martin to Mr. Elton, and then to Knightley. When that does not work, Harriet finds herself once again in love with Mr. Martin. Harriet’s interest in Mr. Elton was induced by Emma. She only imagined herself in love with him, and therefore developed strong — but fickle — feelings for him. Even Emma, who is not prone to finding error in herself, admits that had she not “persuaded Harriet into liking the man,” she could have spared her the heartbreak and humiliation upon finding out that Mr. Elton is, in fact, in love with Emma. Mr. Elton’s grievances when rejected by Emma do not last long, for he soon finds a wife in Augusta Hawkins, a more suitable partner for the vicar in terms of social standing and modest wealth. In their changeability, Harriet and Mr. Elton are not unlike Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, who, despite declaring his hopeless and unrequited love for Rosaline, soon forgets all about her when he sees Juliet. Within seconds, his love for Rosaline disappears and she becomes inconsequential. The characters in A Midsummer Night’s Dream experience this same challenge. Puck’s love potion leads the four young Athenians (Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius, and Helena) astray. Lysander and Demetrius both desire Hermia, who only has eyes for Demetrius. Helena is in love with Demetrius, who rebuffs her