Comparison Of Emma And Jane In Jane Austen's Emma

Improved Essays
Women in the time of Jane Austen, tend to have a certain expectation to be considered admirable. There is a type of woman In the Novel Emma by Jane Austen, Emma and Jane both are seen as beautiful and knowledgeable, accomplished. However, they both grew up and have accustomed to the different lives they have. In Emma’s first encounter with Jane, she showed no sign of interest in getting to know her or being friendly. Comparing both these characters, Emma is shown less likeable in comparison to Jane Fairfax. Because Jane is a self-made woman, she is who she is because she persevered and was determined. Emma grew up with being able to afford and get what she wants without having to work for it. This upbringing can say a lot of their personalities …show more content…
Constantly she only has negative comments but not a reason to back up her dislike towards Jane. “’I wish Jane Fairfax very well; but she tires me to death.’” (167) In that quote, Emma claims that she wishes well to Jane Fairfax but she is a bore to her and not amusing at all. Emma demonstrates a refusal to lose Mr. Knightly to Jane. Even when her feelings towards Mr. Knightly are not clear at this point, on page 433ii, she kept insisting that Mr Knightly does not want to marry and especially not to Jane, but keeps getting rebutted with the ‘but what if…’ by Mrs Weston. It clearly shows her jealousy of Jane when the possibility of losing Mr. Knightly can become a reality to Emma. “But Mr Knightly does not want to marry…Nonsense! He does not care for Jane Fairfax…” ii(433-434). The way she is defensive, allows the reader to clearly see her dislike towards Jane as well as her selfishness in only thinking of herself. She focuses only on her comfort by making sure nothing changes around and attempts everything to not let change happen. Which is a trait she may have developed from her father. This makes it extremely difficult to like Emma, because a majority of the time in the book, she thinks of herself and puts on a façade that she is a caring individual. This façade that she displays is what people see and like about her, because they all think she is an accomplished women when it’s an …show more content…
Jane Fairfax is more likeable because she comes across as genuine and hard working which is easy to relate to. Emma is a character that has a fantasy life. Emma was able to live a privileged life and have everything served to her on a silver platter, which to people in reality cannot relate to personally. What makes Jane so much more relatable and likeable is that she was able to make a hard situation into a positive by working hard. More people would be able to relate to those traits as a character, which makes Jane much more likeable then Emma. Emma comes across as prideful and narcissistic, which effects how she is around people. She also isn’t very genuine because she tries to act a way to make people around her believe that she is ‘perfect’ so she can herself. Throughout the book it becomes difficult to like Emma, because you are able to start to see past the façade with Mr. Knightly calling her out as well as the narrator. Which demonstrates the differences between the two

Related Documents

  • Great Essays

    She attempts to make matches for Harriet and many other characters, like Mr. Elton, Mr. Martin, Frank Churchill, Jane Fairfax, and Mr. (George) Knightley, a family friend. Some of these relationships succeed and some fail, but most importantly, Emma comes to understand her heart and feelings and ends up marrying Mr.…

    • 1900 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The hectic and chaotic environments in which Jane Austen’s novels revolved around are believed not to be complete fiction, and are most likely accurate depictions of her true family and social environment. Jane Austen was born on December 16, 1775 to her parents, Reverend Mr. George Austen and Cassandra Austin, in Hampshire, England. After just turning a few months old, Jane, like all of her siblings, were sent away for a few months to a wet nurse until the mother, Cassandra, had regained her ultimate strength. Although many practices of the Austen family, dealing with the birth of a child, were seemingly obsolete for the time, George and Cassandra continued to perpetuate their traditions and cycles they had enacted for their eight children. Jane Austen had seven siblings, with her being the seventh born of all eight children.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Emma And Clueless Analysis

    • 1195 Words
    • 5 Pages

    This completely ties into class as Emma is titled as his superior due to her advanced fortune and consequence, she also furthers the analysis through stating ‘He must know that the Woodhouse’s had been settled for several generations at Hartfield, the younger branch of a very ancient family—and that the Elton’s were nobody.’ Through the use of contrast and hyperbole she Emphasised the improbability in him thinking that there was any…

    • 1195 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    ‘Marriages of convenience’ with people of comparable class and wealth defined the Regency mindset for respectable gentry. Austen reflects this in the metaphor “It darted through her, with the speed of an arrow, that Mr Knightley must marry no one other than herself!” The arrow symbolises how Emma’s independent nature has been ‘shot down’ and superseded by feelings for an ideal candidate in marriage – the socially compatible and patriarchal Mr Knightley. Furthermore, when Emma mockingly contemplates Mr. Elton’s endeavor to court her, the hyperbole in “The Eltons [bloodline] were nobody” highlights the resentment of the gentility towards socially incompatible matches. Similarly, Cher comments with a forthright tone that “no respectable girl” should date a ‘loadie’, highlighting how the standard that only socially similar people should romantically engage has been transposed into postmodern contexts.…

    • 981 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    From those two actions, Emma mistakenly conclude that Elton is in love with Harriet. Emma 's matchmaking plan goes horribly wrong when Mr. Elton confesses his love for Emma and proposes. However, Emma simply concludes that she made a an error of judgement and will find someone else to replace Mr. Elton. In both Emma and Clueless, Mr. John Knightly and his alter ego Josh warns Emma and Cher that their plan may backfire on them, but to no avail. Emma is fooled once again when she falls in love with Frank Churchill and believes he loves her too, just as Cher falls in love with Christian.…

    • 1063 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Jane Austen was not known for her interesting or memorable life. Many label her life as “uneventful” or “dull.” The stories she creates in her novels seem as if they couldn’t be any more different from her own life. Jane Austen’s novels are exciting and full of romance and adventure. Jane Austen never married, but she did yearn for a husband, someone for her to love.…

    • 1760 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Female characters display the portrayal of objectification through their own actions as well. Emma views Mr. Elton’s proposal to her as a person attempting to advance themselves in society instead of reflecting on past events to see if his feelings toward her are genuine causing her to turn herself into an object of monetary value that others want to steal and that she has to fend off “He only…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As the performance continued, I realized most of her actions were due to her past life experiences. Even though she was this tough successful woman, she had a soft side to her. As an old saying goes, “There is always two sides to a coin” and truly Emma had two sides to her character. She was a very loving mother even though she always criticized his son’s artistic work. I did resonate with Emma’s character as sometimes I try to be very firm and rigid with people in other to show them how serious I am…

    • 721 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Adversity In Jane Eyre

    • 1643 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Jane recognizes early in life that there will be people who despise her even when she has done nothing to deserve it. Throughout her childhood, Jane…

    • 1643 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I’ve always seen Emma as a female version of her father, as she grows up it has become more evident that she is in fact a female version of her father. She is smart, creative, funny and…

    • 593 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Emma, Churchill was having a secret engagement to Jane Fairfax while dating Emma. However, in Clueless, there was no character who was portrayed as Jane Fairfax. Instead while Emma was dating Christian, she realized that he was a homosexual. Cher later became good friends with him and realized they are very much alike, she even said that, " he loves shopping almost as much as I do. " There were many obvious differences between Clueless and Emma, but these were the…

    • 1276 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In many book to movie adaptation, characters and scenes are added or left out to meet with time constraints or to keep the movie interesting. The 2011 movie adaptation of Jane Eyre directed by Cary Fukunaga is no different, it attempts to stay true to the five-hundred-page book in just under two hours. However, the director lacks fidelity in his movie adaptation. While, the movie stays true to the basic storyline of the novel, many scenes in the movie destroy the integrity of the main character Jane Eyre, altering her from an independent, observant, intellectual character, to one who is weak, controlled, and ultimately the walking symbol of the patriarchy. There is one particular scene that has been added to the movie that best portrays the weakening of Jane Eyre.…

    • 1425 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In addition, it manages to strengthen Elizabeth’s feminist stance on marriage as she repeatedly expresses her disillusionment on Charlotte marrying for financial security abandoning the possibility of a romantic relationship. The third contrast with Elizabeth that Austen highlights is with her very own older sister, Jane which tends to enhance Elizabeth’s distinct feminist character traits from Jane. Jane is the quintessential ideal woman, beautiful, well mannered, and agreeable who confirms her typical Regency era woman characteristics by concealing her emotions from Mr Bingley. While she had hoped to please and attract Mr. Bingley’s attention, her passive display of interest nearly causes her to lose his affection.…

    • 1107 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Oppression In Jane Eyre

    • 942 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Jane Eyre He or she who thinks they have had it rough cannot begin to imagine what others have gone through. Unfortunate Orphan child Jane Eyre, main character from the novel: “Jane Eyre” written by Charlotte Bronte, after losing her parents and getting stuck with her abusing aunt: Mrs. Reed, has no other choice but to stay at Gateshead with her and put up with her mistreatment. Ascribable to Jane’s parent’s death, becoming an orphan was the least of Jane’s upcoming problems. Overcoming issues such as her social class, oppression and most importantly, finding love; however, not just romantic love , but also for a sense of being valued, and belonging when it seems impossible, was a journey that Jane Eyre was yet to enlist in.…

    • 942 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Jane is friendly and good natured and tends to see the best in people. While, Elizabeth is much more critical of people and the way they act. Jane is the only person in the household to not see Mr. Darcy in a bad light when they first meet him at the ball, while Elizabeth has already set her mind to not liking him. Jane is much more positive than Elizabeth who could be described as more skeptical of people and things. Jane is also more prone to hiding their emotions and the ways she feels as to not upset or burden anyone, while Elizabeth speaks plainly and isn’t afraid to say what she thinks.…

    • 1177 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays

Related Topics