How Emma Woodhouse Developed Through Her Experiences In Jane Austen’s novel Emma
By the end of Jane Austin’s novel Emma, the title character has experienced many changes in her life, and much of what she thought she knew has been overturned. The reader is left to question how much Emma has changed over the course of the narrative, and if so to what extent. On the surface level, it seems as if she’s changed, as that is what she tells herself in regards to her relationship with Mr. Knightley. Clearly in her own opinion, Emma has learned from the example of her recent experiences, both of her own infallibility and of Mr. Knightley’s superior wisdom born of age. On the other hand, the careful reader must consider the possibility, even probability that Emma’s internal self-assessment might fail to successfully gauge the extent to which she has undergone change. Emma is a very emotionally driven, impulsive woman who is not given to following through on her grand plans. There is an implication in the book that Emma is given to beginning projects with great vigor and deliberation, only to abandon them when they begin to bore her, or other pet projects come up that get in the way of her ambitious goals. Emma has a tendency to tackle ends higher than her means and her belief in her own internal change is to an extent exaggerated, I nevertheless find that the narrative leads to the conclusion that she does grow as a person and experience true change.
At the beginning of the novel, Emma is introduced as “Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich… had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her” (Jane Austen, Emma, 7). She has several personal virtues, but she has lived her life up to this point with little in the way of solid experience, and has had practically no personal challenges since her mother died. She has been sheltered from having to face life head on, and hence has a somewhat skewed view of how the world works. Lacking actual experience, she turns to her imagination when dealing with other people, creating matches and secrets where none exist in reality. As Mr. Knightley tells her concerning her own actions, "If you were as much guided by nature in your estimate of men and women, and as little under the power of fancy and whim in your dealings with them, as you are where these children are concerned, we might always think alike" (Emma, 94-95). Having been acquainted with the family for many years, Mr. Knightley’s is reasonably familiar with Emma’s reasonable faculties, and he knows "I have still the advantage of you by sixteen years' experience, and by not being a pretty young woman and a spoiled child” (Emma, 95). He is not being proud when he says this, merely pointing out the factual difference in life experience. Emma thinks there isn’t much of a difference in sixteen years, but when all twenty-one of her years have been sheltered while Mr. Knightley is engaged constantly in affairs of business, sixteen years are an eternity. This unfortunate disparity in understanding owes as much to the misogynistic attitudes of English society during the Enlightenment as it does to age. Emma, like other women of her time and class, is prevented from ever seeing the real world almost entirely by her family. Harriet being rescued from the gypsies by Frank Churchill is a more overt example of this sheltering instinct that breeds the lack of insight seen in the character of Emma. Emma’s fatal flaw, in other words, is a commentary by Austen on the flaws of her own society.
Every mistaken impression that Emma makes is countered with Mr. Knightley seeing what’s really going on, even if he does say at one point “I do not pretend to Emma’s genius fir foretelling and guessing” (Emma, 37). Emma thinks Frank Churchill is courting her, when he is in fact courting Jane Fairfax, a fact which Mr. Knightley suspects and even informs Emma of. She merely laughs such an idea off, "Oh! you amuse me excessively. I am delighted to find that you can vouchsafe to let your imagination wander” (Emma, 329). It is in fact Emma who is imagining situations that aren’t there, whereas Mr. Knightley alone has seen to the heart of the matter. Emma is too busy dreaming to see the truth that is right under her nose the whole time, not seeing the forest for the little flower on the edge. Austen shows her gift for satire in small touches such as this.
Mr. Knightley demonstrates Emma’s tendency to abandon her endeavors eloquently when he says of her:
“Emma has been meaning to read more ever since she was twelve years old. I have seen a great many lists of her drawing-up at various times of books that she meant to read regularly through--and very good lists they were--very well chosen, and very neatly arranged--sometimes alphabetically, and sometimes by some other rule. The list she drew up when only fourteen--I remember thinking it did her judgment so much credit, that I preserved it some time; and I dare say she may have made out a very good list now. But I have done with expecting any course of steady reading from Emma. She will never submit to any thing requiring industry and patience, and a subjection of the fancy to the understanding. Where Miss Taylor failed to stimulate, I may safely affirm that Harriet Smith will do nothing.-- You never could persuade her to read half so much as you wished.--You know you could not.” (Emma, 36)
Emma loves to start out on projects, giving them all her industrious energy and intellectual attention, at least for a time. Her tendency to grow bored with things such as reading lists indicates her quicksilver nature. As a spoiled child, she did not need to learn patience or perseverance, and thus is inclined to making plans but then failing to follow through. This leaves some room for concern about her future with Mr. Knightley after the dénouement, but marriage is not the same kind of engagement as reading books. While she has a small attention span, it doesn’t mean she is incapable of commitment.
When Emma learns of Harriet’s engagement to Robert Martin at the end of the novel, she is surprised, but doesn’t act with anywhere near the same vehemence that she did early on in the book. Mr. Knightley fears she will be upset over the match as she was before, but she says "You need not be at any pains to reconcile me to the match. I think Harriet is doing extremely well. Her connections may be worse than his. In respectability of character, there can be no doubt that they are” (Emma, 442-443). She recognizes now that Mr. Knightley is a better judge of character than she is, and so she gives Mr. Martin the benefit of the doubt.
Near the end of the book, after Mr. Knightley and Emma are together, Emma’s line of internal reflection turns to her future: “What had she to wish for? Nothing, but to grow more worthy of him, whose intentions and judgment had been ever so superior to her own. Nothing, but that the lessons of her past folly might teach her humility and circumspection in future” (Emma, 445). While perhaps Emma hasn’t fundamentally changed her nature in response to her recent experiences, she has a new attitude on life. Before, she was obstinate in her belief in the accuracy of her own fancy, and that at twenty-one years of age she did, in fact, know everything. Now, she has finally come to the conclusion that she should listen to the one who was always right in his judgments, Mr. Knightley. This is the key to Emma’s shift in personality. No longer is Emma a self-centered dreamer, but someone willing to listen to others with more experience and knowledge than she has. This change is significant, even if subtle. She may not have made a one-eighty turnaround in basic personality, but her experience has taught her one very important lesson: to listen.
Emma starts off as a sheltered little girl. She has natural intelligence, but she lacks sufficient knowledge to give her intellect direction, and lacks the focus to gain knowledge systematically. Her troublesome experiences with Harriet, Mr. Elton, Frank, and Jane all lead her to the conclusion that she, in fact, knows nothing. After she and Mr. Knightley come to their understanding, she is willing at last to listen to his advice born out of personal experience. She doesn’t suddenly transform into a world-wise sage, or become a more focused person. Simply, she has discovered the virtues of listening to other people, rather than trying to formulate elaborate fantasies built out of nothing. She remains proud, and her thoughts when Mr. and Mrs. Weston are expecting: “She had been decided in wishing for a Miss Weston. She would not acknowledge that it was with any view of making a match for her, hereafter, with either of Isabella's sons” (Emma, 431). Though she won’t admit it out loud, she still fancies matches between others, even those only newly born. So she has not become a totally different person, merely one more willing to listen to the advice of others, which is still a huge shift from where she was at the beginning.
