(This conversation will contain spoilers for the current chapters.)

S: Ah, finally! Here is a bit of good sense from Emma: she sees she does not have a tender heart. My only question is why she does not work on disciplining herself to have one. I suppose acknowledging the problem is the first step, so hopefully we will see her continue to change for the better!

R: Chapter 31 continues my confusion with Emma’s reaction to Frank Churchill, though I’m glad that she has some sense at least in not talking herself into more affection than she feels. Emma thinking that Harriet might be a good match for him strikes me as a similar error as she made with Mr. Elton, but an even more extreme mismatch of stations. 

S: It is really strange that Emma keeps trying to set up Harriet with men who are, as you say, a mismatch with her.

Chapter 32 is very interesting. I am not quite as convinced as Emma that Mrs. Elton was being rude, but I very well could yet be proved wrong. I think she’s giving Emma a sort of taste of her own medicine, especially if Mr. Elton has mentioned Emma. Her snobbery is something Emma doesn’t yet fully see in herself.

R: At the beginning of the chapter, I was almost certain that Emma was being overly critical of Mrs. Elton. By the end, I was still pretty confused. Mrs. Elton is either extremely earnest or extremely condescending. I agree that Emma was getting a little bit of a taste of her own medicine. If Mr. Elton told his wife about his feelings for Emma, she might be feeling protective.

S: As we begin reading Chapter 33 I see that I was wrong: Mrs. Elton is plainly and simply rude. I think this may also be a good representation of the ‘new money’ versus ‘old money’ that was happening in England at this time in history. Mrs. Elton comes in and assumes she knows best, better, than tradition. 

Emma is confused by Jane Fairfax’s decision to remain in England, but, I think, she doesn’t want to leave England because of Mr. Churchill (I haven’t yet given up my theory of there being an understanding between those two!). Emma really is quite young, and her imagination runs away with her quite often. I really think she needs to stop looking down her nose at Jane Fairfax and start being a friend to her. Her jealousy of her is blinding her to what might be good for both of them. 

Also, I think we just got a glimpse of the woman Mr. Knightley may love!

R: More confusion! I agree that Emma’s assessment of Mrs. Elton is essentially correct. What confused me is Mrs. Weston’s rather harsh words about her. My perception of Mrs. Weston is that she’s a more tempering influence on Emma. I wasn’t surprised by Mr. Knightley’s quiet castigation of Emma’s treatment of Jane Fairfax, but I was a little surprised by how easily he seemed to take Emma’s directly saying something about him maybe having feelings for Jane. 

S: Yes! Mrs. Weston’s reaction seemed to be very out of character.

Poor Jane! I am pleased that Emma is now behaving more appropriately and kindly. Both Messers. Knightley are so kind, as opposed to the rude and pushy Mrs. Elton, not at all becoming of a parson’s wife. I keep wondering why no one is standing up for Jane. I know she is trying to stand up for herself, but I suppose you can only say so much with someone who won’t listen.

R: Finally, Emma redeems herself somewhat, though she still has the inclination to be rude! Such is human nature, though. I enjoyed the little aside about handwriting and was a bit shocked to learn that boys received less education in that area than girls.

S: That was an interesting tidbit of information! I always think I want to work on my handwriting, but then I think, ‘Eh. It’s good enough!’. 

Pushy, rude busybodies annoy me, and Mrs. Elton is pushing every one of my buttons in Chapter 35. Mr. John Knightley’s reaction to Mr. Weston coming late to the party after a long day was absolutely hilarious! I needed that bit of a laugh after the annoyance of Mrs. Elton. 

Honestly, I don’t know how to feel about Frank Churchill coming back. I want to see if my guess is right, but I also don’t want more people hurt.

R: Mrs. Elton started reminding me of Mrs. Bates by the end of Chapter 35, which means she also reminded me strongly of Mrs. Jennings. She’s not only long-winded, but incredibly meddlesome. Actually worse than Emma’s meddling at this point. I concur about Mr. Knightley’s reaction to Mr. Weston’s arrival! And I feel the same as Mr. Knightley; I would much rather stay in with a book most of the time than go out after a long day! 

S: Agreed! Books and quiet after a long day are, in my opinion, necessities.

(This conversation will contain spoilers for the current chapters.)

S: Chapter 26 is rather interesting. Although I have little to base this off of, I think that Mr. Churchill sent the pianoforte for Jane Fairfax when he went to London for his haircut; that was all rather fishy. I think that Mr. Churchill is playing with Emma as a cover for something going on with Jane Fairfax.

Yet again, I just shake my head at Emma’s pride and her conviction that Mr. Churchill is really in love with her. I think she actually loves Mr. Knightley, although she wouldn’t admit it, and I think that Mrs. Weston is feeling her out, seeing if it bothers her that Mr. Knightley likes Jane Fairfax. I do also wonder, however, if the Westons would like Emma and Frank to fall in love. 

R: Chapter 26 made me really dislike Mr. Churchill, and Emma as well. They were so rude and gossipy about Jane Fairfax. If he does have an understanding with her, I wonder if he’s trying to cover for it. I thought Emma’s reaction to Mrs. Weston’s suggestion about Mr. Knightley and Jane Fairfax was amusing, but also, again, selfish and manipulative. Even though her desire for Mr. Knightley to remain single is supposedly on account of her nephew who is currently the heir, it certainly seemed that she had her own comfort in mind. If Mr. Knightley marries, she won’t be the most important woman in his life any longer. I’m realising this sounds extremely pessimistic and negative about Emma, but she seems to be Austen’s most flawed heroine thus far.

S: Oh, I agree! I think she is the most flawed we’ve yet seen. I know I’ve said it before, but she really does remind me of Miss Crawford from Mansfield Park.

R: In Chapter 27, I was a little annoyed by Harriet and her indecisiveness and then by Frank Churchill trying to weasel his way out of visiting the Bates’ house with Mrs. Weston.

S: I hate to think this, but my first thought when Miss Bates is explaining about Jane Fairfax’s eating habits is that she’s expecting; did Jane and Frank marry in secret? Based on Austen’s other works we’ve read through I don’t think so, it seems much more likely that it’s a lovesick pining, but I honestly don’t know.

R: That didn’t even occur to me, though I suppose it’s possible. When Miss Bates is asking Emma to join them, I felt like I had to read Miss Bates’ dialogue in one long breath!

S: Yes! That’s how I feel, and by Chapter 28 I’m beginning to see why Emma really does not like being around Miss Bates – she can be exhausting to listen to! She makes me think of Mrs. Palmer or her mother Mrs. Jennings from Sense and Sensibility. However, I do wonder if it’s just because she’s nervous or lonely and is just excited to be around people. She doesn’t mean any harm, even if she speaks out of turn sometimes and overshares. Also, I really think that both Mr. Churchill and Jane Fairfax are playing with Emma; their actions are suspicious to me.

R: See, I’m beginning to doubt that Jane and Frank have any sort of serious relationship with the way he speaks about the suspicions of where the pianoforte came from. I feel that the implication of impropriety would be too embarrassing to Jane for her to be in on the idea as a joke.

S: I’m excited to find out what’s going on with them! 

Oh dear. This proposed party at The Crown, I fear, is going to reveal a lot. It seems very strange and rushed; out of place in this little village.

R: The young people always wanting to do things in a hurry!

S: Right? Taking time to make decisions really is okay!

Reading Chapter 30 I’m rather surprised at Emma! Her imagination certainly runs away with her, and she supposes an awful lot about Mr. Churchill being in love with her. The fact that she feels sad he’s gone does not necessarily mean she is in love. I compare her actions with how Jane Fairfax acts after his departure, and am convinced Jane is pining for Frank.

R: I am confused by Emma’s reaction to Frank during his departure visit. He certainly seems to be considering making some sort of declaration. Based on Emma’s previous apparent interest in him, I’m surprised that she forestalls him. But perhaps his more recent actions, with the rushing about and lack of control over his own comings and goings has cooled her interest.

S: These chapters make me want to hurry through the book, but I don’t really want it to end yet!

(This conversation will contain spoilers for the current chapters.)

S: Oh dear. I have a feeling Emma’s pride is going to get the better of her.

R: Indeed, and Mr. Knightley again calls Emma out on her behaviour, though he seems to do so almost gently in this case. Perhaps because Mr. Woodhouse is present.

Mr. Elton seems to have recovered from his disappointment over Emma rather quickly. The Bates bring the news that he is to be married to a Miss Hawkins. 

S: Yes, the whole thing is just ridiculous. I hope the woman he is marrying will end up being as sweet as Charlotte from Pride and Prejudice, because the quick engagement between her and Mr. Collins is exactly what this reminds me of.

I love what Miss Bates says: ‘One takes up a notion and runs away with it’. This is exactly what Emma is doing regarding the elusive Frank Churchill and what she’s done with Harriet and Mr. Elton!

R: That she does! On the one hand I was impressed with Emma in not pressing her objections to Mr. Martin when she and Harriet encounter him and one of his sisters, but at the same time, Austen reveals that Emma still thinks poorly of the man and his attachment to Harriet Smith. 

S: In Chapter 22 I just shake my head at Emma, for she has fully made a mess of things and there are still over 30 chapters, half of the book!, to go. I hope Harriet gets a happy ending. 

I have two main thoughts after reading Chapter 23, the first of which is: Do Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax have an understanding? After Emma tells him of the Bates and of how Jane is ‘…a very elegant young woman…’ Austen writes: ‘He agreed to it, but with so quiet a “Yes,” as inclined her almost to doubt his real concurrence…’. To me, this is Austen’s clever way of hiding what might be a possible connection between the two. 

My next thought is: The way Emma is behaving toward Frank, with her excitement about him visiting, her rushing to defend his actions, seems to show that she is blinded by who she supposes him to be, not who he really is. He reminds me of a combination of three characters we’ve met in previous Austen works: Mr. Robert Ferrars from Sense and Sensibility and Mr. Crawford and Mr. Bertram from Mansfield Park.

R: In this chapter, Frank Churchill seems to be polite and respectful enough. He is certainly full of praises for his stepmother, of which she seems to be entirely deserving. I do agree that Emma seems to have an inflated opinion of Frank at this point.

S: In Chapter 24 Emma has no idea how rude she is appearing! I can’t peg Mr. Churchill, but Emma seems so blind to her jealousy of Jane Fairfax and how she sounds when she talks of her. If Emma wants Mr. Churchill to fall in love with her, she needs to do some serious rethinking, because she’s not making herself very likeable.

Chapter 25 is so ridiculous! The further we get into the story, the less reason Emma has for being stuck up and proud. Her father is a recluse, she speaks rudely of others – how is she so liked?

R: Emma definitely has an inflated sense of her own consequence and superiority to others in her sphere. I wonder if Mrs. Weston has encouraged it, even inadvertently, in how she handles giving Emma advice about whether she should accept the Coles’ invitation or not. Likely as consequence of having lived in the Woodlouse household as Emma grew up and having to manage Mr. Woodhouse’s oddities, Mrs. Weston may have learnt to baby them too much.

S: I leave this section feeling very confused and conflicted. I hope Emma turns her attitude around before the end of the book because I want a happy ending for her, but right now she really is acting rather immature

R: Overall this was a busy and revealing section of the book.

(This conversation will contain spoilers for the current chapters.)

R: Hallelujah! Emma sees the light. A little bit. She realised how wrong she was to encourage Harriet to like Mr. Elton, but in other ways she’s still blinded to her own behaviour. She recognises that some of her own attentions to Mr. Elton might have given him the wrong idea, but at the same time we see that she has a bloated concept of her own consequence. She doesn’t think that the clergyman is good enough for her because the Woodhouses are one of the most prominent families in the area. I’m glad that Emma is starting to understand the consequences of her interference.

S: Indeed! As I read Chapter 16, I was thinking of how we so easily convince ourselves we are in the right even as we see our wrong. Emma’s soliloquy is absolutely hilarious!

R: The next chapter is a short one, but has Emma making a difficult but mature step in imparting to Harriet Smith her error in encouraging an attachment between Harriet and Mr. Elton. It was good to see Emma not back off from admitting her mistake and comfort her friend as much as possible. This is somewhat difficult because Harriet can’t get away from the admiration of Mr. Elton by those at the boarding school where she lives.

When Mr. Frank Churchill doesn’t come when expected, Emma and Mr. Knightley have a discussion about the situation. Emma believes that Mr. Churchill will do as he pleases and come to see the Westons at some point, while Mr. Knightley believes that Mr. Churchill is a weak man, under the thumb of his family. This argument, especially when they speak of prejudice, reminds me a great deal of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, especially their relationship at the beginning of Pride and Prejudice. 

S: Yes! So very true. I think Mr. Knightley is so very right and Emma is so very argumentative. The main thought in my mind as I read Chapters 17 and 18 is that Emma is so utterly prideful. It’s such a pity because there is much she is missing out on by being this way. It’s difficult to watch others shortchange themselves because of their pride.

R: I finished chapter 18 and discovered that my copy of Emma goes on with Volume II, Chapter 1 rather than continuing with a linear chapter numbering. Stacy’s copy doesn’t do this, so for the rest of this book, we will note the chapters both ways in case any of you are reading along and have chapters numbered like mine.

The next chapter gives us another glimpse at Emma’s attitude about her own consequence and that of her neighbours. She and Harriet are out and about and stop in to visit Mrs. and Miss Bates, even though Emma doesn’t really like them. She finds them boring. They learn that Jane Fairfax, Mrs. Bates’ granddaughter, is to visit, but Emma wants to get away before they read out all of Jane’s letter. While I can sort of understand Emma’s feelings about this, like many activities in life, sometimes you have to grin and bear it with grace. Everyone has those topics upon which they like to expound that their friends merely tolerate because they are friends.

S: Indeed! Really, the Bates are quite funny, sweet, innocent, and probably lonely people. While I also understand Emma’s attitude and hesitation about spending time with them now that we’ve met them, I still think she is letting her pride get in the way of developing a good relationship with them, even if it’s not a close friendship. It’s difficult to give others what they need when we are so self-focused.

R: Jane Fairfax arrives and we learn that Emma has an irrational and selfish dislike of the young lady. Emma seems to be partially resistant to friendship with her because everyone expects them to be friends. I sort of understand that. I have a tendency toward disliking things people insist I should like – contrarian human nature!

S: Ah, how true! How unfortunate for Emma that she doesn’t even try to get to know Jane, for she seems like such a sweetheart and to care nothing for gossip. Jealousy is so seductive, and comparison to another so dangerous.

You know, Jane Fairfax reminds me of Fanny from Mansfield Park, and Emma reminds me, as I’ve mentioned before, of Mary Crawford. I really do hope that Emma can get over her jealousy of Jane – it’s not very becoming.