Elites Acting Badly

Marilyn Butler’s idea is that Emma’s high status gives her more leeway to act badly – but also that her bad actions are her own moral responsibility. On one hand, this seems reasonable; certainly after this election season it seems like elites can get away with things that ordinary people could never do. But at the same time, I wonder whether Austen is actually challenging the idea that women lived their lives in the way that men imagined they do. I don’t know much about any of Austen’s other heroines, but it may be that women always do far more then society tells them they are supposed to. You could argue that poor women have more leeway because they don’t have class expectations thrust upon them.

Emma definitely does have advantages due to status. For instance, her wealth (and doting father) may mean that she can vow to remain single, because she does not have to marry for economic support. But I only think the first half of Butler’s statement may be true. I haven’t seen yet that Emma takes “moral responsibility” for her bad behavior, like when she discouraged the union of Mr. Martin and Harriet due to her own prejudices and self-interest, or when she gossips about Jane's and Mr. Dixon's supposed attraction to each other. 

Merit and Birth

Harriet Smith is an example of a character who does not have the right breeding, being introduced as the daughter of an unnamed “somebody” and in perilous circumstances. Despite her apparently humble background she is pretty and an excellent student (but seems kind of clueless much of the time). Still it is Emma’s endorsement of her through her friendship that makes her become more accepted into society. It doesn’t seem like merit or birth, it seems like connections that create Harriet’s value.

Mr. Woodhouse is Emma’s father and head of the family estate. He is very elite in the town of Highbury, and so expects respect from the community, and has certain assumed expectations that the world should work how he thinks it should, and is kind of oblivious to others. He is a hypochondriac and does not seem to care about anyone but himself. His advantages of birth seem to have led to him being incredibly self-centered. He doesn’t seem to think that any people should get married, and assumes that what he thinks is correct whether it is about wedding cake, boiling eggs, or how people should live.

I do think that there are modern day connections to this. Birth v. merit still seems like an enormous issue, especially in the wake of this week’s election. America prides itself on being a meritocracy, that anyone can achieve if you work hard, but that is a lie. If you come from a certain family, or have a certain family wealth you may have an array of privileges about what you can do, and how you should be treated in society. As importantly, those privileges allow you to amass more wealth and privileges, so there is no such thing as a meritocracy, despite America claiming to be based on one.

Emma: First Reaction

In the beginning chapters of the novel, Emma seems incredibly spoiled and elitist, but not stupid. Emma seems to come by some of this self-centeredness naturally: her father, Mr. Woodhouse thinks his daughter  is perfect, and he seems to have weird views on proper behavior that he believes everyone else should follow (like not eating wedding cake), and does not always fully understand what people around him are saying or thinking. 

So far, I am finding it hard to like Emma that much. She seems pretty shallow. For instance, she likes Harriet Smith because she is beautiful, and cares a lot about status and how much money people have. I can't tell if Austen is creating Emma as a caricature of what people in the time imagined elite women to be like, because Emma definitely doesn't seem realistic or a complex person. Emma seems to think that she should control everyone around her. One positive is that she seems to be able to care about others. She is tolerant of her father's idiosyncrasies, and although she is sad for herself, she seems happy that her governess/friend Miss Taylor got married.

I didn't know anything about Jane Austen, so didn't have many expectations. I don't think I expected there to be so many chapters about so little. This definitely isn't like Othello, which had lots of action and less introspection.