Jane Austen's Emma Volume II

Yes, so what do you think of volume 2 of Emma?

Okay, well, first of all, I'm glad I finished it. Um, and second of all, I think there's one more new character I think that I find interesting and a bunch more conflicts and, um, characters. Uh, actually no, that's the wrong word, but there's just a bunch more things happening, which which is awesome.

Who's the new character you find interesting?

Uh, Mrs. Elton, Mr. Elton's new wife, which is funny because he moved on so quickly. I think it was only a couple weeks ago we were talking about him proposing to Emma, so that's interesting.

So, um, and I agree, Mrs. Elton is an interesting character. What do you make of Mrs. Elton?

Um, I think she's overstepping, and if I were her, I would be a little more polite and like easygoing. I think she— I think Emma describes her as like being new money. So Emma's old money, and she didn't even make the money, she's just— she's the daughter of the money. But, um, Mrs. Elton is new money, and she doesn't really know how things work around here. Um, so she— and she's very loud and tries to— and I think since she's older than Emma, she tries to like undermine Emma. And Emma just thinks that she's out of place. And I think she uses the term vulgar, and I'm not entirely sure what that means, but I think it means like something less worse than disgusting, not disgusting, something different.

Yeah, I mean, it's interesting, the word vulgar now can even mean kind of crass or inappropriate sorts of things. In a class, highly class segregated society, I think vulgar is something just as speaking loudly or inappropriately. That is, people at the top of the hierarchy in this era have kind of refined manners and there are certain things you say and you see there's a way in which almost all of the interactions are, I would say, almost ritualistic. When somebody visits somebody and everybody is very kind of careful you know, how did that visit go and how did they introduce themselves? Yeah, and I think Mrs. Elton, and with the old money, there are these ways of doing things, whereas, yeah, the new money doesn't understand those ways of doing things.

No, I don't think so.

So Mrs. Elton is now in the scene. What about the other relationship complications? What strikes you as most interesting going on in the churn of relationships with everybody else?

Okay, I think number 1— oh, maybe number 2, but number 1 would be Emma and Jane. And I know last time there was still tension between them, but I feel like now it's shifted to more sympathetic politeness from Emma to Jane. I think that after I see Jane more, I think Jane is jealous of Emma. I don't really know why, maybe just because she's got a lot of money. Um, and Emma— oh, and I think, actually I'm not too sure, I think Jane is living with Mrs. Elton or has some sort of close relationship with her because I noticed that Mrs. Elton was kind of like hounding her every single time they come together about being a governess, I think, or just trying to help her out. Um, and I think that Emma it is a little sympathetic and tries to be extra polite. I think that's the— that's going on with that.

What do you make of Mr. Frank Churchill?

I think he was, he was your typical flirty but dangerous guy in a rom-com, in my opinion.

Okay.

Yeah.

Would you predict that he is just sort of dumped out of all of this, or do you think that he'll end up with any of them?

I think he'll end up with somebody, but if I had to guess, I couldn't guess. He seems like he's got a lot of baggage, just a little bit, by the way he hurries out so quickly. And I think it was because of his dad or something, but you never know.

Do you think that he and Emma will end up getting together?

Emma's dance with Mr. Knightley? No, I don't think so. But before, it did seem like it.

Got it. And yeah, what do you make of Mr. Knightley?

I thought he was an interesting part in Volume 1. First, I think he— the biggest thing was that he danced with Harriet at that ball when no one else would dance with her, which I thought was pretty, pretty cool of him. So did Emma. And so that showed that he's a good man. I think, feel like Emma's never looked at him that way because they're always fighting, you know, they're always disagreeing. And then he dances with Emma, and I think even though he's like 10 or 12 years older than her, which is a little weird, uh, 13, I think she's starting to fall a little bit, uh, just because, oh, he's a good guy and he's handsome, and no, I never thought of him that way, and everyone else are such pricks, you know. So I don't know, we'll see.

Um, was— there seemed to be quite a while in Volume 2 where Emma is enamored of Frank Churchill. What do you make of why? Why is she so crazy over Frank Churchill for a while?

I'm not too sure, but from what I can tell, it's because he's very flirty, uh, and handsome, I think. And I also think that he's got a lot of money too. If I'm not mistaken. So it could be a factor of all three.

What, what do you make of the fact that Emma can go briefly between Frank Churchill and then perhaps Mr. Knightley? Is this just kind of normal for her affections to go back and forth like that, or does it say anything about her?

Uh, I don't think it's normal, but it definitely says something about her. I'm not sure if that's— she thinks she can get with anybody, or she thinks it doesn't matter if she's with two people or in love with two people. I don't know if she is in love with Mr. Knightley— that was just a hint— or maybe she did say, um, but yeah, I feel like her ego hasn't really gone down since the whole matchmaking thing with Mr. Elton, um, just the, just the fact that she doesn't matchmake anymore. I feel like she still thinks of herself as the most prettiest, talented, rich girl in Highbury.

So is it fair to say that perhaps due to her ego, she is immature and has poor judgment, or would that be overly harsh?

I think so to an extent. I think she's still pretty smart. But yes, I think some of that is true.

Do you think Jane Austen wants us to respect Emma?

Oh, um, I think at— to some degree she wants us to like Emma, but we don't need to respect her in my opinion. We can think whatever we want.

Got it. Um, and going back, I'm forgetting the name of the protagonist in Pride and Prejudice. Elizabeth.

Elizabeth.

Yeah. Do you think we were intended to respect Elizabeth from the start?

Much more so than Emma, in my opinion.

So why would— and I would agree. In many ways, I think Elizabeth is fairly appealing from the start. Why would— and yet, Jane, you know, this book is called Emma and it's about Emma. So why would Jane Austen give us, you know, a great character to respect in Pride and Prejudice and this kind of flawed character in Emma?

I think because, just because of the title, because Emma is more focused on just Emma, the character can't be perfect. It's got to be flawed, otherwise it won't be interesting.

Have you read other books with a flawed character that you found interesting because of the flaws in the character?

Yes, multiple.

And you— probably not books I know, but what are some examples? Give me an example.

Uh, the first one I thought of was Harry Potter because everyone knows that Harry is very flawed. Um, we read The Odyssey together. I think Odysseus is flawed. Um, all the fantasy books I read before, all the characters were flawed. So I think it's interesting because you get to see them struggle.

Got it. So would you say that Because Emma is more flawed than Elizabeth, therefore the book Emma is becoming more interesting than Pride and Prejudice, or it doesn't work that way?

Um, I don't think it always works that way. Just because a character is flawed doesn't mean that the book is already more interesting, in my opinion. There's got to be other factors, like, uh, I guess just for this, there's— there needs to be different relationships and tensions. And a good plot. And I think this one has a good plot. I think it's interesting because you're going to be able to— you could sense that something is happening with each of the characters. So, uh, yeah.

So one way I think of plots, um, sometimes we like plots where things happen. And so for instance, in The Odyssey, you know, it's a long, long, long buildup, but ultimately there's a slaughter at the end with, uh, Pride and Prejudice, there's a long buildup, but I would say we're more than halfway through this book. I would say by this point in Pride and Prejudice, I think it felt pretty clear that, you know, Elizabeth was going to marry Darcy. And then it was, how do we resolve all these obstacles in the way? It sounds like in this one, it's not yet clear where it's going. Is that accurate?

Yes, I think that's accurate. I don't really know.

Does it frustrate you at all? You don't yet know where it's going?

A little bit, but it's gonna come. I'm not too worried.

Okay. Okay. So, um, there's, uh, so Frank Churchill, we're not sure if he'll marry anyone. Is that your assessment?

I think so. I think he's a troubled man. He doesn't know where his— actually, I take that back. I just don't know.

Okay. And Mr. Knightley, do you think he's going to marry anyone?

A nice plot would be him and Emma fall in love, but I'm not too sure. It's only been a little bit.

And why would that be a nice plot?

Because they're playing at it already. Like, they're dancing and Emma's like, oh my gosh, you're so handsome. I've never noticed you before. And we don't know what he feels, right? So it's all a mystery.

Got it. How about Harriet? Does Harriet get left dangling?

Maybe, but I feel like the best course for her would be to talk up that farmer boy again and get married. I don't know.

And again, you've only got one Jane Austen novel under your belt, but, uh, do you think that Jane Austen is going to want to marry off a bunch of people up by the end of the book?

Probably, yes.

Again, there's a, uh, and again, no guarantee. It's been a long time since I've read it, but Yeah, often a typical pattern in rom-coms is people, everybody gets married at the end, and sometimes 3 or 4 different couples get married. And they're all having their kind of challenge and difficulties and everything. And somehow all the pieces fall together. You know, not always. And I would say it really is the author's decision. Does the author want to kind of wrap things up at the end? Or does the author want to leave people out in the blue, out in the cold, so to speak? Cool. Anything else going on for you?

Uh, no, that's it.

Okay, in which case, let's finish for next time, and we'll, uh, know what happens to Emma and all the other characters, uh, in this one. Have a good week, Alana.

Thank you. You too. See you later.

Bye-bye.