Intellectual Quest ISSN 2349-1949 Vol-9, June 2018

JANE AUSTEN’S EMMA: A FEMINIST VISION OF SELF AUTONOMY

*SUBRATA RAY
.

ABSTRACT

If we go beyond the well furnished façade of a simple story in the

novel Emma, it becomes unmistakably clear that Jane Austen strives hard to
address some of the most troubling questions regarding the prevailing
perception of the women of the age. Emma’s social, financial and intellectual
position is no less than the men belonging to the highest rank of the society. All this
may stand as a direct defiance against oppressive social stereotypes. She feels
that she shall remain unmarried unless she finds someone whom she loves.
Such a feminist stand contradicts the deep-rooted patriarchal structure where a
woman never marries a man but is married by a man.

Emma mockingly discards the predominant image of women being

helplessly dependant on men in terms of social scenario. Emma’s
words, articulated in favour of Harriet’s position in society as a girl of unknown
family background - sound like those of a champion of feminism. The novel
through various implicit and explicit means - boldly questions the social
stereotypes and challenges the patriarchal structure in its efforts to redefine a
woman’s social, economic, intellectual and individual position in a society that has
always looked down on them as ‘second sex’

Keywords: Feminism, patriarchal society, marriage, self-independence,

stereotypes.

Institution: Srikrishna College (A College under University of Kalyani), Bagula, Nadia, W. B

234
Main Text
Emma, considered by many as Jane Austen’s best and most daring
work, was begun on January 21, 1814 and completed on August 8, 1815. It also
happens to be the longest among all her six novels. A. C. Bradley (1972) rates it as
Austen’s most perfectly executed novel (p. 380). The novel commences its journey
with a highly suggestive statement, “Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and
rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some
of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in
the world with very little to distress or vex her” (Austen, 2003, p. 5). Austen’s
readers, acquainted with three previously published novels- immediately sense the
obvious possibility of dealing with an atypical heroine.
If we go beyond the well furnished façade of the simple story in the village
of Highbury so beautifully told in the novel, it becomes unmistakably clear
that Austen did try to address some of the most crucial issues important to women
of the day. Though she may not, by today’s radical appearance and popular
expansion of feminism, seem to be a hardcore feminist, but, Austen does enter the
canon in terms of her courageous endeavour to present a feminist vision of self
autonomy in the depiction of the character of Emma in the novel of the same name.
The time, to which Jane Austen belonged, was not a comfortable one for the
women writers. Some of them had to get their works published under a penname.
Even it was a prevailing concept that women ought not to write once they cross
thirty. Claudia L. Johnson (1988) notes in her book Jane Austen Women, Politics,
and the Novel, “fiction by women must be fiction by young women –
modest, delicate, wispy, delightful – and as soon as a woman has anything
significant to say she…is past her career as a novelist and a woman” (p. xv). Even
some people took serious offence at women’s effort to try their luck in writing and
considered it to be disgraceful as it "catapulted women directly into the

235
 public arena, where attention must be fought for" in a conventionally
masculine manner” (Poovey,

1984, p. 35). It was almost ‘universally’ thought that writing was a serious
business and it reflects only masculine intellect, and any violation in this bizarre
notion was almost punishable.

Jane Austen in Emma comes up with some of the most troubling questions
regarding the prevailing perception of the women of the age. Unlike
Austen’s previously drawn characters - Elizabeth Bennet, or Miss Dashwoods
or Fanny Price, Austen introduces Emma as perhaps the most feminist one. Emma
belongs to the elite class of the society, and is sufficiently wealthy, educated,
strong-willed and independent. She allows neither her gender nor the prevailing
social codes to interfere with her individual standing in society. Contrary to the
social position of the common women, she is in almost complete control of
her household as her father Mr. Woodhouse stands invalid. Her social, financial
and intellectual position is no less than the men belonging to the highest rank of the
social ladder. All this may stand as a direct defiance against oppressive social
stereotypes. In spite of living in a society where the only vocation for the women
is to get married, Emma stands rebellious to the social expectations which get
reflected in Harriet’s exclamation, “I do so wonder, Miss Woodhouse, that you
should not be married, or going to be married! so charming as you are!” (Austen,
2003, p. 68). Like a typical feminist Emma cannot help laughing at such an
unfeminine mindset and ridicules the popular expectation of a patriarchal society as
she mockingly states, “My being charming, Harriet, is not quite enough to
induce me to marry; I must find other people charming – one other person at
least. And I am not only, not going to be married, at present, but have very little
intention of ever marrying at all” (Austen,
2003, p. 68). Austen projects Harriet as the mouthpiece of the societal insistence
that not only wants women to be accomplished in delicate skills such as singing,

236
painting, playing on musical instruments etc. but also bargains for womanly charm.
But Emma straightforwardly rebels against such one sided expectation in marriage.
She feels that she shall remain unmarried unless she finds someone whom
she loves. Such a feminist declaration boldly contradicts the deep-rooted
patriarchal structure where a woman never marries a man but is married by a man.
Again Harriet expresses her shock at Emma’s articulating so
called masculine language as she admits, “Dear me! – It is so odd to hear a woman
talk so!” (Austen, 2003, p. 68). Emma does not mind speaking her mind in
masculine terms as she chooses man’s language to make her position clear as
far as her marriage-thoughts are concerned. It is also a vehement violation of the
social code of conduct which has always been imposed upon the women of the day.
Over the years there have been some critics who term Austen as conformist
rather than a feminist. But such daring efforts of putting masculine language
in Emma’s articulation do refute such claims, as Claudia L. Johnson (1988)
notes in Jane Austen Women, Politics, and the Novel,

If Austen enters the canon because she seemed to deny or devalue her
authority, Emma has been the heroine critics have loved to
scold… Emma is often charged with the same transgressions
– being
‘arrogant, self-important, and controlling’ or ‘narcissistic and
perfectionist’ – from which critics diligently attempted to exempt
Austen. (p. 122)

237
 The helplessness of the woman community in a patriarchal society is well
articulated in the depiction of two unprotected women - Miss Bates and
Jane Fairfax. Miss Bates having no income to support her, is a typical
example of a charity case. Her deplorable position in society in terms of
financial security is pathetically portrayed in the novel, “She is poor; she has sunk
from the comforts she was born to; and, if she live to old age, must probably sink
more. Her situation should secure your compassion. It was badly done,
indeed!” (Austen, 2003, p.
336).

And Jane Fairfax’s plight is equally gloomy; though she does hate the
profession of a governess, she finds herself in such a helpless situation where she is
almost left with no other options but being a governess. But in sharp
contrast Emma is almost independently wealthy. Unlike other women of the
society she need not marry a man only for social or financial security. So Emma
having the economic voice - could comfortably and confidently articulate, “I am
sure I should be a fool to change such a situation as mine. Fortune I do not want;
consequence I do not want, I believe few married women are half as much
mistress of their husband’s house as I am of Hartfield” (Austen, 2003, p. 68).

As Jane Austen wanted to give a real-life touch to the character of Emma,

she is not presented as a larger than life character as Mr. Knightley later puts it,
“faultless in spite of her faults” (Austen, 2003, p. 340). She, sometimes, appears
arrogant, strong-willed, self-centred and even a bit selfish. Since the beginning of
the novel Emma rates herself as a prodigious matchmaker and she does
strike a successful match between Miss Taylor and Mr. Weston. Next, she
takes a self- imposed responsibility to find a worthy husband for her friend

238
 Harriet. With complete disregard for Harriet’s feelings for Mr. Martin,
Emma almost forcibly made Harriet reject Mr. Martin’s proposal as Emma
believes that Mr. Martin, a farmer, cannot be a good match for Harriet. On the
other hand, Mr. Knightley is of the opinion that Harriet should respond to Mr.
Martin’s proposal in affirmation. But Emma remains unmoved in her arguments
and rates herself a better judge as Austen comments, “Emma made no
answer, and tried to look cheerfully unconcerned, but was really feeling
uncomfortable and wanting him very much to be gone. She did not repent what she
had done; she still thought herself a better judge of such a point of female right and
refinement than he could be” (Austen, 2003, p.52).

Emma wants Harriet to aspire for a better match and tries her best to make a
tie between Harriet and Mr. Elton. Later on Emma gets shocked when she finds Mr.
Elton to be a suitor for her. But Emma like a typical feminist woman – instead of
succumbing to popular social expectation, does not hesitate to reject Mr. Elton’s
proposal as she believes that such a marriage would only compromise her
own position in social hierarchy. She unequivocally makes her point loud and
clear, “Never mind, Harriet, I shall not be a poor old maid; and it is poverty only
which makes celibacy contemptible to generous public. A single woman with a
narrow income must be a ridiculous, disagreeable old maid” (Austen, 2003, p. 69).
Here Emma does stand tall as a feminist; she mockingly discards the predominant
image of women being helplessly dependant on men in terms of social
scenario. She dares to go unconventional in her outlook on life and society.
She not only contradicts the patriarchal social pattern but also hints an alternative
avenue.
It was certainly considered to be a blatant impudence on the part of a woman
if she was found to be arguing with a man of wisdom like Mr. Knightley. But in the
course of the novel in between Emma and Mr. Knightley such open and free

239
altercations were a regular event. And in most cases Emma stands unyielding with
her own sets of beliefs, ideas and judgments. On many an occasion she may have
been wrong on her raw judgmental tendencies but she never allows herself to be
submissive in terms of social expectations which demand women to be meek and
yielding to men. Indeed sometimes she appears to be quite an aggressive and witty
character in her presentation of her point of view, and between Emma and
Mr. Knightley one such instance is the following passage,
“To be sure- our discordances must always arise from my being in the
wrong.”
“Yes,” said he, smiling, “and reason good. I was sixteen years
old when you were born.”
“A material difference, then”, she replied; “and no doubt you
were much my superior in judgment at that period of our lives; but
does not the lapse of one-and-twenty years bring our understanding a
good deal nearer?” (Austen, 2003, p. 79)
Like a true feminist, time and time again, Emma stands for the cause
of feminism. Her words, articulated in favour of Harriet’s position in society as a
girl of unknown family background - sound like those of a champion of feminism.
The sympathy and helping attitudes which Emma feels deep in her heart for an
almost unknown, ill-fated girl is, since Harriet’s introduction in the novel, a
hallmark characteristic of feminist consideration, as Emma states,
"Encouragement should be given. Those soft blue eyes and all those natural graces
should not be wasted on the inferior society of Highbury and its connections.
The acquaintances she had already formed were unworthy of her. The friends
from whom she had just parted, though very good sort of people, must be doing her
harm” (Austen, 2003, p. 19).
When Mr. Knightley attacks Harriet in terms of her being an
illegitimate daughter of unknown parentage, and praises Mr. John Martin, “A
240
degradation to illegitimacy and ignorance, to be married to a respectable,
intelligent-farmer!” (Austen, 2003, p. 50), Emma immediately and desperately tries
to defend Harriet, “As to the circumstances of her birth, though in a legal sense she
may be called Nobody, it will not hold in common sense. She is not to pay
for the offence of others, by being held below the level of those with whom
she is brought up” (Austen, 2003, p. 50). There is no doubt that she goes wrong
on several occasions in her judgment of the prevailing situations and human
characters around her; specially in the her over-exaggerating opinion on Harriet
but she never hesitates to fight for her cause.

But for many feminist critics the ending of the novel with the
marriage between Emma and Mr. Knightley - is highly disturbing. They feel,
Emma should have maintained her position of self-independence and authoritative
status in the society instead of wedding Mr. Knightley. But there are others
who are of the opinion that such a twist of the plot never undermines Emma’s
claim to feminism, rather, it opens up a fresh vista of possibilities where Emma can
still stand tall as a feminist. Elizabeth Campbell (2012) notes, “I argue that the
ending of Emma is all the more disturbing because-as a strong, single,
independently-minded woman with an estate to run and no social or
economic constraints to pressure her into marriage-Emma appears to be the
heroine in Austen who is most likely to fulfill the feminist dream of female
autonomy” (p. 9).
It was definitely a popular concept that if any woman with an unusual
tendency of advocating for women’s aspirations and rights – strives hard to defy
the age-old social definition of ‘good woman’ she was sure to be labeled a spoilt
one. Emma with her independent social and financial position and daring attitudes
– appears, in so called social parameters, quite a ‘spoilt woman’. In order to
be recognized as a ‘good woman’ one does not need to be educated or intelligent in

241
social structure. She is simply supposed to be unquestionably docile to the
patriarchal design in society. Emma’s status, by no means, matches with
such social conditionings. Mr. Knightley’s words echo same disapproval,
"Emma is spoiled by being the cleverest of her family. At ten years old
she had the misfortune of being able to answer questions which
puzzled her sister at seventeen. She was always quick and
assured; Isabella slow and different. And ever since she was twelve,
Emma has been mistress of the house and of you all. In her mother she
lost the only person able to cope with her." (Austen, 2003, p. 30)
Clearly Emma being “the cleverest of her family” and “mistress of the
house” disqualifies her to be a so called good woman. This ‘disqualification’ itself
qualifies Emma to be a feminist in her own right.

Mr. Woodhouse is found to be a family block in the path of Emma’s mental

growth. He is surely subject to severe criticism in terms of his over-
possessive attitudes towards her younger daughter. His complete and stark
disregards for his daughter’s individuality - presents his character as a
model of patriarchal expectation. He fails to recognize an independent space for
his younger daughter as a woman of individualistic thoughts and expectations.
Points raised by Mary Wollstonecraft (1999) - sound quite relevant in this regard,
I never knew a parent who had paid more than common attention to
his children disregarded. On the contrary, the early habit of
relying almost implicitly on the opinion of a respected parent is
not easily shook, even when the matured reason convinces the
child that his parent is not the wisest man in the world. This
weakness - for a weakness it is, though the epithet amiable may
be tacked to it — a reasonable man must steel himself against;

242
 for the absurd duty, too often inculcated, of obeying a parent only
on account of his being a parent, shackles the mind, and prepares it for
a slavish submission to any power but reason. (p. 235-236)

In spite of her apparent social and financial independence Emma

remains miserably arrested within the cob of her father’s unsympathetic design
in which she is expected to be solely dedicated to her father’s old-age needs
sacrificing her unrealized and untouched dreams as a woman of free spirit. Now at
the end of the novel when Emma unites with Mr. Knightley in a mutually agreed
and felt wed- lock, this tyrannical parental expectation is finally overcome. But her
action never undermines her sense of duty towards her invalid father as she
manages to make Mr. Knightley agree to move to Highbury and live with her father
as long as the old man survives. Such a match between Emma and Mr. Knightley
can hardly be looked into as a violation of feminist spirit on Emma’s part. So
though Emma’s decision to marry Mr. Knightley contradicts her previously
declared position of remaining unmarried in life, the marriage is not a
product of sociological obligation or traditional pressure at all, and such a
marriage is itself a bold protest against traditional circumstances. So her decision to
marry Mr. Knightley, instead of injuring the spirit of feminism, makes sure that she
gets her own way.

Some critics like Barbara Z. Thaden (2010) points out that a match between
Emma and Mr. Knightley seems justified in terms of Emma’s gradual
growth towards becoming a mature woman in spite of her initial immature
thoughts and actions in the novel, “Readers not completely spellbound by
Emma’s charm probably agree that Emma has negative qualities not
possessed by any other Austen heroine. However, most readers believe that

243
Emma has matured and improved by the end of the novel—if not
completely, then at least enough to deserve Mr. Knightley” (p. 24).
From another prism of consideration Emma’s decision of marriage with Mr.
Knightley stands justified and sound as she finally discovers her own almost
unconsciously suppressed feelings for Mr. Knightley. Indeed it might not
have been possible for her to reach that dormant realization, had she not, to
her utter surprise, found Harriet longing for Mr. Knightley. It terribly hits her
womanly jealousy. She cannot afford to allow anyone else to be ‘first’ with Mr.
Knightley but herself. Such a ‘regeneration’ is very strongly felt in Emma’s mind
towards the end of the novel,
Till now that she was threatened with its loss, Emma had never known
how much of her happiness depended on being first with
Mr. Knightley, first in interest and affection. Satisfied that it was so,
and feeling it her due, she had enjoyed it without reflection; and only
in the dread of being supplanted, found how inexpressibly important it
had been. Long, very long, she felt she had been first, for having no
female connections of his own, there had been only Isabella
whose claims could be compared with hers, and she had always
known exactly how far he loved and esteemed Isabella. She had
herself been first with him for many years past. (Austen, 2003, p. 326)

A section of critics like Margaret Kirkham even goes to the point where they
find the marriage between Emma and Mr. Knightley in favour of feminist aim in a
woman’s life as Margaret Kirkham (1986) notes, “The essential claim
of Enlightenment feminism was that women, not having been denied powers
of reason, must have the moral status appropriate to ‘rational beings.” She
further maintains that many feminists of Austen’s time strongly believed that
women can achieve their desired statues by their upgraded “rational
understanding and reflection” (p. 4). Based on such an understanding Kirkham
244
claims that since the relationship between Emma and Knightley helps Emma
reach deeper level of rationality, it never violates the basic principles of feminism.
Now as far as Emma’s choice of Mr. Knightley as her match is concerned,
feminist critics do not necessarily need to be upset with the decision as Mr.
Knightley not only helps Emma realize some of her egoistic mistakes including the
one where Emma’s bizarre and insulting conduct with Miss Bates at Box
Hill shocks us but also he himself, on several occasions, takes position which
clearly reflects his sympathetic, humanistic consideration and tactful help for the
women socially and economically ill-placed.

The novel Emma, through various implicit and explicit means, boldly
questions the social stereotypes and challenges the patriarchal structure in its
efforts to redefine a woman’s social, economic, intellectual and individual position
in a society that has always looked down on them as ‘second sex’. Feminism, in its
purest sense and essence, finds a resounding voice in the novel and the voice still
remains disturbingly resonant with a strange intensity and uniqueness even
after two centuries since the publication of the novel.

245
REFERENCES:
1. Austen, Jane. (2003). Emma. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press
2. Bradley, A. C. (1972). Jane Austen, a Lecture. In Stephen M. Parrish (Ed.),
Emma, (pp. 376-380). New York City, NY: Norton.
3. Campbell, Elizabeth Evelyn, (2012). Finding Austen: The Covert Gender
Politics in Emma's Marriage Plots (English Honors Theses, Dickinson
College, Carlisle, PA) Retrieved from:
https://scholar.dickinson.edu/student_honors/33/
4. Johnson, Claudia L. (1988). Jane Austen Women, Politics, and the Novel.
Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.
5. Kirkham, Margaret. (1986). Jane Austen, Feminism and Fiction. New York City,
NY: Methuen.
6. Poovey, Mary. (1984). The Proper Lady and the Woman Writer: Ideology as
Style in the Works of Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary Shelley, and Jane Austen.
Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.
7. Thaden, Barbara Z. (2010). Figure and Ground: The Receding Heroine in Jane
Austen’s Emma. In Harold Bloom (Ed.), Bloom’s Modern Critical
Interpretation Jane Austen’s Emma (pp. 19-32). New York City, NY:
Infobase Publishing.
8. Wollstoncecraft, Mary. (1999). A Vindication of the Rights of Men A Vindication
of the Rights of Women: An Historical and Moral View of the
French Revolution. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

246