EMMA'S MISTAKES AND KNIGHTLY'S VOICE

Emma makes mistakes, some more grievous than others, but these mistake do not come from inconsideration.  Goodheart writes, “Emma is willful, manipulative, an arranger or rather a misarranger of other people’s lives” (Goodheart 589).  The key word is “willful,” and the term certainly applies to Emma Woodhouse.  Emma has stunted the growth of Harriet Smith, but it is important to recognize the motives behind these actions.  Growing up without a mother, Emma was left in the care of her “indulgent father” and her governess, Miss Taylor.  Austen writes, “Her mother had died too long ago for her to have more than a indistinct remembrance of her caresses, and her place had been supplied by an excellent woman as governess, who had fallen little short of a mother in affection” (Austen 7).  While not left wanting for affection, Emma certainly lacked accountability and discipline, Austen writes, “Sixteen years had Miss Taylor been in Mr. Woodhouse’s family, less a governess than a friend” (Austen 7).  Acting as a friend as opposed to a mother, Miss Taylor does not offer the stability needed for young Emma to flourish.  Tony Tanner writes of Emma Woodhouse, “Emma is a clever but ‘spoiled’ girl and, having lacked external authority (both from her father and from her governess) when she was young, she has not internalized any authority which can direct and control her as she grows into a young woman” (Tanner 412).  Coddled as a child, Emma is unable to mature, and therefore unable to recognize the consequences of her actions.  In fact nobody seems to fault Emma for any of her wrong doings, with the exception of one Mr. Knightly, Emma’s “Knight” in shining armor, who rescues Emma from herself, offering the rare discipline she lacked as a child.

Mr. Knightly acts as Emma’s redemptive voice.  By this I mean Emma sees the error of her ways through the words of Mr. Knightly.  Having witnessed firsthand the manipulative way in which Emma controls Harriet, Knightly voices the truth that Emma has failed to recognize as he boldly states, “You have been no friend to Harriet Smith” (Austen 61).  Upon watching Emma convince Harriet to respond in the negative to Mr. Martin’s proposal, Knightly asserts, “You saw her answer! you wrote her answer too.  Emma, this is your doing.  You persuaded her to refuse him” (Austen 59).  Knightly, unlike the others in her life, does not allow Emma to escape without explaining her actions.  Now transparent, Emma is forced to admit the full extent of her manipulation, clarifying the real motive behind persuading Harriet to move away from Mr. Martin, “Mr. Martin is a very respectable young man, but I cannot admit him to be Harriet’s equal” (Austen 59).  No longer can Emma separate herself from the truth, she did in fact control the actions of Harriet.  Again choosing his words carefully, Knightly punctures yet another hole in the bubble of comfort surrounding Emma’s life, “You will puff [Harriet] up with such ideas of her own beauty, and of what she has a claim to, that, in a little while, nobody within her reach will be good enough for her” (Austen 62).  While previously Emma may have been able to remain naïve to the chaos she is creating, Knightly does not hold back his reprobation.  Emma at once is demeaning, ignorant, and calculating in her manipulation of Harriet, but with Knightly’s bold assertions she is able to acknowledge her own mistakes.  This acknowledgment is on display as we return to Emma’s discovery of Mr. Elton’s true intentions.

Describing Mr. Elton as, “The lover of Harriet,” Emma is truly shocked to discover Mr. Elton’s affections are directed elsewhere (Austen 123).  Mr. Elton cries, “Miss Smith! – I never thought of Miss Smith in the whole course of my existence – never paid her any attentions, but as your friend” (Austen 124).  Emma’s world, the world she created in her own mind, has collapsed into reality.  At once Emma is both calculating and manipulative, while maintaining an air of naivety and ignorance.  It is harmful to both Harriet and Mr. Elton to create this union entirely in her own head, but Emma is not without remorse.  Austen writes of Emma’s recognition of her grievous mistake, “Every part of it brought pain and humiliation, of some sort or other; but, compared with the evil to Harriet, all was light” (Austen 127).  Above all other concerns, Emma shows remorse for her treatment of Harriet.  While this behavior is deplorable, Emma, in part, is excused from her behavior thanks both to Mr. Knightly and an understanding of her troubled childhood.  Goodheart writes, “Emma takes her cues for her behavior from observing external circumstances that she invariably misinterprets” (Goodheart 590).  Misinterpretation of her surroundings does not make Emma an evil person, and while her manipulation of Harriet is intentional, the motives behind her actions can ultimately be forgiven.  However, Emma, after the incident with Harriet, has not yet learned the error of her ways, and yet again she shows herself to be somewhat of a bully.

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