Emma Cultural Context - 1084 Words

Emma by Jane Austen Cultural context The novel I have studied is Emma by Jane Austen. The cultural context to which we are introduced in the novel Emma by Jane Austen, is the world of the middle classes in the nineteenth century. In this essay I will look, firstly, at the role of women in this world. I will examine the very limited opportunities a woman had in terms of education and finding a career which would allow her to live an independent life in the world of the novel. Secondly, I will discuss how Austen potrays the importance of social status in the carefully-structured affair of society. Finally, I will examine how marriage worked in Austen s time. Throughout the novel of Emma Austen gives us an insight to what her†¦show more content†¦They are continually throwing balls and inviting others over to play cards and chat, whereas other Highbury citizens only attend these balls and social occasions. Just as there is different social classes in Austen s time there still is today. Although they are not as evident today as it was in the 1800 s, there are still divides. The world revolves around the abuse of power and wealth, arrogance, a lack of acceptance, and most importantly class. It is class that sets them apart from others and labels them as someone else. Finally, I will discuss marriage in Austen s time. By the end of the novel there are five marriages in total. In my opinion, I think that marriage is more related to material things than to love in Austen s time. I think that women had little or no choices to what they could do with their lives back then. There is a definite consciousness of class differences and I feel this affected women the most as the only thing that women could do to raise their social standing was to be married. I don t think this novel shows love in marriage or romance at all but how women needed to be married to have somewhat social standing in life. I think marriage is more related to money and power in Austen s time than it is to love and the only reason Emma finally realised she was in love with Mr. Knightley was because of jealousy. This just shows how spoiltShow MoreRelatedRelationship Between Emma Woodhouse And George Knightley1089 Words   |  5 Pagesrelationship between Emma Woodhouse and George Kni ghtley in the text Emma from a feminist perspective. The relationship in general contains two different personalities. Emma is one who believes that she can create the ‘perfect couple’, which gives her the belief of ‘knowing everything’. George Knightley is more of a moral compass for Emma, and he usually displays his approval and disapproval of her actions. 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