November Books 10) Emma
10) Emma, by Jane Austen
I had read Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion previously, and frankly liked them more. Emma Woodhouse is a manipulative snob, and while the author clearly disapproves of her manipulations and occasional rudeness, she entirely endorses the snobbery. The unfortunate Harriet, whose emotional life is Emma's plaything, turns out to be the daughter of (shudder) a tradesman, so it's all right for her to marry the farmer who loves her after all. All the other various single men and women characters get paired off by the end of the book. There are some vivid and even funny moments of characterisation, but I found the setting and mindset rather unappealing.
I had read Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion previously, and frankly liked them more. Emma Woodhouse is a manipulative snob, and while the author clearly disapproves of her manipulations and occasional rudeness, she entirely endorses the snobbery. The unfortunate Harriet, whose emotional life is Emma's plaything, turns out to be the daughter of (shudder) a tradesman, so it's all right for her to marry the farmer who loves her after all. All the other various single men and women characters get paired off by the end of the book. There are some vivid and even funny moments of characterisation, but I found the setting and mindset rather unappealing.