Emma Book Report

Emma, authored by Jane Austen, tells a story of a wealthy young woman 's schemes to match up her new, and much more poor, friend with the town 's unsuspecting bachelors. What is revealed, however, is not Emma 's skills in match-making, but her inability to see the true feelings of those around her, as well as her own heart. Emma took place in a small town called Highbury, in 18th century England. During the time period, there was a definite social rank. Almost all of the scenes in the book take place in or around the estates of the characters. Their property mostly determined their social status. This setting has significance to the storyline because of the social rank. Emma, who is constantly trying to play matchmaker, tries to convince her friend Harriet to marry someone of a higher class than her current love, a farmer. The characters are very aware of their status, and can be discriminating towards people of a lower class. The book was most likely set in this place and time in order to include the conflicts of a hierarchal society.

Emma is the main character of the novel. She is a beautiful, smart, and wealthy 21-year-old woman. Because of her admired qualities, Emma is a little conceited, and feels as though she knows more than others. Thus, her dominant feature is willful imagination. She is the daughter of Henry Woodhouse. Since her mother has died, Emma has taken the role of taking care of her father, who is old and often sick. Because she feels she is obligated to stay by his side, Emma decides not to marry. She has an incredible strong will and mind, thus, her actions are therefore full of purpose and dangerous to others. Though she may be acting out of good intentions, she is fully aware of the ways in which she manipulates.

Emma deems herself a good matchmaker, and tries to put together several couples throughout the novel. She believes that social classes are very important and refuses to see anyone marry someone in a lower rank. She