The film Clueless, written by Amy Heckerling, is an adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Emma. It closely parallels the story in terms of characterization and actions. Both of the main characters, Cher and Emma, are spoiled, high class snobs who, after undergoing a crisis brought on by their own pride and repression of their feelings, are transformed from callowness to mental and emotional maturity. However, the film also diverges from the original story in that it eliminates a key character and events that have an effect on Emma Woodhouse's psychological growth.
From the very beginning, in both the novel and the movie, we can see the similarities between the two main characters. Emma Woodhouse is part of the rich, upscale society of a "large and populous village" in nineteenth century England, while Cher Horowitz lives in rich, upscale Beverly Hills, U.S.A. In Highbury, the Wood-houses are "first in consequence there. All looked up to them." Cher and her father are also among the cultural elite; he is a litigation lawyer, an admired and profitable occupation in one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Cher is also one of the most popular girls at her school. The description of Emma that Austen gives is also a description of Cher. She is "handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition." However, Emma and Cher are not as perfect as they may seem.
Because of their wealth, both Emma and Cher are spoiled, socially in control, and tend to think too highly of themselves. This is a result of the lack of a motherly figure in their lives, as well as their fathers’ are over-indulgence. Cher has everything a teenage girl could want: money, her own Jeep, a huge wardrobe, et cetera. Like a lot of girls, she spends a large amount of time and money at the mall, however, she spends hundreds and thousands of dollars on her clothes, not the kind of money a typical teenager would spend. Because her father is so busy with his court cases, he has