how Emma portrays social class in Regency England

how Emma portrays social class in Regency England

The society of Jane Austen is, without a doubt, a very distinct one when compared to contemporary society. The society was characterized by clear as well as a class structured hierarchy which included features that were normal during that time. This included the superiority of inherited wealth, especially over the new wealth. Nevertheless, the barriers of the class were witnessed to transform due to rebellion and new concepts from the continent, including the Napoleonic wars and the French revolution,  which also impacted Britain. Jane was in a position of noticing the transformations in the society, although she opted to write concerning her own class, the gentry of the country alongside their behavior, and also what she considered as close to her heart. She wrote regarding the values, morality, stability, class, and order of society. The implications of the class are more evident in Emma.

This essay discusses how Emma portrays social class in Regency England. The discussion will focus on a particular character and how they demonstrate social class, as well as how the novel portrays the characters. The argument in the essay is that even though Jane Austen keeps and also respects the class structure frames, she emphasizes the superiority of individual virtues in the judgment towards the characters in Emma. Through the use of Emma, who is the heroine of the novel, as well as the development she demonstrates as she moves from naïve and short-sighted matchmaker to become an individual with a better knowledge of who she is and also understand others. This is entirely attributed to the guidance and effort of Mr. Knightley, who is presented as the novel’s heroes. Individual virtues under this will be demonstrated as being superior both in the eyes of Emma and also in the author’s eyes.

The novel presents different classes, including a cross-section of class, class movers as well as the highest class. In all the above classes, they are all driven by the marriage concept. The first chapter of the novel presets class, especially in main characters, including Mr. Knightley, Emma Woodhouse, Mr. Martin, Harriet Smith, and Mr. Elton. In the novel, it demonstrates that the rich, as well as those who are well-bred, usually have control over social situations and also issue invitations and friendships in society. On the contrary, the low social standing is based on the initiative and charity of the individuals placed above in the society. In the event they make any violations to the orders given by the higher class, they are, in most cases, met with considerably unfair treatment by the rich and well-bred class. This is demonstrated during the time Emma took an offense at Mr. Elton following the presumption of nicknaming Mr. Knightley.

Besides, social class determines the social liabilities between the characters presented in the novel as well as the way in which the characters’ actions react to the particular obligations and hence, expose their qualities. For instance, the novel teases out the nuances of charity concerning the class. In the novel, Emma is presented as charitable, particularly towards the poor, although she demonstrates very little initiative to befriend the talented and orphaned jane.

The characters in the novel are presented as using or abusing their social standing. As a result, this exposes much concerning the kindness character of the characters or their cruelty. This is seen in the event Emma exercises wit, which is at the expense of silly conduct.  On the contrary, Miss Bates faces condemnation by Mr. Knightley for displaying cruelty in her character because the conduct is believed to be an abuse of her social clout. The humiliation that miss Bates is a representation of a poor example to the individuals of society who end up following her example.

Additionally, Mr. Knightley asks Harriet to dance after Mr. Elton snubbed her. The act that Mr. Knightley depicted is taken into consideration as an act of graciousness and charity as he belonged to the high social class when compared to both Mr. Elton and Harriet. The act showed by Mr. Knightley is found to socially save Harriet, but it reprimands Mr. Elton due to their rude character.

The concept of social class in the novel is also presented as limiting the actions that the novel’s characters are in a position of taking in an attempt to meet their individual desires. This is considerably demonstrated in the drama of the novel concerning the marriage issue. For instance, frank is compelled to hide the engagement he was involved in with Jane due to the fact that Jan was an orphan. Therefore, she was perceived as not suitable for a social match by the household of Frank. Besides, Robert Martin faces rejection from Harriet as a result of the advice received from Emma that Robert Martin was her match and that he was below Harriet socially. It is also evident that Harriet suffers the same rejection from Mr. Elton as he considered her not to belong to his social class.

The upbringing of Emma can be described as a quite privileged one as she belonged to the higher end of society, and also she came from the ancient household. She lived with her father, and she experienced independence due to the fact that the family was rich. Their rich family explains the reason why Emma would choose when to marry or not to marry. This was entirely a privilege that women, especially from rich families, enjoyed. If the other women in the society did not come from a rich household, then the society perceived them as subject to marrying a man for them to attain economic security and social status.

Emma is established as not merely a normal heroine as she not entirely perfect, but she develops the thinking that she was on numerous occasions, particularly at the start of the novel, where she is found not to have learned from the repercussions of the actions she has committed. She feels a robust desire to have something to occupy her mind becomes she considers her father as not a sufficient intellectual challenge. She behaves in a way that, after spending her life under the governess tutelage, she has a desire to taste the role of governess on her own (P. 35). This is demonstrated by the idea of being in a position to impact individuals found in her midst to allow her to see her plan for such people come true. Nevertheless, Emma is presented as ever considerate to her father and was willing to remain by his side as she was happy to see that her father was comfortable. This demonstrated a noble action as it involved her genuine kindness as well as being perceived as a commendable individual virtue. Generally, Emma is a representation of the moral values as well as a sense of duty considering her social class. For instance, she visits the poor individuals in society.

The novel presents Emma as meeting Harriet Smith, who becomes her new occupation, where she sees Harriet’s potential. Nevertheless, there arises the concern whether Harriet could get married to an individual positioned higher in the socials class ranking while she belonged to the lower class in the society as she did not have money and family. This is emphasized by the description provided by Mr. Knightley in the novel that she was ignorant of her true origin. The novel describes her as the natural daughter without a family and entirely lacks settled provision and did not also have a respectable relationship (P. 60). Besides, Harriet is described as only possessing beauty as well as a good temper, although such qualities were not considered sufficient for anyone except Emma, who sees her potential and takes the responsibility of finding her a husband. The case of Harriet presents the social ranks in society and how differences occur between the higher and lower rank of society. Through marriage and relationships, the novel presents that being at the higher rank of the society gives and individuals, especially the female gender, to find someone to marry them.

In the novel,  Harriet initially was interested in Robert Martin, who is described as a respectable person. He was a tenant farmer and hence was positioned lower in the society, although he was a man who possessed agreeable manners. Besides, he appeared strong and with proper virtues, but Emma did not want to see such qualities. Mr. Knightley, however, speaks about the qualities of Robert Martin as always speaking to the purpose, straightforward, open as well as being a judging individual. The individual values of Robert were found to override his lower social class, something that Harriet sees in him. On the contrast, Emma does not admit the qualities and paints a bad picture of him because she had other prospects in her mind. This is seen when Harriet presents a letter from Robert Martin, but Emma reacts by saying that her sisters must have helped him write the letter. All this was her dislike for Martin and wanted Harriet to look for men such as Mr. Elton. Harriet observes Emma’s advice, something that makes her glad about the decision. In this case, the novel demonstrates the differences in social class and how the higher ranking class in the society depicts the lower class. They forget about good personal attributes such as those portrayed by Robert Martin, just because they come from the lower class. Emma strongly insists on the relationship between Harriet and Mr. Elton as being a good match despite the significant difference in their social class and backgrounds. Mr. Elton was a vicar, while Harriet lacked social status and family.

In conclusion, the class in society has been demonstrated entirely in the novel. It presents both the higher and lower class ranks in the society as completely having different views, especially relationships. The higher class in the society is treated with high respect and only wants to associate with people of their rank. On the other side, the lower class is looked down upon, and anyone coming from the lower class finds it challenging to practice certain aspects as it is presented with marriage, despite the fact that lower-class persons may possess considerable and agreeable qualities.

Works Cited:

Jane Austen. Emma. 1815.