$Unique_ID{bob01236} $Pretitle{} $Title{Works of Jane Austen Emma: Chapters 47 - 55} $Subtitle{} $Author{Austen, Jane} $Affiliation{Instructor Of English, Rutgers University} $Subject{emma knightley harriet mrs frank jane now love weston emma's} $Date{} $Log{} Title: Works of Jane Austen Book: Emma Author: Austen, Jane Critic: Fitzpatrick, William J. Affiliation: Instructor Of English, Rutgers University Emma: Chapters 47 - 55 Charter XLVII Emma can think of nothing but "poor Harriet," who for the second time has been victimized by Emma's misconceptions and flattery. She thinks of Mr. Knightley's words, "Emma, you have been no friend to Harriet Smith." Although this time it was not Emma who first suggested the possibility of an attachment which might not otherwise have occurred to Harriet (for Harriet herself had acknowledged her admiration for Frank Churchill before Emma even hinted at it), Emma nevertheless feels guilty for having encouraged her to hope where (Emma can now see) common sense should have indicated there was no hope at all. Emma can now imagine why Jane Fairfax has refused her overtures. Jane must have considered her a rival for Frank's affections. Emma resolves to break the truth to Harriet as soon as possible. Harriet then comes in and proceeds to announce the news of Jane's and Frank's secret engagement. She heard it from Mr. Weston (who had admonished Emma that the matter was to be kept secret). Emma is surprised at Harriet's calmness and her apparent lack of disappointment. Harriet asks if Emma ("you who can see into everybody's heart") had any idea of Frank's being in love with Jane. But Emma replies that she had been encouraging Harriet in her feelings for Frank. "Me," cries Harriet. "You don't think I care about Frank Churchill." "But you gave me reason to understand you did," says Emma. "Never, never!" Harriet explains that the person she had in mind is far superior to Frank Churchill, and but for Emma's approval and encouragement, she would not have presumed to think that a match of such a great disparity was possible. Emma asks sternly if Harriet is speaking of Mr. Knightley. "Of course," says Harriet. "I thought you knew." Emma recalls to Harriet her having mentioned the "service" that Frank had rendered her in protecting her from the gypsies (though Emma had not mentioned Frank's name). But Harriet replies that she understood that by "service" Emma was referring to Mr. Knightley's coming to her rescue at the dance when Mr. Elton refused to dance with her. "Good God!" cries Emma. What is to be done! Harriet goes on to say that she does indeed hope that Mr. Knightley may find her not beneath him and she asks Miss Woodhouse not to oppose the match. She claims that she has reasons to believe that Mr. Knightley returns her affections. Emma is silently meditating. "A few minutes were sufficient for making her acquainted with her own heart." She acknowledges to herself the reason why she is so stunned at Harriet's being in love with Mr. Knightley and at the news that Harriet believes that Mr. Knightley may be in love with her. "It darted through her with the speed of an arrow that Mr. Knightley must not marry anyone but herself!" She now sees her own conduct and her own feelings with a clarity she never had before. How irrational, how unfeeling, how blind, how mad she has been! She resolves to treat Harriet kindly and asks what signs Harriet has had from Mr. Knightley. It seems that Harriet has been aware of a difference in Mr. Knightley's attitude to her since the ball. He has gone out of his way to talk to her on different occasions in a very sweet way. (Emma indeed knew of this, but had interpreted it differently.) Mr. Knightley was free in his compliments to Harriet. She recalls to Emma the time when he talked to her apart from the others during the strawberry-picking at Donwell (see Chapter XLII). Harriet understood him to be asking her then if she was attached to anyone. And although he said he came only for five minutes, he stayed talking to Harriet for half an hour at Hartfield the morning he left for London, and he indicated to her that he had much rather remain at home (something he did not confide to Emma). Emma asks if it is not possible that when Mr. Knightley was inquiring about her attachments, he might not have been inquiring on Mr. Martin's behalf. But Harriet replies that she now knows better than to care for Mr. Martin. Although she never would have thought it possible without Emma's encouragement, yet Harriet now thinks that it is quite possible and even natural for her and Mr. Knightley to fall in love and marry. At the sound of Mr. Woodhouse's coming, Harriet takes her leave. Emma says to herself, "Oh, God! That I had never seen her!" The rest of the day Emma is beset with confused feelings and memories. What deceptions she had practiced on herself! What blunders and blindness of head and heart! She tries to understand thoroughly her own heart. How long has she been in love with Mr. Knightley? When did it begin? She compares Frank Churchill and Mr. Knightley and sees now that she has always considered Mr. Knightley infinitely the superior of the two and valued his opinion more. She had been under a delusion, totally ignorant of her own heart; she never really cared for Frank Churchill. Being satisfied that she is in love with Mr. Knightley, she reviews her past conduct. "With insufferable vanity had she believed herself in the secret of everybody's feelings; with unpardonable arrogance proposed to arrange everybody's destiny." She has been mistaken in everything, and if the match between Harriet Smith and Mr. Knightley takes place, it would have been her fault for bringing them together. Can it be possible? Yes, indeed. Emma must admit that it may be possible. Oh, that she had left Harriet where Mr. Knightley told her she ought! She had prevented Harriet's marrying someone entirely suited to her. Harriet is now less humble, less sensible of her own inferiority than formerly, and that is all Emma's doing. It is Emma who has made the humble Harriet vain. Comment: This chapter is the climax of the book. For here Emma discovers the nature of her own past actions and the quality of her own feelings. Under the terrible pressure of events, she cannot avoid recognizing her love for Mr. Knightley. She had previously suppressed her own natural affection by making romances for others; and the irony is that in the process she has not only been acting immorally, arrogantly, and stupidly, but she has been acting against her own best interests as well. So "blind" has Emma been, so deeply has the honesty of her own emotions been repressed that only Harriet's sudden revelation is able to bring them to the surface. Now Emma's judgment begins to be restored and she is about to achieve emotional and moral maturity. (The reader will recall how violently Emma acted when Mrs. Weston suggested that Mr. Knightley had his eye on Jane Fairfax [Chapter XXVI]. But then the threat was far less tangible than now; therefore, much less of Emma's real feeling came to the surface.) Chapter XLVIII Now that she appears to be threatened with the loss of Mr. Knightley, Emma realizes that her happiness has always depended on being first with him. She never reflected on it before. He has watched over her from girlhood, trying to see that she always did the right thing, correcting her when she was wrong. But she cannot be confident that he is in love with her as she now realizes that she is with him. Her only hope is that Harriet may be mistaken about his regard for her - that Mr. Knightley may never marry at all. That would satisfy her, since, having to take care of her father, she will never marry even if Mr. Knightley were to ask her. She looks forward to seeing Mr. Knightley and Harriet together so that she can tell if he is in love with her. She writes Harriet asking her not to come to Hartfield for a while. Mrs. Weston arrives to tell Emma about the visit she and Mr. Weston just had with Jane Fairfax. Jane told Mrs. Weston how much she had suffered during the many months of pretending. She regrets very much having consented to a secret engagement and is remorseful for her deceit. She tells Mrs. Weston to thank Emma for the kindnesses she showed her during her illness. Mrs. Weston is convinced that Jane loves Frank very much. After Mrs. Weston leaves, Emma is full of bitter regrets for not having tried to be closer to Jane in the past and for her envious feelings and her foolish suspicions about Mr. Dixon. Jane, rather than Harriet Smith, was a proper friend for her. Emma is sitting alone with her father, and she is reminded of that melancholy evening of Mrs. Weston's wedding day. All she has to look forward to now is the solitary company of her father. There will soon be a child born to Mrs. Weston who will occupy her time; Frank Churchill and Jane will be living away from Highbury; Mr. Knightley will be lost to her. Her only consolation is her re olve to be a better person than she has been in the past. Comment: It is ironic that all the matches that Emma tried to make have failed, and one which she did not intend to make (Harriet and Mr. Knightley) may be accomplished to her own sorrow. Emma's seeing that Jane, her equal, should have been her friend rather than Harriet is an indication of her maturing insight. Everything has been topsy-turvy. She has been busy arranging everybody else's life instead of her own, promoting other marriages instead of trying to make a match for herself. Emma has been hiding from herself all these many months. Chapter XLIX That evening Emma is taking a walk in the shrubbery when she sees Mr. Knightley coming towards her. She did not know of his return from London. When Emma says that she has some news for him, he replies that Mr. Weston wrote to him in London about Jane Fairfax and Frank Churchill. Emma remarks that he was less surprised than anyone, for he has had his suspicions. She was doomed to blindness. Mr. Knightley takes Emma's arm and presses it against his heart and tells her that time will heal the wound. He refers to the "abominable scoundrel." But Emma tells him that he is mistaken; for though she had flirted with Frank Churchill, he is no loss to her. Mr. Knightley hopes that this will indeed be true in time, but, of course, he knew that Emma had a preference for him. Frank is a disgrace to the name of man. But Emma assures Mr. Knightley that she has never buen in love with Frank. She may have flirted with him and been flattered by his attentions, but she did not fall for him. Mr. Knightley remarks that Frank Churchill, who has been unscrupulous, is very lucky to have found such a prize as Jane Fairfax so early in life. He admits to Emma that he envies him. Though Emma does not ask Mr. Knightley why he is envious of Frank, he says that he will tell her anyway. Emma (fearful that he is about to speak of Harriet) says to him, "Don't speak - take a little time - don't commit yourself." Mr. Knightley is silent; Emma then decides that because he was perhaps going to consult her about Harriet, she should be generous and praise Harriet to him if necessary. She tells him that he may speak openly to her as a friend if he wishes. Mr. Knightley then asks her if he has any chance of ever succeeding. He tells her to say no if it is to be said, and is grateful when she says nothing. Emma is shocked with happiness. Mr. Knightley goes on and tells her how much he loves her. Though she hears nothing but the truth from him; though he has blamed her and lectured her; yet he loves her dearly. She resolves not to tell Mr. Knightley of Harriet's dream. It seems that Mr. Knightley had followed her in the shrubbery with no more idea than to see how she was bearing up under Frank Churchill's engagement. But when Emma assured him that she had not been the least bit in love with Frank Churchill, he suddenly resolved to declare his own love for her. He had been in love with Emma and jealous of Frank Churchill for the past few months, and it was his jealousy of Frank Churchill - Emma's flirting with him at the Box Hill party - that prompted him to go off to London. And when he heard of Jane Fairfax and Frank, he rode home immediately to see how Emma was taking the news. Now he and Emma, in the certainty of being loved, have cleared away ignorance, jealousy and distrust. Comment: Just as the pressures of Harriet's hopes for a match with Mr. Knightley forced Emma to discover her own love for him, so apparently did Emma's interest in Frank Churchill several months ago set Mr. Knightley off to discover his love for Emma. We must not conclude that because Mr. Knightley was envious of Frank in the past, his judgments of him were not well-founded-Poor Harriet! Chapter L Mr. Knightley and Emma, with her heart aflutter, go in to have tea with her father. After Mr. Knightley leaves, Emma thinks about the two problem that face her: her father and Harriet. She decides that she can never leave her father. While he lives, it must only be an engagement. As for Harriet, she decides that she will continue avoiding her and try to get her an invitation to her sister Isabella's in London in the hope that she will be distracted from Mr. Knightley. The next morning, she writes to Harriet and breaks the news. When Mr. Knightley comes over, she spends a delightful hour with him. After he leaves, a letter is brought to her from Randalls, including a note from Mrs. Weston and a long letter that Frank has written her. In this long letter, Frank explains in detail his behavior over the past several months. He had to persuade Jane to stoop to a secret engagement because he feared his aunt's objections. He had merely trusted that it would work out somehow eventually. He asks Mrs. Weston's forgiveness for not having visited his father and her sooner. He actually did not come to Highbury until Miss Fairfax was there. He confesses that he paid attentions to Emma in order to aid his concealment of his real romance. He says that he was convinced of Emma's indifference to him. She never gave him the idea of a young woman likely to become attached. He recalls that when he called on Emma to say good-bye at the end of his first fortnight's stay in Highbury, he was at the point of confessing the truth (see Chapter XXX) and he suspected that Emma had an inkling of the truth. He has no doubt that her "quickness" penetrated the ruse, at least in part. Emma gave him many hints of that. He remembers Emma's telling him at the ball that he should be grateful for Mrs. Elton's attentions to Jane (see Chapter XXXVIII). He asks Mrs. Weston to obtain for him Emma's forgiveness, for he regards her with brotherly affection. His motive, of course, was to get to Highbury as often as possible with the least suspicion. He says that the piano (which, of course, was his gift to Jane) was sent without her knowledge. She is indeed a marvelous creature and he hopes that Mrs. Weston will call on her soon; he is worried about her health. He explains that the whole affair suddenly came out into the open as a result of the following sequence. He had been deliberately unpleasant to Jane Fairfax and had been open in his flirtation with Emma. Jane thought he went too far and was annoyed. The morning that he came down to Donwell for the strawberry-picking outing, he encountered Jane Fairfax on the road, and they had a serious quarrel when she refused to let him walk her home. He was angry and resentful when he got to Donwell (see Chapter XLII). The next day at Box Hill, Jane was extremely resentful because of Frank's shameful devotion to Emma. That evening, angry at Jane's coldness to him, he goes back to his aunt and uncle sooner than he has to, determined that Jane shall be the first to try to make up. That evening Jane accepts the officious Mrs. Elton's proposal (see Chapter XLIV). Frank alludes to the impertinence of Mrs. Elton's calling Miss Fairfax by her Christian name. The next day, Jane wrote to Frank telling him that because she felt the engagement was a source of misery to both parties, she was therefore breaking it. He received the letter on the day his aunt died. He answered immediately, but by mistake the letter was not posted. Two days afterwards, Jane sent him all his letters and a note saying that she was surprised he had not bothered to answer her letter. She interpreted his silence as indicating his agreement that the engagement should be broken, and she asked that her letters be returned to her at Highbury or at Mrs. Smallridge's. Frank understood then that she had accepted Mrs. Elton's offer and was serious about breaking the engagement. He immediately asked his uncle's permission to marry her and the good man gave his consent. He then dashed off to Highbury, persuaded her to become his fiancee again, and then went on to Randalls and back to stay with his uncle. He now considers himself indeed the "child of good fortune" that Emma had called him. Comment. Thus, not only was Emma mistaken about everyone's feelings including her own; not only was Mr. Knightley wrong about Emma's love for Frank, and Mr. and Mrs. Weston wrong about a romance between Emma and Frank; not only was Mrs. Weston wrong about Mr. Knightley's love for Jane, and Harriet about Mr. Knightley's love for her; but Jane and Frank also misunderstood each other. If the reader now goes back and re-reads all the passages in the previous chapters having to do with Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax, he will see that the author has not committed herself to Emma's interpretation, but rather has set the stage for Frank's explanation now. Chapter LI Emma reads Frank's letter with great interest. The part about her she finds fascinating. Although she still thinks that Frank has been wrong, yet she is disposed to forgive him completely because of his suffering, because of his love for Jane, and, above all, because of her own great happiness. When Mr. Knightley comes in, she has him read Frank's letter in order to get him to relent his harsh judgment. Mr. Knightley reads it, pausing now and then to comment sarcastically about Frank's style, to criticize him again for having made the secret engagement, to shake his head at the boyish thoughtlessness of sending Jane the piano, to censure him severely for having put Jane in such a difficult position and for writing such a long-winded letter. Emma recalls that Mr. Knightley had pointed out that Frank could have come to visit his father and Mrs. Weston sooner if he had wanted to, and Mr. Knightley replies that even if it had not concerned Emma, he would still have distrusted Frank Churchill. But at the end, Mr. Knightley is ready to believe that under Jane's influence Frank's character may improve. He then raises the question how he can ask Emma to marry him without acutely upsetting her father. Emma replies that she cannot leave her father. But Mr. Knightley immediately answers that he had first hoped to induce Mr. Woodhouse to come to stay with them at Donwell, but, realizing that this would not work, he has decided that he and Emma should live with her father at Hartfield. Emma realizes that this is a sacrifice for Mr. Knightley, but she agrees to think favorably about the idea. Now that Emma is going to marry Mr. Knightley, she does not once worry about her nephew Henry's being deprived of inheriting Donwell. She smiles as she now admits to herself the real cause of her violent reaction to the suggestions of Mr. Knightley's marrying Jane Fairfax or anyone else. What a companion Mr. Knightley will be for her when she will be in the otherwise cheerless and melancholic duties of attending her father! The only blight on her happiness is the thought of poor Harriet who must now be kept away from Hartfield - not that Emma would miss her company. She expects that Mr. Knightley will in time be supplanted in Harriet's affections by someone else, but that will not happen soon. It is "too much to hope even of Harriet, that she could be in love with more than three men in one year." Comment: Is Mr. Knightley making a mistake in agreeing to live at Harfield with that fuss-pot Mr. Woodhouse? And would he not be better able to handle the self-willed Emma on his own grounds at Donwell Abbey? Chapter LII Emma is relieved to find that Harriet also wants to avoid a meeting. In fact, she thinks that she detects something that looks like a little resentment in Harriet's letters. Because Harriet has to consult a dentist, it is easy for Emma to get her to accept an invitation to stay with Isabella in London for a fortnight. Emma hopes that Harriet will soon forget the past. Emma resolves to put off telling her father about the engagement until Mrs. Weston's baby is born. Thinking of the similarity of their situations, Emma pays a visit to Jane Fairfax, who meets her on the stairs with expressions of warmth and gratitude. Miss Bates is out, but Mrs. Elton happens to be there. Mrs. Elton obviously believes that she is the only one who knows of Jane's forthcoming marriage. In Emma's hearing she vows her secrecy. She only came by to read "Mrs. S's letter" (replying to Jane's changing her mind about the job). But Mrs. Elton will be discreet about other things. She will mention no names about a "certain young physician from Windsor" who helped Jane to get over her illness. Miss Bates soon comes in with all her gushing talk. From Miss Bates' gratitude for Mrs. Elton's being there, Emma surmises that there must have been at first some resentment towards Jane from the Eltons because of her cancelling. Mrs. Elton expects Mr. Elton to call for her at Miss Bates'. Right now he is with Mr. Knightley. "Mr. E is Knightley's right hand." When Mrs. Elton says that this is a very troublesome parish, Jane answers that her parish at Maple Grove was small because Mrs. Elton spoke of the school having only five-and-twenty children. Mr. Elton then comes in hot and tired from a walk he had taken for nothing. He had gone to Donwell to meet Mr. Knightley, to whom he had sent a note that morning. Mr. Knightley had replied that he would be home till one, but when Mr. Elton arrived, Mr. Knightley was not in. He is very annoyed at the fruitless exertion of walking over to Donwell and back. It is very important that Mr. Elton see Mr. Knightley that day, and he is furious. Emma now takes her leave and Jane sees her downstairs. Jane tries to apologize for her past deceit and coldness toward Emma. But Emma answers that the apology should be on her side. Jane then tells Emma that she and Frank will be married and living with Frank's uncle at Enscombe after a three-month mourning period for Frank's aunt. Emma is delighted at the news and replies, "Oh, if you knew how much I love everything that is decided and open!" Comment: Mrs. Elton's crudeness reaches a nadir in this chapter. It is ironic that Emma, who previously complained about Jane's lack of "openness," has herself been far from open in her managing of Harriet's life. Chapter LIII Mrs. Weston has a baby girl, and though Emma will not admit that she is planning a match between her and one of Isabella's sons, she is delighted. Emma says that Mrs. Weston is bound to bring her up extremely well, since she has had the advantage of practicing on Emma. That means, says Mr. Knightley, that she will indulge her daughter even more than she indulged Emma. But Mr. Knightley says that he is not against spoiled children since he owes his happiness to one (Emma). He says that his tutelage of her brought him to love her ever since she was thirteen. Emma hopes that he will do as much for little Anna Weston - except, of course, to fall in love with her when she is thirteen. Mr. Knightley asks Emma to call him "George" rather than "Mr. Knightley" which is so formal. Emma says that she can never call him anything but "Mr. Knightley," except that she will promise to call him by his Christian name once ("in the building in which N. takes M. for better, for worse"). Emma regrets that she cannot ask Mr. Knightley's advice about what to do about Harriet. Harriet rarely writes to Emma, who relies on Isabella's letters for news of her. Isabella writes that Harriet is planning to stay for at least a month and come back with Mr. and Mrs. John Knightley when they come down to Highbury in August. This indicates to Emma that Harriet is being distracted in London. Mr. Knightley then shows Emma John's answer to his announcement of his intended marriage. Emma jokes with Mr. Knightley by interpreting the letter to read that John considers that Emma is the lucky one in the marriage. When Mr. Knightley protests, Emma says that her father, however, will think that Mr. Knightley is the lucky one. John said that he was not entirely surprised by the news - that is, he sensed that Mr. Knightley was ripe for marriage. Emma finally forces herself to break the news to her father. It is a very great shock to him and he tries hard to persuade her not to do it. He reminds her that she has always said she would never marry. Look what happened to "poor Isabella" and to "poor Miss Taylor." But Emma insists and anyway, Mr. Knightley, whose company her father loves so much, will now be at Hartfield every day. But her father reminds Emma that he sees him every day as it is. Why cannot things go on as they always have? Emma enlists the assistance of Isabella and Mrs. Weston in persuading Mr. Woodhouse, and he begins "to think that some time or other - in another year or two, perhaps - it might not be so very bad if the marriage should take place." Mrs. Weston is extremely surprised and delighted at the news of the engagement. Why did she not think of it herself a long time ago? What a fine connection for Emma and how noble of Mr. Knightley to come and live with Mr. Woodhouse! Mr. Weston is also happy at the news and goes into town to communicate it to Jane and Miss Bates, who in turn spread the word to Mrs. Cole, Mrs. Perry, and Mrs. Elton. It is soon known all over Highbury, and everyone approves the match except Mr. and Mrs. Elton. Mr. Elton remarks to his wife that the proud young lady must always have meant to catch Knightley. And Mrs. Elton takes pity on "poor Knightley." How could he be taken in? She does not think that he is in love at all. Now she will have a Mrs. Knightley to compete with in Highbury society. Shocking! Comment: The remarks in this chapter about Mr. Knightley's tutelage of Emma call to the reader's attention the fact that Emma's tutelage, instead of guiding Harriet with common sense and good judgment (as Mr. Knightley had guided her), filled her with illusions and false hopes; indeed, almost created a "monster," who at first seems to threaten Emma and who remains a problem on Emma's hands. Chapter LIV Time passes. In a few days John Knightley's family and Harriet will be arriving from London. One morning, Mr. Knightley comes in and tells Emma he has some news for her about Harriet Smith which will not please her. She and Robert Martin are getting married. Emma cannot believe it but Mr. Knightley affirms that Robert Martin left him not a half hour ago. "Good God!" says Emma, attempting to conceal her delight. She assures Mr. Knightley that the news does not make her unhappy. He explains to her that Robert Martin went into London for a few days on some business and Mr. Knightley had him take some papers to John, who invited Mr. Martin to join Isabella, Harriet, and the two older boys at Astley's. And John invited him to dine with them the next day. During his visit, Mr. Martin proposed to Harriet, who accepted him. Mr. Knightley acknowledges that Robert Martin does not have a very high place in society (he is only a tenant farmer on Mr. Knightley's estate), but he is a good man who is acceptable to Harriet. Emma assures Mr. Knightley that she thinks that Mr.Martin's connections are probably much better than Harriet's. But Harriet not long ago seemed very determined against Robert Martin. Mr. Knightley replies that in his opinion Harriet could not very long be against anyone who said he loved her. Emma recalls Harriet's saying, "No, I hope I know better than to think of Robert Martin." Mr. Knightley tells her that Robert Martin has gone to Mrs. Goddard's to get information about Harriet's relations [see Chapter VIII]. Mr. Knightley explains that because of Emma, he had gone out of his way to talk to Harriet and get to know her, and decided that she was a very nice young lady. No doubt, this is due to Emma's influence. Emma is exquisitely happy, for the one blight to her delight has been removed. She laughs at the contrast between her present state and her profound disappointment of five weeks ago. She and her father then go to Randalls to see Mrs. Weston and her baby. There they discover Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax. After an initial embarrassment, they all sit down and Frank talks about the past. He says that he hopes Emma still forgives him. He then talks of many past mistakes; of the name of Dixon; of his shame. Emma tells him that she never had the least suspicion of the truth. Frank announces that his uncle will probably visit the Westons. He praises the beauty of Jane's complexion, and Emma reminds him that he once told her that it was too pale for him. They all laugh heartily. Frank says that his uncle plans to give Jane all of his aunt's jewels. When Mrs. Weston tells of their having called Mr. Perry in because they were worried about the baby, Frank refers to his dream about Mr. Perry's carriage, about Jane's letter which told him about it, about the blunder. When Emma leaves the Westons, she is pleased to have seen Frank Churchill again and regards him as a friend, but she is very much aware of Mr. Knightley's extreme superiority of character. Comment: Thus the novel has come full circle. Harriet is engaged to Mr. Martin as she should have been at the outset were it not for Emma's arrogant interference. And Emma at last confesses her mistake. She has fully learned the lesson of the events of the book. After meeting him at the Weston's, Emma is more aware of the extent of Mr. Knightley's superiority to Frank. His boyish, playful, and somewhat thoughtless joking about his past deceit contrasts both with Jane's decorous silence and Mr. Knightley's masculine maturity. Chapter LV When the party comes down from London, Harriet confides in Emma how thoroughly Robert Martin has taken possession of her affections. Emma now sees that Harriet has always liked Robert Martin but she cannot understand how she could have shifted her feelings about so easily from one man to another. It soon comes out that Harriet is the daughter of a well-to-do tradesman. (Emma recalls how she had imagined that Harriet's father was noble.) She thinks of how she had been preparing to connect Mr. Elton, Frank Churchill, and (unwittingly) Mr. Knightley with "the stain of illegitimacy unbleached by nobility or wealth." Emma now acknowledges that Robert Martin is a man of good sense and worth, sure to provide Harriet with happiness, security, and stability and to keep her out of the way of temptation. Lucky Harriet! The intimacy between Harriet and Emma will inevitably dissolve now as she settles down as Mrs. Martin, nor does Emma regret it. The Martins are married in September by Mr. Elton. Jane Fairfax is gone home with the Campbells awaiting her marriage to Frank Churchill in November. Emma and Mr. Knightley decide on October for their marriage. They sound out Mr. Woodhouse, who puts up such a fuss that Emma will not go ahead. But luckily Mrs. Weston's poultry house and several others are robbed on several nights and this raises fears of housebreaking. Mr. Woodhouse is then very grateful to have his son-in-law, Mr. John Knightley, at Hartfield for protection. But when he realizes that John Knightley will be leaving for London soon, he is much more easily persuaded to give his consent for their marriage. Mr. Elton then presides over the marriage of Mr. Knightley and Emma. Mrs. Elton decides that the affair was much inferior to her own, but "the wishes, the hopes, the confidence, the predictions of the small band of true friends who witnessed the ceremony, were fully answered in the perfect happiness of the union." Comment: Thus, the various problems that were opened up in the first chapter are all resolved. Emma's education is completed; she has attained her maturity.