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Liked It8 of 8 members found this review helpful “Austen's greatest and most complex creation, Emma Woodhouse has all of the arrogance of the supremely well-intentioned, and none of the empathy. Her cheerful ignorance of the ways of the human heart provides the basis for the novel's chief pleasure: we watch Emma receive her emotional education,...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It2 of 4 members found this review helpful “I shouldn't have marked this as "read," because I stopped in the middle and don't plan to finish. I had a hard time finding a single likeable character, and that was disappointing. I interrupted my reading of Emma to read Persuasion, which was a good move. Persuasion was a total page-turner.” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“I reread this book in honor of my daughter, Emma Kate. She was born in April of 2008.”
Katie C wrote this review 2 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No![PEACE TEAM GALE!!!! B] CURSE YOU COIN!!! OPJD!!!!!!!!!!](http://shelfari-userimages.s3.amazonaws.com/usr2106053633974293724704780.jpg)
“i actually really like this i wasn't sure that i would, but it was funny and interesting”
PEACE TEAM GALE!!!! B] CURSE YOU COIN!!! OPJD!!!!!!!!!! wrote this review 3 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“i lik thi9s aj4oe sdmg io43lqkt5j890jlkwer80jfkadj0j adfl jcio8ukle4f; u90”
Emily W wrote this review 6 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“it's been a long time since I read this.”
Crystal B wrote this review 8 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“hilarious and fun”
Angie R wrote this review 13 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“My favorite Austen Heroine.”
Gabriella M wrote this review 13 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Of all Jane Austen's heroines, Emma Woodhouse is the most flawed, the most infuriating, and, in the end, the most endearing. Pride and Prejudice's Lizzie Bennet has more wit and sparkle; Catherine Morland in Northanger Abbey more imagination; and Sense and Sensibility's Elinor Dashwood certainly more sense--but Emma is lovable precisely because she is so imperfect. Austen only completed six novels in her lifetime, of which five feature young women whose chances for making a good marriage depend greatly on financial issues, and whose prospects if they fail are rather grim. Emma is the exception: "Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her." One may be tempted to wonder what Austen could possibly find to say about so fortunate a character. The answer is, quite a lot.
North Shore Country Day School English-10 wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
For Emma, raised to think well of herself, has such a high opinion of her own worth that it blinds her to the opinions of others. The story revolves around a comedy of errors: Emma befriends Harriet Smith, a young woman of unknown parentage, and attempts to remake her in her own image. Ignoring the gaping difference in their respective fortunes and stations in life, Emma convinces herself and her friend that Harriet should look as high as Emma herself might for a husband--and she zeroes in on an ambitious vicar as the perfect match. At the same time, she reads too much into a flirtation with Frank Churchill, the newly arrived son of family friends, and thoughtlessly starts a rumor about poor but beautiful Jane Fairfax, the beloved niece of two genteelly impoverished elderly ladies in the village. As Emma's fantastically misguided schemes threaten to surge out of control, the voice of reason is provided by Mr. Knightly, the Woodhouse's longtime friend and neighbor. Though Austen herself described Emma as "a heroine whom no one but myself will much like," she endowed her creation with enough charm to see her through her most egregious behavior, and the saving grace of being able to learn from her mistakes. By the end of the novel Harriet, Frank, and Jane are all properly accounted for, Emma is wiser (though certainly not sadder), and the reader has had the satisfaction of enjoying Jane Austen at the height of her powers. --Alix Wilber”
“sounds good!”
Serena Blundell wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“O is there a way you can not like Austen? Personally I find Emma officious and underserving of her favorable end. Vile me. Very impressed by the BBC version of the book.
Zachary L wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Is there no one who feels the same sympathy for Henrietta? Ill-used!!!”
