The Annotated Emma

by Jane Austen

  54. Emma’s love of matchmaking will play a large role in the plot. It is notable that she identifies it as a great amusement.

  55. town: London.

  56. Mr. Weston’s background, including the son and the uncle now providing the son a home, are described in the next chapter. They would have an incentive to block Mr. Weston’s marriage, for instead of all his wealth going to the son, much of it will now go to his wife and to any children they might have.

  57. Broadway Lane would be a main local road.

  58. mizzle: drizzle.

  59. Umbrellas for protection against rain had developed in the century preceding this novel. Their progress in England was slow initially, for they were regarded as too foreign or odd and as inappropriate for men, but they eventually came to be owned by almost anyone who could afford one.

  60. For the specific meaning of “farmer” in this society, see note 31.

  61. delicately: modestly, sensitively (in a moral sense). “Delicate” and “delicacy” are often used in this sense.

  62. There was at this time an increasing emphasis on the cultivation and productive employment of ladies’ minds (far less attention was paid to the mental cultivation of women too low socially to be considered ladies). Women still received less education than men; the universities were closed to women, and classical languages, the central focus of male education, were almost never taught to women. But families that could afford it would devote serious attention to their daughter’s education, which would include both book learning and the development of artistic and decorative talents. Such education would, among other things, enable its recipients to fill in a productive manner the ample leisure time that ladies often enjoyed. Few would consider matchmaking an example of a productive and worthy activity.

  63. fitted up: furnished.

  64. The furnishing of a house was considered a particular area of feminine concern. Hence one could assume that a single man so engaged is trying to make his house suitable and desirable for a woman, as well as displaying an interest that a woman would appreciate in a husband.

  65. That Mr. Elton joined their hands, i.e., married them, indicates he is the local clergyman. At this time all legal marriages in England had to be performed by a clergyman; there were no civil marriages.

  66. office: service.

  67. pretty: pleasing, satisfactory. The term was a long-standing one of general praise; in the previous century it had come to be often used ironically when describing men, to designate those considered swells or fops. Mr. Woodhouse, however, does not mean it in this manner. It is his favorite term of praise, which he uses constantly for all sorts of people as well as things, and which suggests his own particular preferences, for the term also had at this time the connotations of neat, dainty, and delicate.

  68. Emma’s duties as mistress of the house include ordering and supervising the dinner, which would help her know which were the best cuts of meat, and overseeing the process of serving it. From every indication in the book Emma always performs these duties well. In mentioning fish and chicken Mr. Knightley is probably not thinking of multiple meals: menus of the time consistently show fish along with meat, usually several kinds of meat, on offer in a single meal. For an elaborate two-course meal suggested by a cookbook of the time, with numerous meat dishes, see this page and this page.

  VOLUME I, CHAPTER II

  1. This sentence alludes to a fundamental distinction in this society, that between respectability and gentility. The former meant having a decent position in any of various walks of life; the latter was more selective, being applied only to those of elite status (for more on the definition of this status, see note 39; for the nature of the Weston family’s rise, see below).

  2. independence: sum of money allowing one to live independently.

  3. The militia was the part of the army principally concerned with home defense; the regular army was generally occupied abroad. Each county in England was obliged to form one or more militia regiments, depending on its population. Joining the militia as Mr. Weston did was fairly easy, for, being less prestigious than the regular army, it suffered from a chronic shortage of officers and thus had loose standards of qualification. Moreover, unlike in the regular army, officer commissions in the militia did not need to be purchased. The militia could have attracted someone of Mr. Weston’s active and social bent because each regiment was sent to another part of England, rather than just staying in its own county, and because the infrequency of immediate invasion threats allowed the officers to devote much of their time to social life. Pride and Prejudice involves a militia regiment whose officers socialize freely with the residents of the town where they are stationed; one of them woos a series of local ladies. Jane Austen would have some familiarity with the life of the militia because her brother Henry served as a militia officer for a number of years.

  4. In selecting this career for Mr. Weston Jane Austen has probably made a mistake, rare for her, in chronology. The militia was embodied, or mobilized for action, only during times of war. Mr. Weston entered the militia around twenty-five years earlier (see chronology); assuming, as is consistently the case with her, that the novel is set in the years it was written and published, 1814–1815, that would place his entry around 1789–1790, a time when Britain was not at war. It is possible that since the militia had been almost continuously embodied from 1792 until the time of the novel, due to the long war with France, Jane Austen forgot about the distant years of peace before 1792, a time when she would not yet have been an adult.

  5. great: socially distinguished, high-ranking.

  6. Yorkshire: a very large county in northern England (see map).

  7. Because the army was the most prestigious of professions, officers usually came from prominent social backgrounds. This was less true of the militia, which is why someone like Mr. Weston was able to join, but he still could have known officers with some connection to a person of Miss Churchill’s rank, or he could have met her at a social gathering, for local gentry often entertained officers stationed nearby. This probably did not occur in Yorkshire itself, for militia units were mostly stationed in the south, where the threat of French invasion was greatest; this would explain why he never met Miss Churchill’s brother and his wife. Miss Churchill was likely staying with friends or relations in the area where the unit was stationed; wealthy people, especially wealthy women, often engaged in long visits, thanks to their ample leisure time and the difficulties and slowness of travel.

  8. importance: dignity, self-importance.

  9. The proposed marital connection would offend their pride because Mr. Weston was from a lower social rank.

  10. People came of age, or reached legal adulthood, at twenty-one. This meant Miss Churchill would have had full use of her inheritance.

  11. Large estates at this time were governed by a strict settlement, which gave the bulk of the estate to the eldest son while allotting a smaller sum to each of the other children. These sums would help the younger sons pursue a profession and would serve as a dowry for the daughters.

  12. This meant they renounced her, and with correct decorum or propriety—at least in their eyes (the author is undoubtedly directing some sarcasm toward their behavior). Were Miss Churchill’s parents alive, her marrying without their consent, while within the law, would have been a serious breach of social rules. In this case, with the parents apparently dead and her brother now head of the family, she would not be committing such a clear transgression, but there was a strong belief that a sister should heed the counsel of a brother in that position.

  13. “Enscombe” is the name of the Churchill home. Since it was supported by the bulk of the family estate, it would have been far more lavish than anything the Westons could have afforded on her inheritance and his income.

  14. The principal other considerations were probably the advantages the boy would derive from the effective adoption. It would give him an inheritance far superior to anything he could expect from h
is father—for with much of the wealth of England still based on agriculture, it was rare for those engaged in commerce, as Mr. Weston was about to be, to accumulate during a single generation anything approaching the fortune of a great landed estate. It would also ensure that Frank would receive an excellent education, one that would probably allow him to establish valuable connections and friendships with others of high rank. Finally, his link with the family would give him much higher social status and open up many opportunities unavailable otherwise.

  15. Mr. Weston would have had no difficulty in quitting the militia; an officer simply had to resign his commission.

  16. The Westons had probably long been in trade: this was the usual way a family rose into gentility over the course of generations. The most common procedure was to use the profits from trade to buy a country home or estate, with the hope of eventually selling out and living completely off one’s property and investments, the leading mark of a true gentleman. It is likely the family had already taken an important step in this direction by purchasing a rural home—this would be why Mr. Weston was a native of Highbury. Places near London or other cities were the usual choice of such families, allowing them to continue participating in their business while adding to their fortune. That Mr. Weston, in this new phase of life, can still live in Highbury, which is too far for daily commuting to London, and spend only part of his time in his business suggests the family has already reached a comfortable state.

  17. competence: financial state.

  18. This purchase of an estate, albeit a small one, would mark a further ascent. Since the small house he had previously inhabited is the only other Weston home ever mentioned, it is probable its purchase was the sole step the family had previously taken toward becoming landed proprietors.

  19. Usually a woman brought a dowry, often called a portion, to marriage. Many men could only afford to marry a woman with a decent dowry, for upon marriage a man became responsible for the wife’s maintenance (this was the prime justification for the dowry). Since children were seen as the main purpose of marriage, and almost all couples attempted to have them, Mr. Weston would probably soon have even more people to support.

  20. settling: marrying.

  21. temper: emotional qualities or disposition. The term had a broader meaning then than it does today.

  22. amiable: kind, good-natured. The word then suggested general goodness, not just outward affability.

  23. Assuming another family’s name upon being adopted was a frequent practice. Jane Austen’s second-oldest brother, Edward, was adopted by a family of cousins with a wealthy estate, the Knights, and he eventually assumed their name. Frank’s taking the name would have been a recent event, since he came of age at twenty-one and is now twenty-three.

  24. He is “Mr. Frank Churchill” to distinguish him from his uncle, who is simply Mr. Churchill. The oldest male of a family would be known only by his surname; younger males would have their first names added to their titles (until the oldest died, at which point the next oldest would become “Mr. + surname”). A similar convention prevailed with women, though the distinction between “Mrs.” and “Miss” meant that it applied only in the case of unmarried sisters.

  25. His being a member of, and the apparent heir to, such a prominent family is most likely the principal reason for his being a source of local pride. Later details suggest the Churchills are wealthier than anybody in Highbury, including Mr. Knightley or the Woodhouses.

  26. This failure to visit his father is our first hint as to Frank Churchill’s character. It would certainly be within his means to visit his father, given his annual stays in London and Highbury’s proximity to the capital.

  27. It would be a proper attention both to his father, to congratulate him on his new state, and to his stepmother, to acknowledge her and to meet her for the first time.

  28. Tea, usually with some kind of snack food, was a standard accompaniment to social visits. Etiquette dictated that a visit should be returned, and thus that friends should alternate hosting each other. Mrs. and Miss Bates are important characters who will soon be introduced, as will Mr. Perry.

  29. mother: stepmother. This usage is standard both for relations like this and for in-laws.

  30. Since Mr. Woodhouse is a close friend of Mrs. Weston, she would have showed the letter to him. His own simplicity and tendency to praise everyone suggests that his praise of the letter probably means little, while the others’ willingness to rely on Mr. Woodhouse’s judgment suggests their own limitations.

  31. Sometimes women, especially among the wealthier classes, would need to remove much farther from existing family or friends. For Mrs. Weston’s other reasons for feeling herself very fortunate, see notes 52–53.

  32. Mrs. Weston’s thoughts testify both to her strong affection and concern for Emma and to her perhaps excessive belief in Emma’s virtues.

  33. In general it was not considered proper or sensible for women, especially young ladies, to venture out in public alone. This was partly for reasons of safety, but also to prevent anything that might lead to sexual misbehavior or harm to sexual reputation. Ladies would usually be accompanied by a friend, relative, or servant. Short walks alone in a quiet rural area would be more acceptable, though not always and by everyone—in Pride and Prejudice the heroine’s venturing three miles in the country to visit her sick sister provokes the censure of other ladies. In this case Mrs. Weston’s optimism about Emma’s walking alone will prove to be unwarranted (see here).

  34. The approaching season is winter (the present time is the end of September or beginning of October). Evening travel between the houses would be more difficult then, for the only illumination on the roads would be that from carriage lamps or, possibly, moonlight. Moreover, rural roads were made of dirt and therefore rougher in bad weather. What Mrs. Weston hopes will overcome those barriers are Mr. Weston’s disposition for company, something he displays throughout the novel, and his ample leisure time.

  35. Having one’s own carriage was a great convenience, but also a great expense (which in turn made it rare and a source of social distinction). Costs included the purchase of the vehicle and its accompanying equipment, frequent repairs due to the rough nature of the roads, the purchase and outfitting and sustenance of horses to pull it, the building and maintenance of places to accommodate the vehicle and horses, and the hire of a coachman to drive the carriage as well as, usually, one or more servants to attend to the horses.

  36. teased: annoyed, bothered.

  37. eat: eaten. There had been a move by grammarians during the eighteenth century to regularize past participles, which traditionally had been inconsistent, but, as shown by this example and a few others in Jane Austen, the process was not complete (toward the end of the paragraph, “eaten” is used).

  38. An apothecary was the most basic medical practitioner of the time. The most prestigious practitioners were physicians, who were the only ones who had received formal medical education; they were also few in number, concentrated in towns and cities, and generally consulted only for particularly difficult cases, and then mostly by the wealthy. Next came surgeons, who specialized in treating wounds, setting bones, and amputations (internal surgery was almost unknown). Originally apothecaries had been only sellers of drugs, but over time they came to supplement this function with general advice on ailments. Moreover, by this time the majority of practitioners fell under the heading of surgeon-apothecaries—though usually only one term was used to refer to specific individuals—because most areas had too small a population to support more than one medical man. Thus Mr. Perry probably performs the function of a surgeon as well.

  39. The author calls Mr. Perry “gentlemanlike” because, socially speaking, he is not a gentleman. A gentleman was a man who had sufficient wealth, preferably in land, that he did not need to work, or who earned his living through one of the professions considered genteel, the principal ones being army or navy officer, clergyman, or barrister (the more pr
estigious type of lawyer). Physicians were the only medical men considered genteel. Gentlewomen, or ladies, were those with a husband or father who was a gentleman (children, male and female, also derived their status from their father). Thus, despite the high opinion Mr. Woodhouse continually evinces for Mr. Perry, he never sees him socially and there is never any discussion of inviting Mr. or Mrs. Perry to the gatherings of the leading families of Highbury. At the same time, the word “gentleman,” along with “genteel” and “gentility,” could also be used in a moral sense to refer to those who possessed certain virtues, such as courtesy, honor, generosity, and refinement, that were supposed to exist particularly in those of genteel rank.

  40. Wedding cakes, often called bride cakes, had been around since at least the seventeenth century. Eighteenth-century cookery books include special recipes for bride cakes. They were almost always plum cakes, with ingredients that included almonds, currants, candied oranges and lemons, and brandy.

  A family visit to a girl in boarding school. The well-dressed woman seated in front is the girl’s mother. The other two women are probably the headmistress and one of the teachers.

  [From Malcolm Salaman, Old English Colour Prints (New York, 1909), Plate XIII]

  [List of Illustrations]

  VOLUME I, CHAPTER III

  1. The parish was the basic unit of local government, of the church, and usually of local society in England. It generally centered around a village.

  2. Many prominent country houses had “Abbey” in their names—one such provides the title of Northanger Abbey. This was the result of the English Reformation, in which monasteries, including abbeys, and nunneries were closed and the property and buildings sold by the crown. Families who acquired the buildings would often convert them to their own residences, while retaining the original name. Since this occurred in the mid-sixteenth century, the house is an old one, suggesting in turn the antiquity of the Knightley family, an added source of prestige. For examples of such houses, see this page and this page.