by Jane Austen
31. She will form half of the lead couple in the dance. She must be asked because of the priority given to the bride, something already seen at the Woodhouses’ dinner party.
32. Since the Westons are in effect the hosts, he is the appropriate counterpart to Mrs. Elton for the first dance.
33. They come second because they are next in social importance.
34. peculiarly: particularly.
35. Were she married, she would enjoy temporarily the special distinction conferred on a bride, along with a permanent higher status, including a superior position in the order of precedence.
36. He only “might” be his son’s social superior—normally there would be no doubt of it, but in this case Frank Churchill is destined to inherit an estate worth far more than his father’s.
37. The lesser interest of men in dancing appears elsewhere in Austen’s novels, and is discussed by other contemporary writers. A book on beauty and etiquette, The Mirror of Graces, laments that, unlike in previous ages, dancing is now greatly neglected by men in favor of other pursuits such as gambling and horses. In this case most of the young men do appear to be dancing, and those waiting for rubbers of cards to be formed are older men.
38. Dances were always done in pairs, which lasted half an hour. The wording suggests there have been several pairs of dances so far.
A woman in evening dress.
[From The Repository of Arts, Literature, Fashions, Manufactures, &c, Vol. X (1813), p. 369]
[List of Illustrations]
39. Thus he is not only trying to avoid dancing with Harriet, which is somewhat understandable, but trying to snub her openly before others.
40. The dancers would be in two facing lines. Usually the couple at the top would perform a series of steps while the others watched, and then move to the bottom of the rows, after which all other couples would shift one position closer to the top. This is why Emma is still working her way to the top and has leisure to look around her. The substantial periods of watching and waiting are why people could dance for many hours without becoming excessively tired. In many dances the periods when one couple was moving and being watched by others alternated with periods when all performed certain steps without shifting places. See diagram below.
41. set: line of dancers.
42. She is above her in the dancing line, and thus part of the couple that will reach the top just before Emma and her partner.
The outline of a dance.
[From Thomas Wilson, Analysis of Country Dancing (London, 1808), p. 110]
[List of Illustrations]
43. She thinks of the contrast with Mr. Elton’s earlier gallantry, obsequiousness, and willingness to please. The current revelation shows how much she mistook shadow for substance before.
44. The steps often led dancers to move down the middle of the rows.
45. This would be an example of a person developing a worse moral character under the influence of a spouse, the opposite of Jane Austen’s ideal but one she shows as an unfortunate reality in several cases.
46. Since Emma is next to Mrs. Elton in line, she would hear this clearly.
47. She mentions soup on the next page. Soup was often served at meals, and was especially popular at dances; in Pride and Prejudice a character planning to give a ball declares he must wait until his cook makes enough white soup, a favorite for parties, and in Mansfield Park soup is the one item of food mentioned during a ball.
48. A tippet was a small woman’s cape that fit around the neck and shoulders and usually extended down to the bosom. It would be especially useful for staying warm while wearing evening dress, since that tended to leave the areas below the neck bare. For pictures of tippets, see this page and this page.
49. In preparing for the ball they discussed the danger of drafts from the passage; Mrs. Weston has apparently taken care to guard against that with matting against the doors, but she still worries.
50. Jane is apparently resisting wearing her tippet; Frank Churchill has stepped forward to place it on her shoulders.
51. These would be part of the supper: the ball began after dinner.
52. Her dice throws while playing backgammon.
53. Mrs. Elton also wore lace at the Woodhouses’ dinner party.
54. Miss Bates is both awed by Mrs. Elton’s prominence at the ball—and probably by her generally high opinion of herself—and grateful for the attention Mrs. Elton is paying to Jane Fairfax.
55. Balls and fancy parties were the only occasions when large numbers of candles were used, for their expense caused even the wealthy to use them sparingly on normal evenings. Many ballrooms, whether public or private, had chandeliers on which numerous candles could be placed, though the Crown may have been too humble for such an installation, and even if it had them earlier, the desuetude into which its ballroom has fallen, at least as regards dancing, could have led to any chandelier’s removal. Even without that, the larger number of candles would have struck people, a contrast that would likely be particularly strong for one in straitened circumstances such as Miss Bates.
56. Sweetbread is the thymus gland of an animal used for food. Asparagus had been around for a number of centuries in England, though it was not a highly popular vegetable. Emma may be offering her father’s guest items that are relatively uncommon in order to treat her, though this intention is undermined by his excessive solicitousness about Mrs. Bates’s health.
57. Frank Churchill has continued with her and Jane Fairfax the whole time she has been speaking—Miss Bates said in the middle of her speech, “Sir, you are most kind.”
58. It was standard practice to help others, especially ladies, at meals.
59. Mr. Knightley’s identification of her two spirits is emblematic of his attitude toward her. He continually criticizes her faults even as he cares for her because of her good qualities.
60. own: acknowledge.
61. single-minded: honest, straightforward.
62. artless: guileless.
63. conversable: worthy of having a conversation with. Harriet is usually so quiet in general company that Mr. Knightley would have enjoyed little opportunity to hear much of her conversation before this.
A tippet.
[From The Lady’s Monthly Museum, Vol. VII (1802), p. 277]
[List of Illustrations]
64. Mr. Knightley rather strongly rejects the idea of their being brother and sister. In the usage of the time, Emma and John Knightley would be called brother and sister, as would Mr. Knightley and Isabella. Since Emma and Mr. Knightley are linked via two steps rather than one, the terms would not necessarily apply to them, but their relationship would still be perceived as a close one. In Pride and Prejudice the heroine, imagining a marriage for herself, says it would make the man the “brother-in-law” of a man already married to her sister.
A ball dress.
[From The Repository of Arts, Literature, Fashions, Manufactures, &c, Vol. XIII (1815), p. 366]
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VOLUME III, CHAPTER III
1. This is a natural metaphor to use, since measuring the pulse was a common means of medical diagnosis then, due partly to the lack of many other options.
2. Meaning that the discipline necessary to suppress Harriet’s irrational fondness for Mr. Elton will be provided by his continuing to snub her.
3. The sweep is the curved carriage drive leading to the house, and so the sweep gate is the effective entrance to their property, or at least the main part of it, something further signified by its being a large iron one.
A Gypsy encampment of the period.
[From Sir Walter Gilbey and E. D. Cuming, George Morland: His Life and Works (London, 1907), p. 102]
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4. This suggests the small size of Hartfield’s grounds, at least in this section of it.
5. The entrance hall of a country house was often large, in part to impress guests, and included pieces of furniture. For a picture of hall chai
rs of the time, see this page.
6. suspense: doubtfulness, uncertainty.
7. Meaning it looked important enough to be used frequently by the public.
8. Elms have long been planted particularly along hedgerows and thus by the side of roads, in order to mark boundaries.
9. retired: secluded, sequestered.
10. greensward: turf on which grass is growing.
11. Gypsies (often spelled “gipsies” then), or Roma, have for centuries been a presence in many parts of Europe. They existed in England since at least the sixteenth century. An account from 1832 states the number of Gypsies in England at that time to be approximately eighteen thousand. They were highly mobile, generally living in tents in camps, and were mostly in rural areas, being frequently found in commons, i.e., fields available for more general use, or along lanes near villages. They supported themselves by a variety of crafts and trades, as well as by begging. Suspicion of Gypsies was widespread, and the law regarded them with hostility—thus Harriet and her companion react with extreme panic. Some writers did make a serious attempt to study and understand them, and to promote greater sympathy for them, but even these writers identified unattractive features of their way of life.
12. trampers: tramps, vagrants.
13. doubtful: uncertain.
14. stout: vigorous, robust.
15. great: large.
16. A purse then was a small pouch, usually of leather, for carrying money. For the closest contemporary equivalent to the current-day purse, see note 10.
17. A shilling was a unit of British money, or a coin worth that amount. For more, see note 20.
18. conditioning: offering terms (in the hope of appeasing them).
19. The horses are those of himself and his servant; he is leaving both horses with the servant. That no mention was made of the servant shows how much they were taken for granted.
20. It would not be unusual for a man to borrow scissors from a woman, for they were essential for the various kinds of needlework that formed a significant part of the daily activity of women, including genteel ladies, in this society. Scissors came in a variety of styles, to meet different usages, and many were highly decorated.
21. {CAUTION: PLOT SPOILER} He presumably had borrowed the scissors and then forgot to restore them in order to furnish an excuse for stopping to see Jane Fairfax. His walking ahead and arranging for his horses to meet him on another road allowed him to stop at the Bateses without his servant’s noticing and thereby being able to gossip to other servants about it.
22. He needs to return to his aunt.
23. Miss Bickerton would have told Mrs. Goddard of the original confrontation but would not have been able to say how it concluded.
24. They inform Mr. Knightley because he is the local magistrate, who can take legal action against the Gypsies. Gypsies were classed with vagrants, and local authorities had wide discretion to punish them or take other action. Stern action was considered essential; a contemporary writer said it was “the most effectual step towards driving these detestable characters from society, who by their lying stories and distressed appearances, too successfully work upon the feelings of the charitable and the humane, and too frequently devour the portion of the fatherless and the widow, and those who are really afflicted” (quoted in David Mayall, Gypsy-Travellers in Nineteenth-Century Society, this page).
25. fine: handsome.
26. Linguists and grammarians were scholars of language. In the decades preceding this novel a large number of books appeared that attempted to analyze the nature of English grammar and establish rules for correct usage, and others that explored the nature of language in general. The detailed and technical nature of such scholarship would make its practitioners appropriate symbols, along with mathematicians, of strict adherence to fact and logic.
27. “Imaginist” is a coinage of Jane Austen, one meant to evoke the absolute contrast of Emma’s mind with the non-fanciful, scholarly minds just cited.
28. rencontre: hostile or violent encounter.
29. Rural communities of the time did experience crime, but it was rare for crime or the threat of it to touch ladies or other members of the higher classes this directly.
30. interesting: important.
31. Emma earlier saw great possible significance in Mr. Dixon’s rescue of Jane Fairfax on the sailboat; now she has direct contact with an even more dramatic rescue, one involving two people already of great interest to her.
32. sensibility amused and delighted: keen sense of entertainment or fascination, along with delight.
33. Thus Emma’s previous experience has taught her some permanent lessons, though even this fanciful speculation, and the limited action she does take on the basis of it, will cause her and others some serious problems.
34. Meaning the socially low, who were expected to have the lowest standards of taste and thus be likely to devour and spread news of this kind.
35. The servants, as usual in this society, play a central role in spreading local gossip, for their daily business often takes them to different houses and they would know many other working people.
36. The shrubbery is just outside their house.
Hall chairs.
[From The Repository of Arts, Literature, Fashions, Manufactures, &c, Vol. XII (1814), p. 174]
[List of Illustrations]
37. make no figure: occupy no position of importance or prominence.
38. Gypsies were sometimes imprisoned, which is why they are quick to leave the area, though the more usual response of local justice was to force them to move elsewhere.
A Gypsy woman.
[From William Alexander, Picturesque Representations of the Dress & Manners of the English (1813), Plate 37]
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VOLUME III, CHAPTER IV
1. reserves: secrets.
2. “The two” are Mr. and Mrs. Elton.
3. These words indicate how much Harriet, even as she has come to see Mrs. Elton’s real nature, is still inclined to parrot general opinion.
A woman in morning dress.
[From The Repository of Arts, Literature, Fashions, Manufactures, &c, Vol. XII (1814), p. 57]
[List of Illustrations]
4. Tunbridge ware was made in the fashionable spa and resort town of Tunbridge Wells. At this time it could mean items painted in elaborate patterns, often in vivid colors, or ones with veneered and inlaid woodwork. The items were usually different types of needlework tools or small boxes that could hold such tools; Harriet could have bought the box for that purpose, and later decided that its fancy nature made it ideal as a store for her personal treasures. Many spa and resort towns would sell items like this as souvenirs, for they were popular among the genteel ladies who formed a great part of these towns’ clientele. Tunbridge Wells is south of London, and not far from Surrey: it is possible that Harriet, along with others from her school, went there on an excursion, or that its proximity encouraged shops in this area to carry its wares.
5. court plaister: adhesive substance, made of silk and isinglass (a kind of gelatin), that was used to cover superficial wounds and cuts. It could be made at home. Its widespread use is shown by Harriet and Emma’s both having some with them.
6. A penknife is a small, usually folding knife that was used to cut the tips of quill pens. Such pens frequently became dull from use and were sharpened by cutting. It is possible that Mr. Elton, in his eagerness to serve and please Emma during this period, offered to cut a pen of hers and slipped while doing it; the newness of the knife would make it more likely to make a wound.
7. In the eighteenth century women’s dresses, which had voluminous and heavy skirts, often had large pockets. The thin fabrics and slim lines of the fashions starting around 1800 made such pockets less practical and attractive, but some dresses still had them, especially those intended for everyday wear.
8. put … by: set aside, saved.
9. Pencils were a common item at this time,
but the material used to make the lead, graphite (which has always been the material used, though for a long time it was considered a form of lead and even called black lead), was expensive. So manufacturers would not extend the lead over the whole length of the pencil, since once it was whittled down to just one end it would be too short to handle effectively and any remaining lead would be wasted.
10. That evening is presumably the evening Mr. Elton proposed to Emma. Harriet’s remembering it so emphatically, even though she was not there and heard about it days later from Emma, shows how much the whole episode with Mr. Elton affected her.
11. A small book that could fit in the pocket. It was used, by both men and women, for writing down notes and memorandums as well as for storing small items in its folds.
12. Spruce beer is made from the spruce fir. Its buds or twigs are boiled, and the resulting liquid is combined with treacle or molasses and yeast and then fermented. It was recommended for its health benefits. Being fairly simple and quick to make, it can be brewed at home, as Mr. Knightley is apparently doing. In a letter Jane Austen declares, “We are brewing Spruce Beer again” (Dec. 9, 1808).
13. He would have cut the pencil away in order to sharpen it. Penknives were used for pencils as well; the first mechanical pencil sharpener was not created until the end of the nineteenth century.
14. behind: into the rear or back part of.
15. Emma uses “Mr. Churchill” instead of “Mr. Frank Churchill”; others have also done so. When the person normally called “Mr.” or “Miss” plus the last name is absent, the person next in line within the family is called that instead.
16. Fortune-telling was the most common way for Gypsies to make money and was something widely identified with them, especially Gypsy women.
17. situation: social position.
18. {CAUTION: PLOT SPOILER} This is a far better description of Mr. Knightley’s service at the ball in asking her to dance than of Frank Churchill’s service with the Gypsies, for while both involved misery beforehand, only the first led to happiness afterward. After the rescue Harriet was still very frightened and upset. The lengthy and earnest speech Harriet delivered at the beginning of the conversation, concerning how Mr. Elton’s behavior at the ball has altered her opinion of him, also signals how much this incident affected her; she never says anything again about the episode with the Gypsies. Furthermore, Frank only did what anyone would probably have done in the circumstances, whereas Mr. Knightley’s action showed real thoughtfulness and kindness toward her.