The Cambridge Companion to ‘Emma'

by Peter Sabor (Editor)

Thanks to its tightly paced, intricately plotted narrative and its astute psychological characterisation, Emma is commonly thought to be Jane Austen's finest novel. In the twelve chapters of this volume, leading Austen scholars illuminate some of its richest themes and topics, including money and rank, setting and community, music and riddles, as well as its style and structure. The context of Emma is also thoroughly explored, from its historical and literary roots through its publication and contemporary reception to its ever-growing international popularity in the form of translations and adaptations. Equally useful as an introduction for new students and as a research aid for mature scholars, this Companion reveals why Emma is a novel that only improves on re-reading, and gives the lie to Austen's famous speculation that in Emma Woodhouse she had created 'a heroine whom no one but myself will much like'.

Genres: Nonfiction

239 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 19, 2015

About the author

Peter Sabor is Professor in the Department of English at McGill University, where he also holds the Canada Research Chair in Eighteenth-Century Studies and is Director of the Burney Centre. He is a past president of the Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. He has edited The Cambridge Companion to Frances Burney and co-edited her Complete Plays and two of her novels, Cecilia and The Wanderer, as well as a selection of her Journals and Letters. He is the general editor of Burney's Court Journals and Letters (OUP) and the co-general editor of the Cambridge Edition of the Works and Correspondence of Samuel Richardson. His other publications include (with Thomas Keymer) Pamela in the Marketplace: Literary Controversy and Print Culture in Eighteenth-Century Britain and Ireland and the Juvenilia volume in the Cambridge Edition of the Works of Jane Austen.

Reviews

[Maria Almaguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A hit or miss--but mostly hit--collection of scholarly essays on what is considered to be Austen's masterpiece.

[Julie Bozza · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of the Cambridge Companions to Literature, and this one did not disappoint. A really good look at the context of the book and the world within it, as well as its future iterations. I particularly liked the chapter on Emma herself, 'The heroine' by John Wiltshire.

[Damaskcat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this an interesting collection of essays. I first read Jane Austen's Emma at school for A level and I know I didn't appreciate it properly until I was older. The book is so tightly plotted and so carefully worded that there are so many nuances a reader misses on first reading. This book drew my attention to aspects of the novel which even after several readings I had not fully appreciated.

There are essays here about the music in the novel - especially in relation to Jane Fairfax and Frank Churchill; about the riddles and charades which mislead Emma about Mr Elton and Harriet; about the historical context and the location of the book. I found this book particularly enlightening about the dialogue - especially the way the clues are planted about the real relationship between Frank and Jane.

If you don't like deconstructing novels then this probably isn't the book for you but I find reading literary criticism enhances my enjoyment of novels and I'm sure I shall be returning to this one again and again. There are notes on each section and a reading list as well as an index.

[Hayley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of critical essays on Austen's Emma that cover three areas:
1. Book history: the novel's composition, publication, and reception
2. Literary analysis: close readings with historical insight
3. Adaptation: translations and screen adaptations

It was a treat to read knowing I didn't have to pillage the essays for quotations to knit into an essay of my own. I have missed literary criticism!