Analysis Of Narrative Techniques In The Novel Emma By Jane Austen

Many novels you read nowadays can be easy and straightforward to comprehend. Their vocabulary, narrative, and styles have become somewhat less complicated than some 19th century literary pieces.

Emma, by Jane Austen, is a classic novel originally published in 1815 that caught the attention of an immense audience not only because of the rapidly increasing literacy rates and an emergent middle class of the time, but because of the unique narrative technique that Austen uses to immerse the reader in the novel. Some even call this novel revolutionary – and this is not because of the historical context of this time, because Jane Austen barely touches down on the history (which many critics did not like), but because she touches down on normal people’s lives and the social aspect of what people can actually relate to. She is able to show character’s thoughts in the most unique way and has the reader intrigued the entire time. But the technique she uses to do this can be confusing and that is exactly why the reader has to be attentive in order to fully understand the novel – by reading carefully.

Jane Austen uses an omniscient narrator in third person in order to properly show what each of her characters is thinking. Having a deep understanding of this method that Austen uses is critical for being able to catch on to the clues that Austen likes to hint at the reader. This technique helps her by moving in and out of the thoughts of the characters – predominantly Emma, our main character. For example, “ — Such was the blood of gentility which Emma had formerly been so ready to vouch for! — It was likely to be as untainted, perhaps, as the blood of many a gentleman: but what a connexion had she been preparing for Mr. Knightley — or for the Churchills — or even for Mr. Elton! — The stain of illegitimacy, unbleached by nobility or wealth, would have been a stain indeed. We can easily confuse if it’s the narrator speaking and trying to make us feel a certain way about the character or if its Emma’s actual feelings or how she feels about the situation. This passage is a great representation of why we, as readers need to carefully observe when the omniscient narrator is speaking and when it jumps to the thoughts or ideas of certain characters.

Understanding the change in narrator, is also critical to realize how Emma changes throughout the novel. Because at times it is the communal voice that we can observe and the omniscient narrator mocking the communal voice. In this way, we can clearly see the changes in Emma’s thoughts and actions as this heroine tries to arrange different relationships. For example, we can see a moment of self-analysis after Mr. Elton’s proposal, where the narrator shows Emma’s thoughts that we have to pay close attention to in order to see the development of our main character. “The first error and the worst lay at her door. It was foolish, it was wrong, to take so active a part in bringing any two people together. It was adventuring too far, assuming too much, making light of what ought to be serious, a trick of what ought to be simple. She was quite concerned and ashamed, and resolved to do such things no more”. It is in passages like these where we have to really analyze what Austen is trying to show with subtle hints that the reader has to be careful to not miss. In the passage, it is important to see what she means when she says ‘so active a part, ’which essentially shows that Emma is thinking if she should have even taken part in the arrangement or none at all, therefore showing a moment of self-assessment and in the end, a progress in Emma’s character. This happens multiple times towards the end of the novel as well.

Another reason why the reader has to be very observant to Austen’s narrative style is because she is an expert at foreshadowing some of the events that are going to occur later in the novel. For example, in Chapter 27, she mentions, “She wished she might be able to keep him from an absolute declaration. That would be so very painful a conclusion of their present acquaintance! and yet, she could not help rather anticipating something decisive. She felt as if the spring would not pass without bringing a crisis, an event, a something to alter her present composed and tranquil state”. By mentioning “a crisis, an event”, we as readers prepare ourselves, given that Jane Austen has given hints in each chapter like in this one. It is an excellent strategy because careful readers will know what to expect and to not be taken by complete surprise.

In addition, given that Austin’s novel is from almost 200 years ago, the vocabulary is much more complex and the forms of dialogue from that era are very proper and different from how we talk today. For that reason, it is hard for the reader to interpret the conversations of the different characters. Even though for her time, Austen tried to make the language colloquial and less proper by using a lot of dialogue, for us at this time it is a little harder to interpret the exact meaning of some (or many) of the phrases in this book. By misinterpreting a conversation between important characters, we can mistake their personalities which in the end could lead us to make false conclusions. For instance, “Emma did not repent her condescension in going to the Coles…and all that she might be supposed to have lost on the side of dignified seclusion, must be amply repaid in the splendor of popularity”. The vocabulary in this phrase is complex, many words we wouldn’t use in a day to day conversation, such as “condescension” or “amply repaid” and it could be hard to understand Emma’s feelings of how she felt about going to the Coles. This could eventually be harmful to the reader in not understanding the plot.

Finally, it is essential to read carefully in this novel given the amount of characters there are. I often found myself having to read back to realize which character was speaking and misinterpreted what the situation was at the time. In conclusion, it is very important for us as readers to carefully read this masterpiece by Jane Austen. Even though it is almost 200 years later, it is still a work that leaves us so much to learn. Although we see that her use of omniscient narrator in third person can confuse the reader, it is an excellent tool used by Austen to show the irony and drama of some situations, but more than that to be able to jump so easily from Emma’s thoughts into so many different other character’s beliefs. This makes us, as the readers, knowledgeable of how each character’s personality is formed and gives us a better understanding of the relationships that occur in this novel- especially those that Emma is trying to arrange or play some kind of role in.