History of the book Emma by Jane Austen essay
The book Emma written by Jane Austen, a widely acclaimed English author, whose novels were published anonymously over the course of the 19-th century, is a great success with the public today. According to researchers, Jane Austen’s “continued success as a novelist is evident in the fact that many of her novels have been made into films or television series” (Green 18). Emma is no exclusion. Jane Austen is considered to be one of the greatest English writers, while her novel Emma can be viewed by many literary critics as the greatest literary piece (Green 18). One of the critics who devoted his life to the analysis and criticism of Jane Austen’s works was R. V. Chapman, the editor of many scholarly editions of all books written by the author (McDonald 97). According to Richard McDonald, “Austen’s continued acclaim as a novelist is ensured by more than 180 years of praise from both critics and readers, but within her own lifetime her talents were seldom fully appreciated” (97). Jane Austen herself rated her literary abilities and talents too low. She was really surprised to learn about her novel’s success (Parrill 23). In other words, she did not expect the acknowledgement of the public. Moreover, her concern regarding the fate of her books with the public was demonstrated in her personal relation to her heroines.
Jane Austen was born in 1775. Her birthplace was Steventon Rectory in Hampshire, England. Her father served as an incumbent. The family was “risen to prominence and prosperity in the Weald of Kent during the reign of Elizabeth I by way of sheep farming and the manufacture of woolen cloth” (Tucker 6). Her mother belonged to a higher social class. Jane Austen loved literature and enjoyed reading novels. As a child, she used to read books from her father’s library (Tucker 6). In addition, she borrowed books from her friends and city libraries. She shared her thoughts about the books she read with her family members. Jane Austen loved to read aloud. She started writing books and read aloud to her family members. She paid due attention to pauses, emphasis and tone of voice. As a result, her writing style is impressive (Tucker 6). Her book Emma is one of the most psychological writings. Jane Austen believed that this book would survive the test of time; therefore, she was interested in readers’ response to her works (Tucker 7). The novel Emma was the fourth published novel by Jane Austen. Actually, it was the last book to appear before her death. Both novels Persuasion and Northanger Abbey written by Jane Austen would be published posthumously (Galperin 189). Though many novels were published anonymously, many works by Austen were noticed by highly acclaimed literary critics and by a large number of literature lovers.
The history of the book Emma is unique. The author began to write her book in 1814 and completed it in 1815. The first edition of the book was published in December 1815 by an English publisher John Murray, the founder of the publishing house in London. It is known that Jane Austen submitted the manuscript of her new book to the publisher, six months after it was completed in order to receive the money she needed to pay the expenses for her brother’s illness (Baker 37). John Murray had a good reputation in London and could help the author of the book to achieve success. First, he received positive response from William Gifford who was well-known as an English critic and editor. Second, he “offered Jane Austen $450 for her copy of Emma plus the copyrights of Mansfield Park and Sense and Sensibility”(Baker 37). In fact, Jane Austen failed to approve the proposal made by John Murray. They came to an arrangement to publish the book Emma at Jane Austen’s expense with “profits to her after payment of 10% commission to the publisher” (Baker 37). Besides, Jane Austen had the copyrights of her works. The first edition of the book included 2000 copies. The selling price for the three volumes was only 1.1pound. By the end of the year 1816, 248 copies of the book Emma were sold in London and other large cities (Wenborn 35). The author of the book would have earned 221pound, but the publisher included the losses he had for the book Mansfield Park and gave Jane Austen only 38 pounds. However, in 1818, only 565 copies of the book Emma were sold at the price of two shillings each. Compared Emma to Scott’s novel Rob Roy, published in the same period – in 1817, over 10.000 copies were sold in less than two weeks (Wenborn 35). Thus, although many critics accepted Emma as a successful novel, there was no enormous public acceptance of the book. As a result, the second edition of the book was issued only in 1833. However, the scholarly edition edited by R. V. Chapman appeared in 1923. There were few correction made to the text of the novel. In addition, it has been found that Emma “was reissued, together with the other five novels, in Bentley’s Standard Novels series of 1832-33 and was reprinted in 1837, 1866and 1869” (Wenborn 35). According to Richard McDonald, “there are a number of good editions of the novel and many of them are augmented by historical and critical essays that can aid in the reader’s appreciation of the text and its critical history”(97). In the United States, Austen’s novel Emma was published without her knowledge in 1816. Besides, regular editions of this book came out over the course of the 19-th century- 20-th century. Although the author of Emma could earn only thirty eight pounds from the book during her lifetime, she hoped that her book would be highly appreciated after her death. Austen was 39 when she completed her novel. She died a year and a half after the book’s publication (Wenborn 35).
The response to the novel Emma was unpredictable by the author of the book. Jane Austen collected the opinions regarding her novel Emma, analyzing the first responses to the works. As a rule, first responses documented “not only what her earliest readers made of her works, but also priorities and preconceptions about literature in the reading community of which Jane Austen was herself a part” (Halsey 95). The first responses to Emma gave explanation to further criticism because many themes appeared in critical commentaries about the novel over the course of the late 19-th century. Literary critics placed emphasis on the fact that characters described in the novel as well as the events were unnatural. According to Halsey, “Austen’s fidelity to detail and rejection of excess would also be noted, commented on and discussed in successive readers’ responses to her work” (96). Richard Whately was one of the first critics of her novel Emma. He highlighted the ability of the author to “give fiction the perfect appearance of reality” (qtd. in Halsey 96). As a matter of fact, this assumption became a cornerstone of many critical responses of the public. Most of critics of the 19-th century defended her art and style. Jane Austen’s earliest readers loved her novel and characters, describing her writing as impressive, but there were people who through that Emma was “inferior to all the others” (qtd. in Halsey 96). In general, the book Emma was less popular than its predecessors, Sense and Sensibility and Mansfield Park.
In addition, the reactions of the earlier readers of the novel Emma placed emphasis on the qualities of the literary work. John Murray was one of the first readers of the novel. Another critic was Sir Walter Scott, a highly acclaimed novelist and “distinguished contributor to the influential Quarterly Review” (Thomas 53). He reviewed Emma, and assessed Jane Austen as a talented novelist. He was among the first critics who gave Jane Austen significant recognition that she was the novelist of distinction (Thomas 53). According to researchers, Scott’s review and criticism were focused on “the writer’s use of detail, fineness of prose style and depth of characterization” (Baker 96). Actually, Scott as a literary critic used these elements to assess the quality of Jane Austen’s fiction. He found that in her works, there is reality, which reflects the universe of fiction. According to Scott, in the novel Emma, there is obvious historical significance of a new “modern novel” in contrast to “sentimental romance, in which the nature imitated is a la belle nature” (qtd. in Baker 96). Scott highly praised the novel Emma for the author’s emphasis on realism. He credited Jane Austen as a new kind of novelist, because she was focused on producing the so-called realist novel (Thomas 53). According to Scott, Emma reflects “the art of coping from nature as she really exists in the common walks of life, and presenting …. a concrete and striking representation of that which is daily taking place” (qtd. in Thomas 53).
Generally speaking, the novel Emma was perceived differently by the 19-th century public. According to Ruth Thomas, “Emma made few waves in literary circles when it was first published in 1815”(53). In aristocratic circles, the book was very popular. The evidence of this popularity is Jane Austen’s dedication to the Prince Regent, which was made at request of the librarian who served Prince. The novel Emma helped the writer to feel self-esteem because many opinions and reviews were positive. Nevertheless, according to Scott, the novel Emma “went out of print for the next twenty years, suffering the penalty of being anti-romantic in an age of romanticism”(qtd. in Thomas 53). Most literary critics of the 19-th century and early 20-th century highlighted the writer’s ability to depict verisimilitude (Ellis 34). The most widely used epithets that described Jane Austen’s literary work were “natural” and “real” (Thomas 53). However, there were many objections to her writing style. Most of them were based on the representation of obvious limitations of settings and subjects in her work. In the early 1930s, the negative criticism toward Austen’s novel ceased as highly acclaimed literary critic F. R. Leavis called Jane Austen a classic novelist, placing her in the list of the greatest English novelists. Since that time, the novel Emma has been widely acclaimed for the talent of Austen.
Many critics believe that in the novel Emma, the main heroine was not intended to be assessed by the public and the author as a sympathetic character. Barbara Z. Thaden states that many literary critics have discussed a number of dissimilarities between Emma and other heroines of Austen’s novels, but “few believe that Austen did not sympathize with Emma” (19). However, the commentary provided by Jane Austen’s nephew J.E. Austen-Leigh proves the fact that the author loved her heroine: “She was very fond of Emma, but did not reckon her being a general favorite; for, when commencing that work, she said, “I’m going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like” (qtd. in Thaden 19).
The numerous editions of the novel Emma are different because of different editors and their individual attitudes toward the book and the author, and time periods. The novel Emma was reprinted many times, as well as the other novels by Jane Austen. The well-known editors of the novel Emma were R.W. Chapman, Lionel Trilling, Stephen Parrish, Fiona Stafford and others (Thaden 19). Actually, the novel Emma is available in the Penguin Classics Editions, the World Classics Series, and the Everyday Library, presenting the distinguished list of editors, literary critics and commentators of the novel. According to researchers, due to the publication of Memoir written by Jane Austen’s nephew, James Edward Austen-Leigh in 1870, there was the so-called resurgence of readers’ interest in the novel Emma and other works by Jane Austen. He writes in the introduction of the second edition of Memoir published in 1871,
The Memoir of my Aunt, Jane Austen, has been received with more favor that I had ventured to expect. The notices taken of it in the periodical press, as well as letters addressed to me by many with whom I am not personally acquainted, show that an unabated interest is still taken in every particular that can be told about her (Austen-Leigh 5).
In R.W. Chapman’s edition of Emma, published in 1870, was based on recent criticism. Chapman considered the book one of the best novels produced by English writers. He expressed his attitude toward the author’s style, placing emphasis on the detailed description of Emma’s success in literary world. He wrote that the supremacy of the novel is concluded not in the forms of characterization selected by the author, but in
the matchless symmetry of its design, in the endless fascination of its technique, above all in the flow of the blood beneath the smooth polished skin: a flow of human charity and sympathy that beats with a steady pulse, rarely – but the more momentously – quickening to a throb that sets out own veins lapping the unison (23).
History of the book Emma by Jane Austen essay part 2
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