Emma
Mrs. Bates
Miss Bates's elderly mother
The quiet, hard-of-hearing widow of the former vicar. She sits peacefully knitting while her daughter talks.
Mrs. Bates is the widow of the former vicar of Highbury and the mother of Miss Bates. She is quiet, gentle and very hard of hearing, and she is often seen knitting in a peaceful corner. She is grateful for a calm home.
She is also Jane Fairfax's grandmother. She lives with Miss Bates in modest lodgings, and her daughter and granddaughter care for her with affection. Her stillness is a contrast to her daughter's constant chatter.
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Mrs. Bates is part of the household that welcomes Jane Fairfax in the winter, and she is present when the mysterious pianoforte arrives at their home.
She is a gentle presence in the background, a reminder of the quiet, small-scale kindness that Emma learns to value when she visits the Bates family to make amends. In this telling Mrs. Bates is mostly a quiet figure beside her chattering daughter.
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