Emma

About the story

Emma Woodhouse is clever, rich, and sure she knows what's best for everyone in her village. After one successful match, she decides to find a husband for her new friend Harriet — and gets nearly everything wrong, including her own heart.

Before reading

• Have you ever tried to help someone and made things worse?
• What is the difference between being confident and being a know-it-all?

Discussion questions

1. Why does Emma enjoy matchmaking so much?
2. How does Emma's advice affect Harriet? Is it fair to Harriet?
3. Mr. Knightley often disagrees with Emma. Why is he an important friend to her?
4. What happens at the picnic on Box Hill, and why does it matter?
5. How do the pictures show what characters are really thinking, even when they are being polite?
6. What does Emma learn by the end?

Words to know

• Matchmaker — someone who tries to arrange romances.
• Gentry — wealthy landowning families.
• Condescension — treating someone as less important than you.
• Imagination — inventing ideas; Emma's imagination often runs away with her.
• Reproach — gentle criticism.

Activities

• Spot the clues. Austen hides clues about who loves whom. Go back through the book and find two clues Emma misses.
• Advice column. Write Emma's advice to Harriet — then Mr. Knightley's.