PBS Masterpiece Classic resumed The Complete Jane Austen last Sunday with the rebroadcast of the 1997 adaptation of Emma. My favorable review of the film sits in the post below. Ellen Moody expressed different thoughts about Mr. Knightley in her blog, Ellen and Jim Have a Blog, Too. Click here to read why she thinks there’s something odd about him.
Ellen is the creator of the Jane Austen almanac. If you haven’t yet come across her calendars of Jane’s novels, click here. They are remarkably useful.
Kaye Daycus compared the two Emmas in her Fun Friday review. I wonder what she’ll come up with for this Friday?
As always, there’s a lively discussion going on at Austen Blog. This time it’s Emma’s turn. Join in the fun and leave your opinion.
Over at Jane Austen Today, the second guest blogger, Barbara Larochelle, moderator of the Sense and Sensibility discussion group at The Republic of Pemberley, gives us her thoughts about the new film adaptation of Sense & Sensibility. I believe she likes it.
Jane Austen's World 
I’m sure this has been commented on somewhere but I was wondering if you found it interesting that Olivia Williams, who played Jane Austen in “Miss Austen Regrets” played a character named Jane in “Emma.”
It made me notice something that I probably would have missed: Jane Fairfax reminded me a little of Jane Austen. Obviously, Jane Fairfax wasn’t especially witty but she seemed intelligent, observant, talented, cultured, and well-bred and she was well-connected but poor. Was Jane inserting herself into “Emma” with this character?
What an interesting observation, Eric. Thanks for pointing this out. I loved Olivia as Jane Fairfax, so young and beautiful, yet a tragic figure. She’s doomed to live her life with Frank, which I imagine will be horrid.
Oh, no; do you really think so? Now I’m going to be worried about poor Jane Fairfax! LOL!
I think I’m a little more charitable toward Frank. I can’t really blame him for wanting to inherit his aunt’s estate and it must have been difficult to hide his relationship. If I’m being VERY charitable, I can even imagine that he was doing all of it for Jane. Yes, it was thoughtless of him to flirt with Emma but I think he realized she was someone who wouldn’t be easily hurt by his games. And he was right.
Mmmm. I so hate to burst your bubble, Eric, for I too thought Frank Churchill a more noble character- at first. Here’s what Patrice Hannon has to say in Dear Jane Austen, ISBN 978-0-452-28894-2:
Jane Fairfax, with all her superior gifts of notable beauty, good manners, and great musical talents, appears to have pride yet she makes herself ill, physically and emotionally wretched, by acting “contrary to all [her] sense of right” at Frank Churchill’s behest, agreeing to a secret engagement during which she is in a “state of perpetual suffering.” In addition to the pain intrinsic to her position, she also endures repeated humiliation while her betrothed flirts outrageously with Emma in front of her …” Page 17
Well, yes, I realize Jane was miserable during the secret engagement but ultimately she married the man she loved and she’s rich so I have a hard time feeling too bad about it.
I don’t think he’s a noble character but if the point of a secret is to keep people from figuring it out, then he did a good job.
(p.s. I also think Scarlett O’Hara is a heroine for saving Tara by stealing her sister’s fiance so I obviously have questionable ethics. LOL!)