Emma: Distinguished People and Honest HeartsIn Emma, ​​Jane Austen gives us “only the surface of the lives of distinguished people”? Although not necessarily a commonly used term today, the meaning of "distinguished persons" is easy to understand. Good birth and education are not necessarily the only "qualities" of distinguished people: simple generosity, courtesy and elegance may also apply, as well as marriage into the class. The majority of Emma's characters expand this definition to some extent to provide for exceptions to the rule or abuses of the title. In this way, the characters provide an interesting answer to the question of whether or not Austen actually deals with genteel people. Mrs. and Miss Bates are distinguished people and of distinguished birth. They are well educated, well spoken and are easily invited into the Woodhouse circle. This high class is exemplified in Boxhill during Mr. Knightley's vehement rebuke of Emma's scathing remark: "she saw you grow up after a period when her remark about you was an honor." Of course, their monetary value has since diminished, but they nevertheless retain their social position. Ms. Elton has the money, but not the connections or character to be considered distinguished. Her marriage to a vicar like Mr. Elton raised her class, but she clearly did not have the education necessary to be comfortable in such high society, as she shows by continually throwing Maple Grove into the conversations and justifying her talents: "well, my friends say..." Harriet Smith is obviously not distinguished by birth, being "someone's natural daughter", but Emma invents her parentage for the sake of amorous games . The original modesty and humility that Harriet enjoys is accentuated and extended under Emma's attentive care. The...... middle of paper ......ane Austen. Harlow: Longman Literature Guides [series], 1988. Craik, WA The Development of Jane Austen's Comics: Emma: Jane Austen's Mature Comics. London: Audio Learning, 1978. Sound recording; 1 cassette; 2 tracks. mono. Gard, Roger, [1936-]. Jane Austen, Emma and Persuasion. Harmondsworth: Penguin, Penguin masterstudies [series], 1985. Jefferson, DW (Douglas William), [1912- ]. Emma by Jane Austen: a reference in English fiction. London: Chatto and Windus for Sussex University Press, Text and Context [series], 1977. Lauritzen, Monica. Jane Austen's Emma on Television: A Study of a Classic BBC Series. Gothenburg, Sweden: Acta Universitatis Gothoburgensis, Gothenburg Studies in English, 48 [series], 1981. Sabiston, Elizabeth Jean, [1937- ]. The prison of femininity: four provincial heroines of 19th century fiction. London: Macmillan, 1987.