Richard Jenkyns’s critical piece “Mr. Woodhouse” focuses on Austen’s cleverness for creating such an abominable creature as Mr. Woodhouse as her villain in Emma. Focusing on several incidents where Mr. Woodhouse exercised his influence in a selfish or deluded way, he ultimately claims that Mr. Woodhouse is the supreme monster and villain in Austen’s work because of his stealthy foils to the pleasure of other characters.
However, there were several key points in Jenkyn’s argument that I felt myself objecting to, the largest one being, “Couldn’t all of these accusations be attributed to another character as well?” Reading his opinion, all that could come to mind was how Mrs. Elton was every bit as villainous as Jenkyns made Mr. Woodhouse out to be, and even more so because of the obvious deliberation in which she acts.
The largest objection I had was how Jenkyns indicts Mr. Woodhouse for participating in “false solicitude” (444). What other character is more falsely solicitous than Mrs. Elton? Pretending to take a sincere interest in Jane Fairfax, she essentially signs her up for governess-ship with the Smallridges, a family she knows from Maple Grove, by refusing to take no for an answer. As Jane is originally quite clear that she does not wish to go – at least until she can speak with Colonel and Mrs. Campbell, who are currently in Ireland – one can view Mrs. Elton’s intentions as clearly false. When Mrs. Elton brings up the employment yet again, Jane politely replies, “Thank you, but I would rather you did not mention the subject to her; till the time draws nearer, I do not wish to be giving any body trouble” (207). Mrs. Elton only replies, “Your inexperience really amuses me!” (207). Pushing Jane towards a future that is below her talents and beside her wishes can only be viewed as selfish. It was her connections which provided the employment; therefore she can appear martyred and tireless by the general public in her quest to help the unconnected, such as Jane. She fawns over Jane to Emma, expressing “Such talents as her’s must not be suffered to remain unknown. – I dare say you have heard those charming lines of the poet, ‘Full many a flower is born to bluish unseen,/And waste its fragrance on the desert air.’” (195). Although Mrs. Elton speaks as if with good intentions, her words are palpable with the taste of a woman who wants to be the discoverer of new talent.
Another point Jenkyns makes about Mr. Woodhouse is how “he instinctively thinks of agreeable people as objects pleasant to himself” (445). Arguably, this criticism can be applied to Mrs. Elton as well, viewing the polarity of two of Austen’s characters as pertinent to the situation. Jane Fairfax is generally a silent and agreeable person when in conversation with others, so it is no wonder she is a favorite of Mrs. Elton’s; Mrs. Elton notes, “One can see that [Jane] feels the want of encouragement. I like her the better for it. I must confess it is a recommendation to me. I am a great advocate for timidity” (195). Mrs. Elton prefers those who are easily influenced by her judgment.
In this way and in others, Jane’s character is in obvious contrast to that of Emma, and so it is no surprise that Mrs. Elton and Emma clash from their very first meeting. Emma is certainly not afraid to speak her mind, both an attribute of victory and vice for her in the novel; however, her lack of agreeableness with regards to Mrs. Elton make her very unpleasant to be around, at least in Mrs. Elton’s eyes. Throughout most of the novel, we are privy to Emma’s perspective, and we do get her snide, sarcastic comment that she heard “Mrs. Elton’s knight-errantry” on the subject of Jane Fairfax (194). Whether other characters are able to recognize it or not is unclear, but Emma obviously both understands and dismisses Mrs. Elton’s intentions. With the characters of Jane and Emma in particular, it becomes clear that seeking the company of those that are agreeable to him is a flaw that Mr. Woodhouse has in common with Mrs. Elton.
It is also claimed that Mr. Woodhouse is of the utmost villainy because “he is interested in no person but himself” (445), another character flaw that can be applied to Mrs. Elton as well. Even when planning excursions for others, to Mr. Knightley’s home at Donwell Abbey, for instance, she can only seem to picture what she will look like while she is there:
It is to be a morning scheme, you know, Knightley; quite a simple thing. I shall wear a large bonnet, and bring one of my little baskets hanging on my arm. Here, - probably this basket with pink ribbon. . . There is to be no form or parade - . . . We are to walk about your gardens, and gather the strawberries ourselves, and sit under trees; - and whatever else you may like to provide, it is to be all out of doors – a table spread in the shade, you know. (245)
She never once mentions how the group might enjoy the surroundings, or how planning the outing might enhance the pleasure of others; her focus is always inward, reflecting the woman she wishes for everyone else to see. An expedition is not for the group, but for how the group can view the private drama that is playing out inside her head. She is clearly meant to be received as selfish and inane.
Most significantly, Mrs. Elton should be viewed as far more villainous than Mr. Woodhouse because in some circumstances, her intentions are clearly to do direct emotional damage on others. Say what you will about Mr. Woodhouse, but his intentions are to help himself, generally, not hurt those around him. The most striking instance of Mrs. Elton intentionally directing pain on someone occurs at Highbury’s dance. Mr. Elton is walking around and asks Mrs. Weston to dance, to which she replies:
“There is a young lady disengaged whom I should be very glad to see dancing--Miss Smith." "Miss Smith!-oh!-I had not observed.-You are extremely obliging- and if I were not an old married man.--But my dancing days are over, Mrs. Weston. You will excuse me. Any thing else I should be most happy to do, at your command--but my dancing days are over."
His denial is obviously aimed at the partner, and not the activity, as he claims. When he returns to his wife, their “gleeful smiles” suggest the plan was Mrs. Elton’s; if not, it was encouraged by her to hurt Harriet, who had never intentionally afflicted any sort of suffering towards either of them. The act of social embarrassment and cruelty is one of the most striking in the novel because of its obvious deliberate destruction. It was not an unavoidable situation that turned out poorly because of bad judgment; it was a situation consciously set up with the sole intention of being unkind. Mr. Woodhouse never intentionally sets up and harms another character in this way, and in this circumstance Mrs. Elton is certainly the most villainous.
Finally, I found it interesting that Jenkyns noted, “[i]n Emma the first words of dialogue are given to Mr. Woodhouse” (444) and he presents this as some all-important point, paralleling him to other monstrous characters in Austen’s work and seeming to suggest that speaking first means speaking most importantly. I had to ask, then, is it not Mrs. Elton who gets the last word in the novel? The last dialogue written is Mrs. Elton’s opinion of Emma and Mr. Knightley’s wedding: “Very little white satin, very few lace veils; a most pitiful business!” (333). Her criticism is clearly meant to be received by the reader as petty in comparison to the revered “happiness of the union” that is witnessed at the wedding by Emma’s “small band of true friends.” While Mr. Woodhouse may be heard first, Mrs. Elton is always certain to have herself heard last, a key character trait in her.
Perhaps my objections are because I am one of the simple readers who was unable to see through him, but I found Mr. Woodhouse’s character to be one of necessary comic relief. Had he been drawn in any other way but that of a doddering old fool, Emma’s character would have been much more difficult to balance. In a scenario where Mr. Woodhouse is less of a “stealthy” villain and more of an outright dictator, … Mr. Woodhouse must dodder, must play the games that he plays so Emma can play the games she plays. Theirs is a dance of mutual recognition and acceptance of their roles in society. If he masquerades nothing but concern for his daughter, he can pretend to rule without actually having to; if she goes along with his wishes by complying however she can, even with his most ridiculous fancies, she can rule Hartfield as she wishes with little actual interference from her father. Even this explanation gives Mr. Woodhouse more credit for cleverness than he deserves. Fool, yes; intentional villain, no. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Mrs. Elton. Presumptuous fool, yes; intentional villain, even more so. Despite the points that Jenkyns makes about Mr. Woodhouse, if one is to consider each of his arguments in light of Mrs. Elton as well, it will become clear who Austen’s true villain it.
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