Life Lessons from Emma
My wife and I have always enjoyed Jane Austen books. While “Pride and Prejudice” will always be a favorite, I personally really enjoy the story of “Emma“. I recently watched the most recent movie adaptation with my wife and it brought to mind the many reasons I thoroughly enjoy the story. As a Christian, I think there are several valuable life lessons from Emma.
As for a quote to analyze, I can’t do much better than the opening line from the book. Austen had a habit of writing some of the wittiest and most enjoyable opening lines of any author I have read. This opening quote tells the reader a great deal about the book’s main character in a single sentence.
Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.
Emma by Jane Austen
What the quote means
If you have not read Emma, I suggest you make time to do so. Like all of Austen’s books, there is a ton of analysis written about Emma, it’s characters, and every detail you could think of. For this post, I want to focus on lessons from Emma the character. One of the great benefits of reading fiction is you can learn from characters going through experiences that you have never gone through yourself. Emma is no exception.
This opening quote really sets the stage for who Emma is. In the first half of the quote, you read that Emma seemingly has all that a person could want: wealth, comfort, beauty, and a great personality. What is the result of these blessings of station and personality? Emma had lived her life with very little suffering or difficulty.
As the story continues, you see that who Emma is and her life circumstances cause her to make several mistakes and poor judgements with respect to those around her. She has an inflated view of herself and limited life experience, so she ends up hurting people around her while trying to help them. It is only when she is confronted with how she has treated those around her that she finally sees herself for who she truly is.
Why it is important
The dangers of self-satisfaction are rarely emphasized in our culture. According to the culture, most of your problems are caused by not having high enough self-esteem, not believing in your dreams enough, not having enough money or power or whatever else you might think of. Reading a story like Emma is helpful because it shows having every life advantage will not make us behave rightly towards others.
Due to her station and power, Emma is incredibly self-satisfied for most of the book. This self-satisfaction is not a neutral thing or a virtue; her high view of her self causes her to hurt others. It is only after Emma is humbled and confronted with how she was treating those around her that she grows up as a person. The pathway to her growth was not more pleasure or higher self-esteem. It was humility. Only when the mirror was held up to her and Emma saw how she was treating those around her did she begin to evaluate herself soberly.
This is a valuable lesson for you and I today. If you have a high view of yourself and your abilities, if you live a life devoid of suffering and growth then you will not treat others better by default. Self-satisfaction makes you proud and pride causes you to treat others poorly. It was only after Emma was humbled and “repented” that she could move forward and grow. There are several lessons from Emma and her character progression that Christians should make note of.
Life Lessons from Emma
1. Cultivate humility or the Lord will humble you
One of my all time favorite hymns is “I asked the Lord that I might grow“. Each verse contains profound insight on the Christian life. The basic thrust of the hymn is God uses suffering and difficulty to break our dependence and love of self.
I asked the Lord that I might grow
In faith and love and ev’ry grace,
Might more of His salvation know,
And seek more earnestly His face.(God speaking)
“These inward trials I employ
I Asked the Lord that I Might Grow, John Newton
From self and pride to set thee free
And break thy schemes of earthly joy
That thou may’st find thy all in Me.”
You and I are always fighting self and pride. Just like Emma, in our modern ease and comfort, it is easy to think very highly of ourselves and to be very self-satisfied. But such an attitude causes us to behave poorly towards God and towards those around us. So, our loving Father brings us through trials to humble us.
Like Hebrews says, no discipline is pleasant at the time. But if you and I don’t cultivate humility in our hearts, then God will grow it through suffering. Each time you come to the end of yourself or each time you are confronted with a sin or each time you realize you hurt someone or think you can’t go on, it isn’t pleasant. But these situations remind you that you aren’t God. You don’t have all wisdom, power, knowledge, insight, or goodness.
It is only when you see how weak and sinful you really are that you stop relying on yourself and run to the all-powerful God.
Don’t despise His discipline. Each time He humbles you, it is out of love so that you become more like Christ. Just like Emma, you and I need to see ourselves for who we are so we don’t have an inflated view of ourselves.
2. How you view yourself will affect how you treat others
Having a high view of yourself is a virtue in modern culture. Everyone is obsessed with “living my truth” and being their “authentic selves.” The Christian worldview sees the fundamental danger in this: your authentic self apart from Christ is a sinner who rebels against God in word, deed, motivation, and feeling. So your probably don’t want to live your authentic self out. But beyond the theological problems with having a high view of yourself, one of the lessons from Emma is pride will cause you to hurt those around you.
In the case of Emma, she hurts her best friend multiple times and insults a lady who considered herself a friend of Emma. Emma’s high view of herself causes her to treat the people around her almost like toys rather than real people with feelings. How easy it is for us all to fall into the same trap!
Pride can make you view people as characters in your own personal life story rather than individuals made in the image of God.
How did Christ view people? He came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. He washed His disciples feet. When a leper asked to be healed, Jesus was moved with compassion, touched the leper, and cleansed him. Jesus and His disciples were going to go away and take a break but when Jesus saw the crowd around Him, He stopped and ministered to them.
Jesus actually was all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-wise. Yet Jesus used that power to directly show love to those around Him and to point them to Himself, the fountain of living water. Rather than comparing yourself to those around you or cultivating a high view of your own abilities or status, compare yourself to Christ. See how Jesus treated those around Him.
When you look at Jesus and who He is, you will be humbled like Emma was and start seeing yourself properly.
For the Christian, it is looking to Christ that causes growth.
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