Emma (Seasons Edition -- Spring) recap

Emma Woodhouse, wealthy and confident in her judgment, befriends Harriet Smith and persuades her to refuse the farmer Robert Martin. Emma then imagines that Mr. Elton loves Harriet, only to learn that he wants Emma herself; he soon marries the boastful Augusta Hawkins. The arrivals of reserved Jane Fairfax and charming Frank Churchill create fresh speculation. Emma flirts with Frank and repeatedly misreads the attachments around her, while Mr. Knightley challenges her carelessness. After Emma humiliates Miss Bates during an outing, Knightley's rebuke makes her confront her conduct. Frank is eventually revealed to be secretly engaged to Jane, and Harriet confesses that she hopes to marry Knightley. Emma finally understands that she loves him. Knightley proposes to Emma, while Harriet and Robert Martin find their way back to each other. Jane and Frank reconcile, and Knightley agrees to live at Hartfield so Emma can continue caring for her father. Emma and Knightley marry with the misunderstandings resolved.

Emma Woodhouse remains at Hartfield with her nervous father after her former governess, Miss Taylor, marries their neighbor Mr. Weston. Emma credits herself with encouraging that match, while Mr. Knightley warns that her success owed more to chance than skill. At a gathering Emma meets Harriet Smith, a pretty and impressionable student of uncertain parentage, and adopts her as a friend. Harriet has been warmly received by the farming Martin family and admires their son Robert, but Emma considers him beneath Harriet. When Robert proposes, Emma guides Harriet toward refusing him while maintaining that the decision is Harriet's own. Emma instead fixes on the local clergyman, Mr. Elton, as a suitable husband. Elton's attention to Emma and his enthusiasm over a portrait she draws of Harriet are taken by Emma as signs that he is falling in love with Harriet. Mr. Knightley learns of Robert's rejection and strongly disapproves of Emma's interference.

Emma continues arranging opportunities for Harriet and Mr. Elton, reading his compliments as courtship of Harriet even when Mrs. Weston questions the theory. During a Christmas visit to the Westons, Harriet is kept home by illness. John Knightley warns Emma that Elton appears interested in her, but she dismisses the idea. Snow disrupts the party, and Emma unexpectedly shares a carriage home with Elton. He proposes to Emma and insists that he has never considered marrying Harriet. Emma rejects him and realizes that his attentions were aimed at her throughout. She is shocked by his contempt for Harriet's social position and must admit that her own confidence created the misunderstanding. Elton leaves Highbury, while Emma tells Harriet enough of the truth to end her hopes. Harriet is hurt and humiliated, and Emma recognizes that her matchmaking has caused the friend she meant to help real pain.

Jane Fairfax, the accomplished niece of Miss Bates, returns to Highbury before she must seek work as a governess. Emma is civil but uneasy around her, resenting Jane's reserve and the comparisons their neighbors make between them. Mr. Weston's son Frank Churchill finally arrives after repeated delays imposed by the wealthy relations who raised him. His charm and attention please Emma, and the Westons quietly hope the pair may form an attachment. Frank makes a puzzling trip to London for a haircut and joins Emma in speculating about Jane's feelings for Mr. Dixon, the husband of Jane's friend. An expensive pianoforte arrives anonymously for Jane. Emma treats it as evidence that Mr. Dixon secretly sent it, though Mr. Knightley dislikes her willingness to invent a compromising story. Frank encourages Emma's suspicions and continues to flirt with her. Emma enjoys his company but finds that her supposed romantic feelings require deliberate encouragement rather than arising naturally.

Mr. Elton returns with his bride, Augusta, whose wealth, vanity, and familiar manner quickly tire Emma. Mrs. Elton claims Jane Fairfax as a special friend and repeatedly presses her to accept help finding a governess position, despite Jane's reluctance. Emma sees the patronage as intrusive but remains blind to much of Jane's private distress. Frank's movements continue to depend on his demanding aunt, Mrs. Churchill, making plans uncertain and keeping the Westons anxious. Social visits, dinners, and musical performances bring the Highbury circle together while sharpening its tensions. Mrs. Elton pointedly elevates herself over Emma and Harriet, and Elton remains cold toward Harriet. Mr. Knightley continues to observe Jane with kindness, leading Emma to wonder whether he may be attached to her. Emma and Knightley disagree over Frank's character: Emma excuses his delays and lively manners, while Knightley distrusts conduct that seems governed by convenience and secrecy.

At the ball at the Crown Inn, Mr. Elton deliberately refuses to dance with Harriet. Mr. Knightley rescues her from public embarrassment by asking her himself, increasing Emma's admiration for him. Soon afterward Frank helps Harriet when she is surrounded by a group of begging children. Harriet tells Emma she has abandoned her feelings for Elton and now admires a man far above her socially; Emma assumes she means Frank and promises not to interfere openly. During an outing to Box Hill, Frank encourages a restless, competitive mood. Emma makes a cutting joke at Miss Bates's expense, humiliating a woman whose poverty makes the insult especially cruel. Mr. Knightley privately rebukes Emma, and she recognizes that he is right. Ashamed, she visits Miss Bates the next morning and begins trying to repair the injury. Jane, exhausted and unhappy, accepts a governess position arranged by Mrs. Elton. Frank is called away, and the sudden death of Mrs. Churchill changes his circumstances, though the consequences have not yet been made public.

Frank reveals that he and Jane have been secretly engaged since Weymouth. Because he depended financially on Mrs. Churchill, they concealed the engagement, and his public attentions to Emma served as cover. His thoughtlessness and Jane's suffering explain many earlier puzzles, including the pianoforte and their quarrels. Emma is relieved that she never loved Frank, but worries about Harriet. Harriet then confesses that the man she hopes to marry is Mr. Knightley, not Frank. Emma abruptly understands her own love for Knightley and the danger of the expectations she encouraged. Knightley returns, believing Emma heartbroken over Frank, and declares that he loves her. Emma accepts him. Harriet goes to London and later renews her connection with Robert Martin; when he proposes again, she accepts. Jane forgives Frank, and their engagement is acknowledged. Emma and Jane reach a more honest friendship. Since Emma will not abandon her father, Knightley agrees to move into Hartfield. Mr. Woodhouse finally accepts the marriage partly because recent thefts make Knightley's presence reassuring. Harriet and Robert marry first, followed by Emma and Knightley, while Frank and Jane await the end of their mourning period.

Frank explains that he and Jane have been secretly engaged since meeting at Weymouth. His dependence on Mrs. Churchill made an open engagement impossible, and many of his attentions to Emma were a disguise that caused Jane real pain. After Mrs. Churchill's death, the engagement can be acknowledged. Emma discovers that Harriet's new attachment is not to Frank but to Mr. Knightley. Forced to recognize her own love for Knightley, Emma fears she has harmed both Harriet and herself. Knightley instead declares his love for Emma, and they become engaged. Harriet spends time away from Hartfield, reunites with Robert Martin, and accepts his renewed proposal, restoring a match Emma had wrongly prevented. Jane and Frank prepare to marry, and Emma makes peace with Jane. To avoid leaving Mr. Woodhouse distressed, Knightley agrees to move into Hartfield after marrying Emma. A local poultry theft makes the added protection seem welcome to Mr. Woodhouse, and the novel closes with Emma and Knightley's wedding and the community's approval.