Join Host Bree Carlile as she reads the fifty-first chapter of Emma by Jane Austen

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Welcome to Bite at a Time Books, where we read your favorite classics, one Bite at a Time.

My name is Brie Carlyle, and I.

Love to read and wanted to share.

My passion with listeners like you.

All of the links for our show are in the Show Show Notes.

Today we will be continuing Emma by.

Jane Austin chapter 15 this letter must.

Make its way to Emma's feelings.

She was obliged, in spite of her previous determination to the contrary, to do.

It all the justice that Mrs.

Weston foretold as soon as she came to her own name.

It was irresistible.

Every line relating to herself was interesting, and almost every line agreeable.

And when this charm ceased, the subject could still maintain itself by the natural.

Return of her former regard for the.

Writer, and the very strong attraction which.

Any picture of love must have for her at that moment.

She never stopped till she had gone.

Through the hole, and though it was.

Impossible not to feel that he had been wrong, yet he had been less.

Wrong than she had supposed, and he had suffered and was very sorry, and he was so grateful to Mrs.

Westin, and so much in love with Ms.

Fairfax, and she was so happy herself that there was no being severe, and could he have entered the room?

She must have shaken hands with him.

As heartily as ever.

She thought so well of the letter, that when Mr.

Knightley came again, she.

Desired him to read it.

She was so sure of Mrs.

Weston's wishing it to be communicated, especially to one who, like Mr.

Knightley, had seen so much to blame in his conduct.

I shall be very glad to look it over, said he, but it seems long.

I will take it home with me at night.

But that would not do.

Mr.

Weston was to call in the.

Evening, and she must return it by him.

I would rather be talking to you.

He replied, but as it seems a matter of justice, it shall be done.

He began stopping, however, almost directly to say, had I been offered the side of one of this gentleman's letters to.

His motherinlaw a few months ago, Emma, it would not have been taken with such indifference.

He proceeded a little further, reading himself.

And then with a smile observed a fine complementary opening.

But it is his way.

One man style must not be the rule of another.

We will not be severe.

It will be natural for me, he.

Added shortly afterwards, to speak my opinion aloud as I read.

By doing it I shall feel that I am near you.

It will not be so great a loss of time.

But if you dislike it, not at all I should wish it.

Mr.

Knightley returned to his reading with greater alacrity.

He trifles here, said he, as to the temptation.

He knows he is wrong, and has.

Nothing rational to urge bad.

He ought not to have formed the engagement his father's disposition.

He is unjust, however, to his father.

Mr.

Weston's sanguine temper was a blessing on all his upright and honorable exertions, but Mr.

Weston earned every present comfort before he endeavored to gain it.

Very true.

He did not come till Ms.

Fairfax was here, and I've not forgotten, said.

Emma, how sure you were that he might have come sooner if he would.

You pass it over?

Very handsomely, but you were perfectly right.

I was not quite impartial in my judgment, Emma.

But yet, I think, had you not been in the case, I should have distrusted him.

When he came to Miss Woodhouse, he was obliged to read the whole of it aloud.

All that related to her with a.

Smile, a look, a shake of the head, a word or two of ascent or disapprobation, or merely of love, as the subject required, concluding however seriously and after steady reflection.

Thus very bad, though it might have been worse, playing a most dangerous game.

Too much indebted to the event for his acquittal.

No judge of his own manners by.

You, always deceived in fact, by his.

Own wishes, and regardless of little Besides.

His own convenience, fancying you to have.

Fathomed his secret, natural enough, his own mind full of intrigue, that he should.

Suspected in others mystery, finesse, how they.

Pervert the understanding by Emma.

Does not everything serve to prove more and more the beauty of truth and sincerity in all our dealings with each other?

Emma agreed to it, and with a blush of sensibility on Harriet's account which.

She could not give any sincere explanation of.

You had better go on, said she.

He did so, but very soon stopped again to say the piano forte.

That was the act of a very, very young man, one too young to.

Consider whether the inconvenience of it might not very much exceed the pleasure a boyish scheme indeed.

I cannot comprehend a man's wishing to give a woman any proof of affection.

Which he knows she would rather dispense.

With, and he did not know that she would have prevented the instruments coming if she could.

After this he made some progress without any pause.

Frank Churchill's confession of having behaved shamefully was the first thing to call for more than a word in passing.

I perfectly agree with you, sir.

Was then his remark, you did behave very shamefully.

You never wrote a truer line.

And having gone through what immediately followed of the basis of their disagreement, and.

His persisting to act in direct opposition.

To Jane Fairfax's sense of right, he.

Made a Fuller pause to say, this is very bad.

He had induced her to place herself for his sake in a situation of extreme difficulty and uneasiness, and it should have been his first object to prevent.

Her from suffering unnecessarily.

She must have had much more to.

Contend with in carrying on the correspondence than he could he should have respected.

Even unreasonable scruples had there been such.

But hers were all unreasonable.

We must look to her one fault and remember that she had done a wrong thing in consenting to the engagement.

To bear that she should have been in such a state of punishment.

Emma knew that he was now getting to the Box Hill party and grew uncomfortable.

Her own behavior had been so very improper.

She was deeply ashamed and a little.

Afraid of his next look.

It was all red, however steadily attentively.

And without the smallest remark, and accepting one momentary glance at her, instantly withdrawn in the fear of giving pain.

No remembrance of Box Hill seemed to exist.

There is no saying much for the.

Delicacy of our good friends.

The Eltons was his next observation.

His feelings are natural.

What actually resolved to break with him entirely.

She felt the engagement to be a.

Source of repentance and misery to each she dissolved it.

What a view this gives of her sense of his behavior.

Well, he must be the most extraordinary.

Nay, read on.

You will find how very much he suffers.

I hope he does, replied Mr.

Knightley.

Coolly and resuming the letter.

Smallridge, what does this mean?

What is all this?

She had engaged to go as governess.

To Mrs.

Smallridge's children, a dear friend.

Of Mrs.

Elton's, a neighbor of Maple Grove.

And by the by.

I wonder how Mrs.

Elton bears the disappointment.

Say nothing.

My dear Emma, while you oblige me.

To read not even of Mrs.

Elton.

Only one page more.

I shall soon have done what a.

Letter the man writes.

I wish you would read it with a kinder spirit towards him.

Well, there is feeling here.

He does seem to have suffered in finding her ill.

Certainly I can have no doubt of his being fond of her dearer much dearer than ever.

I hope he may long continue to.

Feel all the value of such a reconciliation.

He is a very Liberal thinker, with his thousands and tens of thousands happier than I deserve.

Come, he knows himself there.

Miss Woodhouse calls me the child of good fortune.

Those were Ms.

Woodhouse's words, were they?

And a fine ending.

And there is the letter.

The child of good fortune.

That was your name for him, was it?

You do not appear so well satisfied with his letter as I am.

But still you must.

At least I hope you must think.

The better of him for it.

I hope it does him some service with you.

Yes, certainly it does.

He has had great faults, faults of.

Inconsideration and thoughtlessness, and I am very much of his opinion in thinking him likely to be happier than he deserves.

But still, as he is beyond a.

Doubt, really attached to Miss Fairfax, and will soon, it may be hoped, to have the advantage of being constantly with her.

I am very ready to believe his character will improve and acquire from hers the steadiness and delicacy of principle that it wants.

And now let me talk to you of something else.

I have another person's interest at present.

So much at heart that I cannot think any longer about Frank Churchill.

Ever since I left you this morning, Emma, my mind has been hard at.

Work on one subject.

The subject followed.

It was in plain, unaffected gentleman like.

English such as Mr.

Knightley used even to the woman he was in love.

With, how to be able to ask her to marry him without attacking the happiness of her father.

Emma's answer was ready at the first word.

While her dear father lived, any change of condition must be impossible for her.

She could never quit him.

Part only of this answer, however, was.

Admitted the impossibility of her quitting.

Her father, Mr.

Knightley felt as strongly.

As herself, but the end admissibility of.

Any other change he could not agree to.

He had been thinking it over most deeply, most intently.

He had at first hoped to induce Mr.

Woodhouse to remove with her to.

Don well, he had wanted to believe.

It feasible, but his knowledge of Mr.

Woodhouse would not suffer him to deceive himself long.

And now he confessed his persuasion that.

Such a transplantation would be a risk of her father's comfort, perhaps even of.

His life, which must not be hazarded.

Mr.

Woodhouse taken from Hartfield?

No, he felt that it ought not to be attempted.

But the plan which had arisen on.

The sacrifice of this he trusted his.

Dearest Emma, would not find in any respect objectionable.

It was that he should be received.

At Hartfield that so long as her.

Father'S happiness in other words, his life required Hartfield to continue her home, it should be his likewise of their all.

Removing to dawnwell, Emma had already had her own passing thoughts like him.

She had tried the scheme and rejected it.

But such an alternative as this had.

Not occurred to her.

She was sensible of all the affection it convinced.

She felt that in quitting Don well.

He must be sacrificing a great deal.

Of independence, of hours and habits, that.

In living constantly with her father and in no house of his own, there.

Would be much, very much to be born with.

She promised to think of it, and.

Advised him to think of it more.

But he was fully convinced that no.

Reflection could alter his wishes or his opinion on the subject he had given it.

He could assure her a very long and calm consideration.

He had been walking away from William Larkins the whole morning to have his thoughts to himself.

Ah, there is one difficulty unprovided for, cried Emma.

I am sure William Larkins will not like it.

You must get his consent before you ask mine.

She promised, however, to think of it, and pretty nearly promised, Moreover, to think.

Of it with the intention of finding it a very good scheme.

It is remarkable that Emma, in the.

Many, very many points of view.

In which she was now beginning to consider done well.

Abbey was never struck with any sense of injury to her nephew Henry, Whose.

Rights as heir expectant had formerly been.

So tenaciously regarded thinks she must of the possible difference to the poor little boy.

And yet she only gave herself a saucy, conscious smile about it.

And found amusement in detecting the real cause of that violent dislike of Mr.

Knightley's marrying Jane Fairfax or anybody else.

Which at the time, she had wholly.

Imputed to the amiable solicitude of the.

Sister and the aunt.

This proposal of his.

This plan of marrying and continuing at Hartfield.

The more she contemplated it, the more pleasing it became.

His evil seemed to lessen her own advantages.

To increase their mutual good.

To outweigh every drawback such a companion.

For herself in the periods of anxiety.

And cheerlessness before her.

Such a partner in all those duties.

And cares to which time must be.

Giving increase of melancholy.

She would have been too happy.

But for poor Harriet.

But every blessing of her own seemed.

To involve and advance the sufferings of her friend, who must now be even excluded from Hartfield.

The delightful family party which Emma was securing for herself.

Poor Harriet must, in mere charitable caution, be kept at a distance from.

She would be a loser in every way.

Emma could not deplore her future absence of any deduction from her own enjoyment.

In such a party, Harriet would be rather a dead weight than otherwise.

But for the poor girl herself, It.

Seemed a peculiarly cruel necessity that was to be placing her in such a.

State of unmerited punishment.

In time, of course, Mr.

Knightley would be forgotten.

That is supplanted.

But this could not be expected to happen very early.

Mr.

Knightley himself would be doing nothing.

To assist the cure.

Not like Mr.

Elton.

Mr.

Knightley always so kind, so feeling.

So truly considerate for everybody Would never deserve to be less worshipped than now.

And it really was too much to.

Hope even of Harriet.

That she could be in love with more than three men in one year.

Thank you for joining bite at a.

Time Books today while we read a bite of one of your favorite classics.

All of the links for our show are in the Show Notes.

We are part of the bite at a Time Books Productions Network.

If you ever wondered what inspired your.

Favorite classic novelist to write their stories, what was happening in their lives or.

The world at the time, check out bite at a Time Books behind the Story Tuesdays.

Wherever you listen to podcasts again.