I’ve been reading Emma by Jane Austen and it struck me that the writing somehow seems a little…different to the rest of her work. I’m no Austen-ite and I haven’t read all her works but I have read Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey and most recently Persuasion. There is something that is something … I can’t quite put my finger on but it doesn’t really read distinctly like a typical Austen novel. Now, I can understand that authors have the right, and do frequently, vary and experiment with new styles but Austen has been so consistent. Has anybody else come across this idea or feeling? Or perhaps I have a dodgy copy of the novel since I picked it up cheaply at a dingy booksellers in Kuala Lumpur.
Looking at wikipedia (how academic and authoritative of me!) it says Emma was published in 1816 and was her last novel to be published before her death. Curiously, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion were both published posthumously and they’re the two novels making up the bulk of my Austen experience. Perhaps I’m more familiar with her later work.
Well, something to add to the thought machine. Perhaps my impression will change once I’ve finished the book.
