Letter writing in novels was a sort of trend, likely because it was such a common form of communication then. There is the “blessing of a female correspondent” (p195), and the format of journaling appears again in works throughout the 19th century like Frankenstein and Dracula.
Just as Emma’s use of nicknames (instead of the more proper Mr./Mrs.) would have been shocking at the time, Jane Austen’s writing was well ahead of her time. The act of work as a distraction from despair was a common facet of Victorian times; the publication of Emma preceeded the Victorian age by 15 years. Emma claims to be keeping herself busy and that she “must be in love” (p195). This aligns with that common Victorian idea, yet also surpasses it.
Comparing one’s self to society was a paramount feature of the Victorian age, but much of other Victorian literature includes relations to this in journals: the Harkers lament their separation from each other in Dracula, Victor notes his personal horrors in his journal in Frankenstein. Yet Austen does not follow this, at least in this section. Emma typically voices her feelings aloud, and by her “saying” it instead of writing or merely going through the actions (i.e. working and distracting herself from her own feelings), it suggests that Austen has created a character to surpass the Victorian age, 15 years before it began. She seems to mock the characteristics that later characterize society. By this mocking, it’s as if Emma has time travelled past the Victorian age all together, and skipped the victimization of the highly conservative age.
