Jane Austen's Emma:From the Novel to the Screen

Abstract Jane Austen’s novels have always been an interest for film-makers. Emma is the novel in which the writer included some innovative and hidden meanings. After an analysis of the theory of the film adaptation, the second chapter focuses on the novel itself. It provides an analysis of the historical background of the novel, the major themes, and comic aspects. Furthermore Jane Austen was considered a feminist of her time, and her character Emma, is considered to have unusual opinions about marriage. The third chapter thus focuses on the interpretations of feminist aspects of the main adaptations, which are: Douglas McGrath’s 1996 Emma; the same year’s version directed by Diarmuid Lawrence and the loose adaptation of Amy Heckerling Clueless.