Emma by Jane Austin Read Aloud Together

A book summary from commonsensemedia.org:  "Jane Austen's classic novel EMMA begins with the marriage of the title character's former governess, Miss Taylor, to Mr. Weston. Readers learn that Emma's mother passed away long ago and her only sibling, a sister, is married and living in London. Emma and her nervous father are sad to lose Miss Taylor's constant presence in their household, but Emma congratulates herself on her own matchmaking skill, as she apparently encouraged the Westons' pairing. In need of a new project, Emma befriends Harriet Smith, a young woman of unknown parentage supported by Emma's friends and neighbors. Determined to match her with an upper-class husband, Emma begins to manipulate relations between Harriet and the local vicar, Mr. Elton. Meanwhile, two newcomers arrive in town: the beautiful and frustratingly private Jane Fairfax, and Mr. Weston's high-spirited son, Frank Churchill, who seems to be interested in Emma. Though her trusted friend John Knightley warns her that she overestimates her talents as a matchmaker, Emma forges ahead. The comic and unfortunate misunderstandings that result help to reveal, however clumsily, characters' true feelings for one another."

We will read together and enjoy this classic novel, looking at it from the perspective of the time period it represents, but also contrasting that with what Life is like in today's world. We will aim to understand the characters and why they act the way they do in the novel, as well as ponder how we might behave in a similar, modern day situation. As always, we will practice vocabulary building through our reading, using context clues to help us understand the meanings of the words we encounter.
Each class time will involve about 20 pages of reading together, along with discussion of the story, characters, settings, events, and culture of the time period.  Here is a tentative reading schedule:
Volume 1
Week 1: Chapters I-III + Chapters IV-VI
Week 2: Chapters VII-IX + Chapters X-XIII
Week 3: Chapters IX-XVI + Chapters XVII-XVIII
Volume 2
Week 4: Chapters I-III + Chapters IV-VI
Week 5: Chapters VII-VIII + Chapters IX-XII
Week 6: Chapters XIII-XV + Chapters XVI-XVIII
Volume 3
Week 7: Chapters I-III + Chapters IV-VI
Week 8: Chapters VII-VIII + Chapters IX-XI
Week 9: Chapters XII-XIV + Chapters XV-XVIII
Week 10: Chapter XIV + closure, personal response, review vocabulary, plans for next book study?
Please note:  If the schedule I've suggested doesn't match what you need for this course, please request a schedule that will work for you. I aim to be flexible.