MACMILLAN READERS INTERMEDIATE LEVEL JANE AUSTEN Emma Retold by Margaret TarnerMACMILLAN READERS INTERMEDIATE LEVEL Founding Editor: John Milne The Macmillan Readers provide a choice of enjoyable reading materials for learners of English. The series is published at sx levels Starter, Beginner, Elementary, Pre-intermediate, Intermediate and Upper. Level control Information, structure and vocabulary are controlled to suit the students ability at each level ‘The number of words at each level: about 300 basic worde bout 600 basic words Elementan about 1100 basic words Pre-intermediate | about 1400 basic words Tntermediate about 1600 baste words Upper about 2200 hase words Vocabulary Some difficule words and phrases in this book are important for ‘understanding the story. Some of chese words are explained in the story and some are shown in the pictures. From Pre-intermediate level upwards, words are marked with a number like this... These swords are explained in the Glossary atthe end of the book. Answer keys Answer keys for che Points for Understanding and the Exercises sections can be found at wrw-macraillanenglish.com Contents ‘ANote About the Author and Life in the ‘Nineteenth Century The Places in This Story ‘The People in This Story 1 The Polite Society of Highbury 2 Harriet Smith 3. Mr Woodhouse Goes Out to Dinner 4 Frank Churchill 5 Jane Fairfax: 6 An Invitation From the Coles 7 The Piano 8 Mrs Elton 9 Hartfield 10 The Ball I] Harriet is in Love Again 12 Box Hill 13 Secrets and Surprises 14 More Than a Friend 15 Future Happiness Points for Understanding Glossary Exercises 10 16 24 31 38 6 52 60 65 71 7 82 92 100 108 116 119 128A Note About the Author and Life in the Nineteenth Century Jane Austen was bom on 16th December, 1775 at Steventon, ‘Hampshire ~ a county’ in the south of England. Jane's father was a clergyman in the church at Steventon. Jane had six brothers — James, George, Edward, Henry and Charles ~ and one sister ~ Cassandra. Jane Austen's father made sure that his children had a good education. Jane learnt French, Italian and music. She studied English literature and poetry. In 1803, Mr Austen and his family moved to Bath, a cown in the west of England. Bath was popular and fashionable in the nineteenth century. People went there to meet friends and to drink the water from the warm springs that came out of the ground. They believed that the water was good for their health. In Bath, people played games of cards, and danced at balls in large buildings called The Assembly Rooms. They also listened to music and watched plays in the theatres. The visitors bought jewels and fashionable clothes in the shops. ‘They walked in the wide sereets and fine parks’ In 1805, Jane Austen's father died and the family moved to Southampton, in Hampshire. They lived there for only a few years. In 1810, the family moved again, to Chawton, in ‘Hampshire. From that year, until her death in 1817, Jane was very busy. She wrote books, she visited her relatives, and she travelled round England with friends. Jane's brother, Edward, lived with Thomas and Catherine Knight. Mr and Mrs Knight had a large house ~ Godmersham Park ~ in the county of Kent. Jane and her sister often visited Edward at Godmersham Park. From her diaries and letters we can see that Jane was a very kind and intelligent woman. Jane Austen never got married. Some people think that she fel in love in 1801, but the love affair did not end well 4 ‘The young man did not have any money and they could not marry. Her lover died suddenly, afew years later. In 1802, Harris Bigg-Wither asked Jane Austen to marry him. However, Jane and Harris were engaged for only one day. The following morning, Jane changed her mind’. She decided not to marry Mr Bigg-Wither. ‘In 1811, Jane Austen's first book was published. Not many women writers were published at this time. Publishers did not like publishing books by women. For this reason, many women writers used men’s names when they wrote books However, Jane Austen never used a man’s name. Her books were published using her own name and her stories were extremely popular. Her books were: Sense and Sensibility (IB11), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), Emma (1815), Northanger Abbey (1818), Persuasion (1818) and Sanditon (unfinished). : Jane Austen's stories were not about poor people. She ‘wrote about people who had money and property ~ houses and land, These very rich and powerful people were the ‘polite society’ of Britain. Few people from polite society worked to earn money. Men inherited* money and property from their fathers. The eldest son usually received most of the money and property after his father’s death. If younger sons did not choose to join the army, or the navy, they became lawyers or clergymen People in polite society spent a lot of time calling on each other ~ visiting each others’ houses. Each person who called at the house ofa friend left a visiting card’. A servant then passed the card to the owner of the house. It was very impolite to call and not leave a visiting card, ifthe owner of the house was out. ‘People n polite society had dinner parties and dances in their homes. They played music and read books. They had conversations about art, music, poetry and politics. Men. 5