Knightley decide that after their marriage they will spare Emma's father loneliness and distress by living with him at Hartfield,instead ofsettlingat the Knightley estate,Donwell. 3.Principal characters the protagonist ofthestory,is a beautiful,high-spirited, intelligent,and'slightly'spoiled young womanofthe age of twenty.Her mother died when she was very young,and she has been mistress ofthe houseever since,certainly since her older sister got married.Although intelligent,she lacks thenecessary disciplineto practiceor study anything in depth.She is portrayed as very compassionate to the poor,but at the same time has a strongsense ofclass.Her affection for and patience towards her hypochondriac father are also noteworthy.While she is in many ways mature for her age,Emma makes some serious mistakes,mainly dueto her conviction that she is always right and her lack of real world experience.Although she has vowed she will never ever marry,she delights in making matches for others.Sheseems unable to fall in love, until jealousy makes her realise that she has loved Mr. Knightley all along. Knightley decide that after their marriage they will spare Emma's father loneliness and distress by living with him at Hartfield, instead of settling at the Knightley estate, Donwell. 3. Principal characters the protagonist of the story, is a beautiful, high-spirited, intelligent, and 'slightly' spoiled young woman of the age of twenty. Her mother died when she was very young, and she has been mistress of the house ever since, certainly since her older sister got married. Although intelligent, she lacks the necessary discipline to practice or study anything in depth. She is portrayed as very compassionate to the poor, but at the same time has a strong sense of class. Her affection for and patience towards her hypochondriac father are also noteworthy. While she is in many ways mature for her age, Emma makes some serious mistakes, mainly due to her conviction that she is always right and her lack of real world experience. Although she has vowed she will never ever marry, she delights in making matches for others. She seems unable to fall in love, until jealousy makes her realise that she has loved Mr. Knightley all along