Gentleman's ideals in Emma and reflections on the revolution in FranceThe last two centuries have been full of drastic changes in the human condition. Today we tend to overlook how drastic these changes were. Late 18th century Britain provides an excellent example because both the Industrial and French Revolutions were chipping away at the established social order. In Britain, the aristocracy had ruled with relative stability since the medieval period. There were power struggles but the ideology of privilege remained untouchable. British society viewed privilege as a reward for sophistication and expected a gentleman to distinguish himself by following a specific code of conduct. However, his duty and honor depended on more than a code; he also had to feel sympathy for the weaker sex and the lower classes and know when to act accordingly. This sensitivity made him a “kind” and fair participant in the governing process. By the 1790s and 1800s these gentlemanly ideals were eroding. Yet even though the English did not guillotine their nobles as the French did, many continued to argue that rapid change could unravel the delicate balance of society perpetuated by a refined nobility. The rise of merchants and industrialists into the ranks of the upper class graphically illustrated a shift towards individual success and the selfish ideology of capitalism. Gentlemen by birth and education were losing ground to these nouveau riche and as a result the ruling class further disconnected from their communities. In 1790, Edmund Burke, a member of the British Parliament, made an impassioned plea in “Reflections on the Revolution in France” to prevent the radical changes occurring throughout the world from causing B...... middle of paper... ...Jane Austen. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1986. 87-108. Burke, Edmund. “Reflections on the Revolution in France, and on the Acts of some Societies in London relating to that Event: in a Letter intended to be sent to a Gentleman in Paris in 1790.” Edmund Burke: Selected Writings and Speeches. Ed. Peter J. Stanlis. Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, Inc., 1963. 511-608.Frohnen, Bruce. “Burkean Virtue and the Conservative Good Life.” Perspectives on Political Science 21.1 (1994): 4-15.Johnson, Claudia L. “'He's Not at All What a Man Should Be!': Remaking English Manhood in Emma.” Equivocal Beings: Politics, Gender, and Sentimentality in the 1790s. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1995. 191-203.Waldron, Mary. "Sense Men and Foolish Wives: Mr. Knightley's Confusion." Studies in the novel 28.2 (1996): 141-158.