Mr Knightley fell in love with Emma when she was 13 years old. He was 30 at the time. In most jurisdictions today, that is pedophilia; but we overlook that, because it was no such thing in Jane Austen's time, when the legal age for female marriage was 12. This was only pragmatic; a girl might become pregnant at that age; there had to be a path to respectability, and avoidance of the taint of illegitimacy. What Jane almost certainly didn't know, but we do today, is that Emma would not reach her sexual peak until her early 30's, when Mr Knightley would be fiftyish, and quite possibly suffering early-stage age-related impotence. He would certainly be 30 years past his sexual prime. Could Emma have been tempted to dally, then, with some young stud? Would Mr Knightley have consented to look the other way, knowing it was only a dalliance, and that he was secure in Emma's love?https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131783#msg-131783Sun, 26 Jul 2026 03:01:57 +0100 Phorum 5.2.22 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131804#msg-131804 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131804#msg-131804 Arkadiy Tea RoomFri, 02 Jan 2026 12:28:45 +0000 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131799#msg-131799 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131799#msg-131799 Alida Tea RoomSun, 14 Dec 2025 01:10:55 +0000 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131796#msg-131796 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131796#msg-131796 alibom32378 Tea RoomSat, 13 Dec 2025 11:27:03 +0000 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131791#msg-131791 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131791#msg-131791
I suggest you find something else about which to speculate.]]> Alida Tea RoomThu, 11 Dec 2025 10:41:41 +0000 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131783#msg-131783 https://dwiggie.com/phorum/read.php?4,131783,131783#msg-131783
What Jane almost certainly didn't know, but we do today, is that Emma would not reach her sexual peak until her early 30's, when Mr Knightley would be fiftyish, and quite possibly suffering early-stage age-related impotence. He would certainly be 30 years past his sexual prime.

Could Emma have been tempted to dally, then, with some young stud? Would Mr Knightley have consented to look the other way, knowing it was only a dalliance, and that he was secure in Emma's love?]]> alibom32378 Tea RoomWed, 03 Dec 2025 13:21:54 +0000