# Isabella Knightley — Emma character guide

> Isabella Knightley in Emma by Jane Austen.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Isabella, Bella, poor Isabella

**First appearance:** 0011-x

## Snapshot

Emma's elder sister, settled in London with John Knightley and a growing brood of children, whose delicate nerves and anxious affection make her perpetually 'poor Isabella.'

## Who they are

Isabella has left Highfield for Brunswick Square, where she presides over a household of children and a husband whose sharp sense contrasts with her tender fretting. Her father's anxious temperament lives on in her; she worries over drafts, illnesses, and her little ones with a devotion that is both comic and genuinely warm. Her visits home bring news of the wider family and quietly remind Emma of the domestic path she has so far refused.

## In the story

### [Emma](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/chapters/emma)

Emma's elder sister, married to Mr. John Knightley. She is mentioned as having a similar disposition to their father, with strong family attachments.

### [XI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/chapters/xi)

Isabella arrives with her family, showing tender attachment to her father and sister, and expresses strong advocacy for matrimony and admiration for Mr. Weston's kindness.

### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/chapters/xii)

Visits Hartfield with her children, praises Jane Fairfax, and defends her choice of South End.

### [Chapter XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/chapters/xiii)

Enjoys her visit to Hartfield with her children, though briefly mentioned.

### [XIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/chapters/xiv)

Isabella expresses sympathy for Frank Churchill, living with an ill-tempered aunt, and remarks on the misery of such a situation.

### [Chapter XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/chapters/xvii)

Departs Hartfield with her family; described as a model of right feminine happiness, blind to her children's faults.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/characters/isabella_knightley
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/emma_se/characters