Character Development - Emma Woodhouse and Cher Horowitz
By Vicki Unsworth
Emma Woodhouse and Cher Horowitz are
almost identical characters with the only difference being that
Emma was written in the 1800s and Clueless was written
and made into a film in 1996. Both were clever, attractive, wealthy
young women who were spoiled and always the center of attention.
The combination of wit and beauty made Emma and Cher the envy
of all - men adored them and dreamed and women were incredibly
jealous of their good looks and wealth. While at times they could
be characterized as superficial, snobby and arrogant, Emma and
Cher were both kindhearted people who wanted to see others find
love and happiness. They enjoyed playing matchmaker to friends
and family - Emma successfully matched her governess, Ms. Taylor
up with Mr. Weston and Cher successfully found love for two of
her teachers at school.
Amy Heckerling made the character of
Cher to fit within the mold of 1990's Beverly Hills. Superficiality
was played up in Clueless; Cher was completely oblivious
to the world outside of sunny California. Anything she wanted
or needed was readily available to her. Her only window to what
the outside world was like was through her friend Tai, a Hispanic
transfer student, who Cher made over to fit within her mold of
'cool'. At the end of the film, Cher learned to appreciate the
finer things in life, she accepted others differences and was
opened to a new world.
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