I'm re-reading Jane Austen's Emma, and there's a word puzzle in it I can't solve. It shows up in Chapter IX of Vol. I:

My first doth affliction denote,
Which my second is destin'd to feel;
And my whole is the best antidote
That affliction to soften and heal -

It shows up when Emma and Harriet are collecting what they call "charades" for a book Harriet is compiling. Mr Elton offers it as an addition to their book, but they have it already - and the solution is never given. In the next page or two, Mr Elton comes up with a further "charade" of his own creation:

My first displays the wealth and pomp of kings,
Lords of the earth! their luxury and ease.
Another view of man, my second brings,
Behold him there, the monarch of the seas!

But, ah! united, what reverse we have!
Man's boasted power and freedom, all are flown;
Lord of the earth and sea, he bends a slave,
And woman, lovely woman, reigns alone.

The answer to the second charade is "courtship" (given in the book - I'm sure I would be asking for help with it as well, otherwise!) - but what, pray tell if you can, is the answer to the first? I consider myself something of a cruciverbalist, but this cryptic clue has me stumped. :o)

hope fellow AWAD linguaphiles can help

cheers
Mary Steer
Kingston, Canada

According the the notes in the back of my version (Penguin Classics), the answer is woman (woe + man). Seems like a bit of a stretch to me.

Oh, by the way, welcome to the board!

In the charade, "my first" is woe and "my second" is man, so that "my whole" is woe-man = woman (boo! groan! hiss!).


I found this by searching Yahoo for "Jane Austen Emma Charades"

hope fellow AWAD linguaphiles can help

Nope! Can't help at all.. but can say WELCOME!

Nice to have you with us!

Hev