With the exception of Emma, the characters are generally static ones. They do not change. Rather, they are likely to be simply confirmed in their views, for they live in and accept a stable if static society. Nonetheless, the type of characters portrayed is varied and so is the degree of their realistic development.
Among the lesser developed but important ones, we may note Mr. Woodhouse, John Knightley, and Augusta Elton. They appear to be one-dimensional because they consistently show their one dominant coloring, and so far as treatment of them in the novel is concerned, they are one-dimensional. Mr. Woodhouse, in his gentle selfishness, is the petty arch-conservative, wanting absolutely nothing to change and constantly being apprehensive about matters of health. John is similar but in domestic terms; he is rather nonsocial because he wants to rest content with his family in his domestic comforts. Augusta is always seen as the talkative busybody who preens herself on her supposed social importance. They serve their purposes in the novel best by being one-sided, and they come very close to being caricatures.
Miss Bates deserves a bit of special attention. She is like an archetype of the boring non-stop talker. But she takes on added dimension by the very fact that her gush of words encompasses everything around her — so much so, in fact, that the small and the important apparently have equal significance for her. A thwarted woman (though she would never recognize herself as such), she has a driving need to express herself, though her expression is never egocentric. She is, indeed, one of the most kindhearted and thankful persons imaginable; but she is also capable of being hurt and of forgiving. She undergoes no observable change in the novel, but hers is possibly the most fully rounded characterization among the minor ones.
Though one of the more important characters, Harriet Smith is mostly a counter to be moved about by Emma and the plot of the novel. She is a simple but pretty girl who, once in love, will always be in love and who evinces one very interesting though momentary development when she decides that she is after all perhaps worthy of George Knightley.
