Both the mystery of Frank and Jane and the observant sensibility of George are intensified in this chapter. The chapter is devoted almost entirely to plot action, but a parallel ironic development is worth noting: Just as the verbal irony of generalization in the preceding chapter has misled Emma, here her emphatic generalization about Frank misleads George. In both instances it is Emma's wording that causes misunderstanding, the damaging vagueness resulting from the conflict between the urge to communicate and the need for polite restraint.
