“A young woman, if she fall into bad hands, may be teased, and kept at a distance from those she wants to be with; but one cannot comprehend a young man’s being under such restraint, as not to be able to spend a week with his father, if he likes it.”
– Jane Austen
Emma, Chapter 14. Emma expresses her disbelief at Frank Churchill’s inability to spend a week with his father Mr. Weston. But if Frank were a young woman, Emma admits the situation would be different, reflecting how women then were econonically dependent on their caretakers. It is suggested in this chapter that Frank’s guardians the Churchills are preventing him traveling to Highbury. His father’s new wife Mrs. Weston describes them as jealous and claims they want to keep Frank for themselves.