Emma’s father and the Woodhouse patriarch. Mr. Woodhouse is a rather silly, excessively nervous, and frail old man who dotes on his daughter. He hates change and possesses a narrow-minded and even selfish outlook on changes like his oldest daughter’s marriage, which he views as a tragedy depriving him of familiar and beloved company. However, Emma and his close friends not only humor, but also comfort him in all of his foibles.