Secrets of a Charmed Life

Emmy’s bride sketches are both a symbol of Emmy’s dream of becoming a dressmaker and owning her own bridal shop and a motif driving The Conflict Between Personal Ambition and Responsibility. They give her hope that she will someday open her boutique, and this pushes her to ask Mrs. Crofton for a job. When Mrs. Crofton gives her the opportunity to show her skills and promise as a fashion designer, Emmy’s bride sketches become even more important. This pits her against her mother, who believes that her dream is unrealistic, and that she must focus on taking care of Julia amid the war. Though she loves Julia, Emmy resents the responsibility that their mother puts on her for Julia’s care. She wants to assert her independence and holds onto her sketches all throughout her evacuation to Gloucestershire. For these reasons, she only allows Julia to look at the bride sketches when she is around. When Julia hides the sketches and replaces them with her book of fairy tales, she hopes, like the sketches, that Emmy will replace her dreams to leave and become a dressmaker’s apprentice with a renewed connection with her younger sister.

After Emmy and Julia are separated, Emmy gives up her dream of being a dressmaker and boutique owner to focus on finding Julia.