The Coquette Analysis

State how marriage is presented in the stories, “Desiree’s Baby” and “The Story of an Hour.”

Foster uses the Richman’s as the ideal marriage. In Eliza’s quest, it is their marriage that she views as the epitome of a good marriage. Though Eliza has embarked on a life of rebellion, she does want a good marriage. She is envious of her friend Mrs. Richman. She says they are a “happy pair” with the “purest and most ardent affection” while enjoying “health and wealth” (14). At this point, Eliza is still trying to conform to society’s expectations without breaking their rules. She knows what is expected of her but does not necessarily agree with their restrictions. With the introduction of Major Sanford in her sphere, Eliza will slowly begin to change.

In Hannah W. Foster’s, The Coquette, Eliza Wharton is portrayed as a woman of status, above average intelligence and education, with a flirtatious nature. Though the author does not cast her in an antagonistic light, her manner is painted as foolish, flippant to 18th century social conventions, and lacking in forethought. As such, The Coquette should be viewed as a literary warning for young women of the day, especially those who may have shared undesirable attributes with Eliza. It is the novel’s intent, by way of Eliza’s thoughts and actions, to discourage young women from pursuing a fleeting and non-virtuous lifestyle. Through the novel, Foster acts as a moral guide to young women by persuading them to obey social conventions like entering into dutiful marriage, refraining from political and public

While both authors stand on the idea of marriage changing in roles, Hope Edelman in “ The Myth of Co-Parenting: How It Was Supposed to Be. How It Was,” inserts her view about marriage in her own experience that shows her attitude on marriage mainly through her husband leaving all the responsibility toward her. When parents are not there for their kids, often times kids feel unattached with their parents creating a weaker bond. Edelman’s frustration came from having a dream of marrying happily to having it demolished.

Does deviating from one’s gender norms inevitably doom one down a spiral of moral corruption? Tim O'Brien, author of “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” and Ernest Hemingway, author of “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”, certainly seem to hold this view, as evident by the fates of the major female characters in their respective works. The deviance of the major female characters in both works appears to corrupt not only themselves, but also pollute their partners, causing them to suffer injury or harm as a result. The degree of injury ranges from negligible, like Fossie’s demotion and broken heart, to fatal, like the bullet that rips through Macomber’s skull. It begs the question, are these stories meant to serve as cautionary tales for their female readers, or possibly for their husbands, so they may recognize gender deviance and stop it in its tracks before their wives transform into Margot Macomber or Mary Anne Bell? This essay will analyze what such characters say about pervading views of women, both in society and in literature.

Marriage is the union of two people, traditionally husband and wife. Traditional also are the roles that women play when confined in a marriage. When a woman has had the opportunity to educate herself pass tradition and has been use to a fast-paced modern lifestyle, this role of the wife might prove to be quite onerous to mold to. Usually a time of joy, celebration, and adulation, marriage may also bring along emotional and physical pain as well as awkward situations, as the woman must alter herself to conform the traditional role of what a wife should be. Bessie Head depicts two modernized, educated

Even Major Sanford questions Eliza's disregard of their admonitions: "Her sagacious friends have undoubtedly given her a detail of my vices. If, therefore, my past conduct has been repugnant to her notions of propriety, why does she not act consistently, and refuse at once to associate with a man whose character she cannot esteem?" (Foster 55). It is understood that True Woman must submit to the desires of her friends and parents, and that disobeying these desires will most certainly result in disaster. Eliza's neglect of these opinions causes her to lose the affection of Reverend Boyer, bringing about her ultimate ruin. She declares to Lucy, "Oh my friend, I am undone!" and asks, "Where shall I seek that happiness which I have madly trifled away?" (Foster 150).

Over the course of many years, women have struggled to expand their roles and rights in society, hoping to one day achieve complete equality with their male counterparts. Two women, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Judy (Syfers) Brady, both recognized the patriarchal society in which women had to endure. They despised the way it heaped inequality and servitude upon women, and decided to assert their opinion on the issue in order to change the perceptions and imposed limitations on women. In Stanton’s speech, “Declaration of Sentiments”, and in Brady’s article, “I Want a Wife”, both women attempt to convince their audiences that females deserve complete equality with men by stating the submissive situations and obligations women find themselves immersed in. This is done to get their female audiences to reevaluate how they have been treated and give them a second chance at attaining equality. Both women employ various rhetorical techniques in their arguments to strengthen, as well as compel other women to oppose the ‘domesticated’ image of women. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Judy (Syfers) Brady expressed their views in pursuance of forging a path to a revamped lifestyle for women.

When Eliza meets Boyer and Sanford, each seeks to win her affection, even though she admits marriage isn’t appealing to her. For the time, this was abnormal. Women were expected to marry early on and give up most of their autonomy to fulfill the role of wife and mother. Just by exploring her options, Eliza goes against what was expected for 18th-century women. When she finally does choose to marry Boyer, he decides that he is sick of waiting and that he does not trust her around other men such as Sanford. Here, Foster seems to argue that if Eliza had made her decision sooner, she would have avoided this fate. On a larger scale, The Coquette emphasizes the gender norms of the time. Women who read the book will feel pressure to marry so that they do not have the same fate as Eliza. At a time when the fear of promiscuity was so prevalent, this book served as a way to enforce traditional

Feminism walks in tangent aiming to be equal with men and not subservient. It is not hard to see how the feminism movement was birthed with ideas such as piety being an important characteristic for a woman while men were excused as being lustful beings. One can connect this to modern day feminism with celebrities such as Amber Rose and Kim Kardashian who many may deem as impure for dressing to revealing. They are breaking conventional stereotypes, set before the antebellum period, of purity in woman. I believe that a woman should have the necessities needed to live a free nearly unbothered life such as their male counterparts. Barbara Welter’s article can be interpreted many ways. One being as a lens to see society during the antebellum period through the gaze of a women. Welter does this well by using various magazine exerts within the text to give the audience a wider sense of the antebellum era rather than just a shorty anecdote. Another to look at this text is, as a way to highlight the situations which women had to endure, which eventually led to the women’s right movement shortly after the Civil

Eliza’s life was anything but easy. She had to bury her little sister, her oldest son, her husband, and her father all in a series of a few years. But one thing in her life was almost always constant: her devotion. When Alexander had a three-year affair with Maria Reynolds, Eliza was heartbroken and humiliated. Despite this, she forgave him, probably saving his reputation (Maclean). About 60 years later, when President James Monroe leaked details of the affair, Eliza called him out and refused to forgive him (Long). She was intensely devoted to protecting Alexander’s legacy, even though he had caused her so much heartbreak. However, ELiza didn’t stop there. After Alexander’s death in 1804, Eliza collected and published all of Alexander’s letter and writings (Long). She wanted to establish his legacy as a politician, and make sure he got the respect he deserved for his achievements. When other politicians tried to take credit for his work, Eliza fiercely stood up for her late husband, insisting that the work was his doing (Long). Eliza devoted her entire life to Alexander, and even in her 50 years of widowhood, she refused to stop.

Davis. She spoke of how in the coquette it was a bad idea to become independent. Like women were afraid to be themselves and not be in the institution of marriage. She stated, “Eliza fails and dies at least in part because there is no space in eighteenth-century American culture for a woman who wishes to remain independent.” (Davis, 385) She meant that Eliza is could not be independent. The power of marriage played a magnificent role in the culture and if she did not do what the norm was then she was looked down

An example of this notion is shown in Hope Leslie when Governor Winthrop, the landlord, reacts to Hope, the tenant, coming home late and refuses to reveal her reason why: “...Winthrop was not accustomed to have his inquisitorial rights resisted by those in his own household, and he was more struck than pleased by Hope’s moral courage” (184). Evidently, Winthrop’s reaction proves that women with “moral courage” are unladylike because moral courage is a manly trait. On the other hand, Esther Downing, another character in Hope Leslie, embodies the cult of true womanhood. Esther’s mere look at her love interest Everell is described as “a look of...pleased dependence, which is natural... and which men like to inspire, because --perhaps -- it seems to them an instinctive tribute to their natural superiority” (219). So, “Esther’s look … of dependence” confirms that the expectation that all women are supposed to have the same behavior, gestures and personality is meant to not only please men but to also hide their true form. Therefore, the cult of true womanhood presents an internal battle in female writers and Sedgwick presents this womanly struggle through the contrast between Hope and Esther. Society wants women to be quaint housewives but publishing a book defies the cult of true womanhood. Thus, defying the qualities rooted in the cult of true womanhood causes high risk of

England has always had a rich history of interesting cultural traditions but arguably none as prevalent as marriage. Marriage, the union of two people with emotional ideals and expectations, are brought on by many different factors that include: for love, for money, for climbing social status, escapism, survival, etc. In Jane Austen’s novels, she focuses on the importance of marriage in her world because she wanted to emphasize how marriage is the most important life event of a woman as this would determine her place in society. Persuasion shows readers good and bad examples of marriage: the amiable Crofts and other couples such as Sir Walter & Lady Elliot and the Smiths. Jane Austen uses the Crofts to support the importance of marriage

She retorts back by replying, “You want me back only to pick up your slippers and put up with your tempers and fetch and carry for you.” Eliza is mere domestic helper for Higgins, a helping hand to Mrs. Pearce even if Eliza can be much more than that. This is the crude reality of the patriarchal setup. Women, how much ever is qualified, is better than the opposite gender when it comes to education, the opposite sex will always take her as a house maid or a person working under him.