Hannah Webster Foster uses the character of Eliza Wharton in The Coquette; or The History of Eliza Wharton; A Novel; Founded on Fact to represent views that were not popular or appropriate for women to be outspoken about in 1797. Foster’s writing style and word choices challenge social standards and the pressure to marriage through Eliza’s questioning of tradition, as she is quite pragmatic, which eventually ends up tempering her disposition. The women who Eliza surrounds herself with, Julia, Lucy, and Mrs. Richman, each represent the societal norms that Eliza opposes. Additionally, the attitudes and views towards marriage of Eliza’s two love interests, Reverend Boyer and Major Sanford, further temper Eliza’s disposition, fueling her resistance to get remarried and embrace her freedom. Hannah Webster Foster’s The Coquette; or The History of Eliza Wharton; A Novel; Founded on Fact is a positive feminist view of female empowerment in the late 1700s through the eyes of the protagonist, Eliza Wharton – a woman who forcefully challenges female social obedience and refuses to marry without love, because of men’s views and attitudes towards marriage in a heavily patriarchal society.
To begin, the social standards and pressure for marriage in the time period prove to be troublesome for Eliza Wharton. 1700’s Massachusetts required women to be traditional by taking a man’s hand in marriage, whether there was love in the relationship or not. This is pragmatic to Eliza to remain in the same social circle, who wants her freedom and independence – this leads her to be referred to as a coquette. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word “coquette” is defined as “a woman who endeavors without sincere affection to gain the attention and admiration of men,” or simply put, a flirt (Merriam-Webster). However, there were few other options for women at that time. Eliza’s desire to be independent and free from men puts her in a position in which she becomes a threat to other couples and could be viewed as a projection of a negative image of women at the time, who were usually thought of as pure and monogamous – the opposite of how Eliza is portrayed. Elizabeth Dill (2003) suggests that “In The Coquette, words such as "passion," "appetite," and "propensity" represent the origin of a sociability in Eliza that simply cannot be helped,” or that she is giving into her primitive desires in order to access her free self (Dill, 264). Yet, it can be argued that Eliza simply did not believe in the society’s need for traditional standards; hence, her need to live her life as she chooses. As Eliza states, “I believe I shall never again resume those airs, which you term coquettish, but which I think deserve a softer appellation; as they proceed from an innocent heart, and are the effusions of a youthful, and cheerful mind” (Webster Foster, 844). She puts off Reverend Boyer’s frequent requests for an engagement, not only because of Major Sanford, but because she is fully aware that once she marries, her world will drastically minimize. Additionally, the words “free will” and “freedom” appear frequently in The Coquette, mainly in reference to how Eliza’s world would change and be limited to just her parlor, which ends up being part of her reasoning for resisting marriage without love so strongly. Eliza Wharton’s convicting passion steers her in a direction in which she is disapproved by people at the time for being a coquette but is following what she believes in and is taking the means to achieve her freedom, regardless of the society she is scrutinized by.
Furthermore, friendship is just as important as marriage in the The Coquette; or The History of Eliza Wharton; A Novel; Founded on Fact. Because she does not have intimate relationships with her parents and is not yet re-married, Eliza heavily relies on her friends, Julia, Lucy, and Mrs. Richman, for advice, solace, and entertainment. She is aware that friendships grow and evolve, and she respects that young and single women get engaged, marry, and have children. This novel presents the complexities of friendship, especially as Eliza's friends often are condescending and judgmental of Eliza’s situation and feelings than caring and understanding. This is apparent when Lucy remarks, “To see a woman depart so far from the female character, as to assume the masculine habit and attitudes; and appear entirely indifferent, even to the externals of modesty, is truly disgusting, and ought not to be countenanced by our attendance, much less by our approbation” (Webster Foster, 844). Regarding the nature of Eliza’s friendship, Dill proposes in her analysis that “Foster's study of The Coquette reflects an understanding of the home as a place where the wayward desires of women might develop connections with the social world around them.” (Dill, 257-258). Argument, Concluding Sentence
Finally, the attitudes and views of Reverend Boyer and Major Stanford toward marriage temper Eliza’s disposition further, to the point where she is prepared to marry Reverend Boyer but sustain her relationship with Major Stanford. This is contradictory to the beliefs of the society, that “the existing institution of marriage as the singular source of stability in an otherwise wayward world;” this being the reason that many of the outside characters and confidantes advise Eliza to terminate her coquettish ways (Joudrey, 68). She sustains the belief that “marriage is the tomb of friendship. It appears to me a very selfish state. Why do people, in general, as soon as they are married, centre all their cares, their concerns, and pleasures in their own families? Former acquaintances are neglected or forgotten. The tenderest ties between friends are weakened, or dissolved; and benevolence itself moves in a very limited sphere” (Webster Foster, 854). Therefore, it does not come as a surprise when she refuses to marry without love. Reverend Boyer wants Eliza to be more prim and proper because he is a traditional man; he requests of her that she become more humble (Webster Foster, 890). Additionally, because of the nature of their relationship and Eliza’s conformity to Reverend Boyer’s requests, Major Stanford is jealous. He does not want Reverend Boyer to marry Eliza, however he carries no genuine feelings for her until later in the novel. It is inferred that "as Eliza Wharton goes public, as she regulates her sensiblitliy and rises in the view of other, her prospects, in her own mind, seem to rise. Actually, she becomes less free, for in virtue’s marketplace she is a defined commodity: not allowed to change, to be various, or even to have an interior and the exterior, nature and nurture, public and private” (Waldstreicher, 207). Meaning, while she appears to be a coquette to Major Sanford, she is only exhibiting her true love of the social status she holds; she seems to be a coquette to Mr. Boyer as well, but simply because she has dared to challenge the societal expectation that she “must” marry rather than indulge in her freedom. The more she is scrutinized and diminished in character, leading up to and eventually causing her death, by Reverend Boyer and Major Stanford, the less free she becomes. To call Eliza Wharton a coquette is only accurate in the sense that as a woman, she tried to live freely to her own standards, and as a result, she was censored by a patriarchal society that attempted to force her to obey.
As was previously stated, Hannah Webster Foster’s The Coquette; or The History of Eliza Wharton; A Novel; Founded on Fact is a positive feminist view of female empowerment in the late 1700s through the eyes of the protagonist, Eliza Wharton – a woman who challenges social norms and refuses to marry without love, because of men’s views and attitudes towards marriage in a heavily patriarchal society. The social standards and pressure for marriage in the time are problematic for Eliza Wharton, as it is enforced that women are to be traditional by taking a man’s hand in marriage; the main conflict arises with the societal standards and Eliza’s rebellion when she desires to remain in the same social circle without marriage, based upon her beliefs in love, and wanting her freedom and independence.
Friendship proves to be just as important as marriage because Eliza heavily reliance on her friends for advice, solace, and entertainment. The various natures of Eliza’s friends present the intricacies of friendships.