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Volume 1, Letter 12
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Evelina: or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Sensibility, Etiquette, and Appearances
Gender, Reputation, and Marriage
Inheritance, Class, and Nobility
Innocence, Guidance, and Experience
Summary
Analysis
Evelina writes to Mr. Villars and tells him that she attended a “ridotto,” or public ball, with the Mirvans the previous night. Although it was busy, Evelina noticed Lord Orville in the crowd. She felt certain that he would not want to dance with her again, after she acted foolishly at the last ball. In fact, she did not plan to dance at all, as Mrs. Mirvan said that it was not proper for an unmarried young woman to dance with a stranger in public.
Upper-class society in 18th-century Britain was rigidly structured around etiquette and manners. Evelina is embarrassed because she has not been educated in etiquette and often makes mistakes. As a young woman, Evelina must take extra care not to offend people through a lapse in etiquette. Women’s reputations were extremely fragile in this period, and people judged women more harshly than they judged men.
Themes
A young nobleman named Sir Clement Willoughby approaches Evelina and asks her to dance with him. Evelina is flustered because she does not want to dance; to escape the situation, she lies and tells him that she already has a partner. Rather than leave her alone, however, Sir Clement begins to follow Evelina around and ask her numerous questions about her partner.
Sir Clement suspects that Evelina has lied (deception was considered a breach of etiquette) and wants to shame her into admitting this. However, although Sir Clement wants to show Evelina up for being rude, he’s clearly being hypocritical, as his own behavior is discourteous. For all of Sir Clement’s posturing about etiquette, he lacks sensibility—an 18th-century concept associated with empathy and kindness, which was believed to be synonymous with etiquette—because he does not care that he embarrasses Evelina.
Themes
When Evelina finds a seat, Sir Clement follows her and sits down beside her. He says it is a crime for a woman as beautiful as Evelina to be left without a dance partner. Sir Clement says that Evelina’s absent partner must be a terrible rogue, and he compliments Evelina on her patience and fortitude. Evelina is confused because she does not know this man and finds his speech disconcerting. She begs him to leave her alone and tries to move, but again, he follows.
Sir Clement’s manner reflects his awareness that sensibility was popular in fashionable 18th-century society. Sensibility was associated with a deep empathy for others and strong emotional reactions to suffering. Burney demonstrates that fashionable sensibility was often disingenuous, however, as it was about making people look good rather than genuinely empathizing with others. Sir Clement pretends to feel deeply for Evelin, even though he does not know her— and in fact, he causes her suffering by pestering her and making her uncomfortable. This is something that a truly sensible person, like Evelina herself or Lord Orville, would not do.
Themes
Evelina tries to lose Sir Clement in the crowd, but Sir Clement sticks with her and even asks Captain Mirvan and Mrs. Mirvan to persuade Evelina to dance. Captain Mirvan says that Evelina can do as she likes, and he stalks off. Mrs. Mirvan quietly warns Evelina that if she does not dance with Sir Clement, he will follow her all night, so Evelina finally agrees to dance with him. She suspects that Sir Clement knows she lied about having a partner, however, and thinks that he wants to punish her for this.
Certain aspects of 18th-century British society were misogynistic—for instance, men felt entitled to treat women rudely because women had few rights and little social power to protect themselves. Evelina is not married and therefore does not have a husband to defend her. She cannot rely on Captain Mirvan, who is a negligent guardian; therefore, she is forced to go along with Sir Clement to avoid further hassle from him.
Themes
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When the dance is over, Evelina tries to escape from Sir Clement, but he reminds her that etiquette dictates she must stay with him a little longer. Evelina angrily submits and Sir Clement asks her why she is annoyed. Evelina complains that Sir Clement has bullied her and imposed himself upon her, but Sir Clement tells her scornfully that she should be grateful, since her other partner abandoned her.
Although etiquette was believed to be synonymous with virtue in the 18th century, Sir Clement proves that etiquette can be used in a negative way. Just because someone abides by etiquette rules does not mean that they are truly polite, courteous, or considerate of others. This suggests that etiquette was not a sign of innate virtue but rather an arbitrary social system in this period.
Themes
Just as this exchange takes place, Evelina notices Lord Orville in the crowd; and Sir Clement decides that Lord Orville must be the partner who abandoned her. Sir Clement says that Evelina must go to Lord Orville and tell him she has found someone else to dance with, but Evelina is confused and irritably asks what he means. Lord Orville is with Mrs. Mirvan, and the pair advance through the crowd and meet Sir Clement and Evelina.
Sir Clement suspects that Evelina has lied about having a partner, so he wants to shame her because she has broken etiquette conventions. His goal is to embarrass her in front of Lord Orville, who is a prestigious nobleman. Although Sir Clement has followed etiquette conventions, whereas Evelina has inadvertently broken them by lying, Sir’s Clement behavior is cruel and does not give Evelina the benefit of the doubt. He assumes she is a liar, rather than recognizing that she does not understand etiquette. This proves Burney’s point that etiquette does not necessarily line up with virtue.
Themes
Sir Clement greets Lord Orville—it is clear that the pair know each other—and asks him why he has deserted his dance partner, Evelina. Lord Orville is confused, as he has not asked Evelina to dance. Evelina is so flustered that she breaks down in tears. Sir Clement immediately rushes away to fetch Evelina some water. Lord Orville, meanwhile, is extremely kind and polite and leads Evelina to a chair. She is too upset to remain at the ball, however, and Mrs. Mirvan calls a servant to escort Evelina home.
Although Sir Clement has technically proven his point—Evelina is forced to admit that she did break etiquette conventions when she lied about having a partner—his behavior toward her is cruel and thoughtless. 18th-century society felt that studied politeness (etiquette) was also a sign of innate virtue and sensibility (empathy). However, Sir Clement’s behavior suggests that etiquette does not equal empathy, as he cares more about arbitrary etiquette conventions than he does about Evelina’s feelings.
Themes
The next morning, both Lord Orville and Sir Clement call at Mrs. Mirvan’s lodgings to inquire after Evelina’s health. Evelina refuses to see them and is horrified when she considers what Lord Orville must think of her. She is most concerned that he will believe that she behaved presumptuously and used his name to make herself appear important at the ball. Captain Mirvan plans to take them to the theater again for their last night in town, and Evelina confesses that she will be glad to leave London and return to Berry Hill and to Mr. Villars.
Lord Orville is part of the nobility, a privileged class and revered class in 18th-century British society. Because of this admiration, many lower-class people aspired to join the nobility—or at least to make it look like they had, by name-dropping or spending time with nobles. However, social mobility was almost impossible in this period, and those who tried to transcend their class were looked down upon by the nobility as deluded social climbers. Evelina does not want Lord Orville to think of her like this, because she does not aspire to join the nobility and is happy with her middle-class status.
Themes
