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Volume 1, Letter 1
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
Mr. Villars writes back to Lady Howard. He hopes that Madame Duval’s letter is a sign that she feels guilty for abandoning her daughter, Caroline. Mr. Villars asks Lady Howard to tell Madame Duval that he has educated her granddaughter, Evelina, as best he can, and that he feels Evelina should remain with him for the moment. Furthermore, Mr. Villars also feels that Madame Duval is an unsuitable example for Evelina, as Madame Duval is coarse, uneducated, and immoral.
In contrast to Mr. Villars, who has been a reliable guardian to Evelina, Madame Duval was an absent mother and a poor role model to her own daughter, Caroline. Mr. Villars has clearly tried hard to instill good moral values in Evelina, and he is afraid that Madame Duval’s bad example may undo his work and lead Evelina astray.
Themes
Mr. Villars explains that Evelina’s grandfather, Mr. Evelyn, was once his young student whom Mr. Villars took traveling. Mr. Evelyn fell in love with Madame Duval, a barmaid, during this trip. He married her even though his friends, including Mr. Villars, warned him against this. But Mr. Evelyn, infatuated by Madame Duval’s beauty, didn’t heed their advice. Mr. Evelyn died shortly after his ill-fated marriage to Madame Duval.
Mr. Evelyn’s experience demonstrates the importance of having—and heeding—moral guidance, especially when the people who offer it have one’s best interests in mind. Meanwhile, it’s clear that Mr. Evelyn is upper-class, while Madame Duval is lower-class. The class hierarchy in 18th-century Britain was extremely rigid, and marriages between people from different classes were heavily discouraged.
Themes
Before Mr. Evelyn died, he begged Mr. Villars to look after his daughter, Caroline, who he had with Madame Duval. Mr. Evelyn did not want Caroline to be raised by Madame Duval, as he did not think she was a suitable role model. After Mr. Evelyn’s death, Madame Duval abandoned Caroline and left her with Mr. Villars, who raised her as his own.
Mr. Evelyn marries Madame Duval against Mr. Villars’s wishes, even though Mr. Villars only wants what is best for Mr. Evelyn. Mr. Evelyn realizes too late that this is an error and does not want his daughter, Caroline, to make similar mistakes as she grows up. Mr. Evelyn leaves Caroline with Mr. Villars because, although he did not follow Mr. Villars’s advice, he believes that Caroline is more likely to grow into a moral and sensible person if she is raised by a responsible role model like Mr. Villars, rather than an irresponsible one like Madame Duval.
Themes
Mr. Villars loved Caroline and took good care of her. When Caroline was 18, Madame Duval (who was now married to a French nobleman in Paris) demanded that Mr. Villars send Caroline to her. Mr. Villars laments that he did not go with Caroline; if he had been with her, he might have been able to guide her away from the scandal and heartbreak which befell her.
Mr. Villars understands how important good role models are for young and impressionable people. Although he provided Caroline with a good upbringing and education, he feels that he made a mistake by sending Caroline to Madame Duval alone. Without his guidance, Caroline was not experienced enough to withstand Madame Duval’s negative influence, and Madame Duval led her astray.
Themes
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When Caroline arrived in France, Madame Duval tried to force her to marry one of her husband’s wealthy relatives. Caroline, frightened by Madame Duval, ran away with a dashing young nobleman named Sir John Belmont and secretly married him instead. However, Sir John abandoned Caroline soon afterward, destroyed the marriage license, and denied that the wedding ever took place. Madame Duval then disowned Caroline. Although Mr. Villars believed Caroline was innocent, the strain of events was too much for Caroline, and she died shortly after the birth of her daughter, Evelina.
Madame Duval is lower-class but has married a French nobleman, seemingly so that she can join the nobility. However, although nobility was viewed as synonymous with virtue in the 18th century, Madame Duval is greedy and ambitious and does not care about Caroline, whom she tries to force into a marriage for the sake of prestige. Sir John, who is from a noble family, is also an immoral person and seduces the impressionable Caroline. This supports Burney’s point that nobility isn’t an inherent marker of goodness. Caroline’s reputation is destroyed because women of her time were expected to remain pure until marriage—by destroying the marriage license, Sir John makes it look like Caroline became pregnant out of wedlock.
Themes
Mr. Villars took charge of Evelina, as he had cared for her grandfather Mr. Evelyn and mother, Caroline, before her. Mrs. Villars loves Evelina as his own child and hopes that he will not fail to keep her safe, as he did Mr. Evelyn and Caroline. For this reason, Mr. Villars cannot bear to send Evelina to stay with Madame Duval and, in fact, barely lets her out of his sight at all.
Mr. Villars has learned from his previous mistakes of letting Mr. Evelyn and Caroline spend time with Madame Duval alone. He refuses to repeat these mistakes with Evelina for fear of Madame Duval leading her to ruin as well. In 18th-century Britain, young unmarried women were viewed as their guardian’s property, so Mr. Villars has the power to decide Evelina’s fate.
Themes
