Evelina: or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World: Volume 1, Letter 21 Summary & Analysis

Evelina knows that British high society is shallow and judges people based on their family connections. She therefore knows that if people discover she is related to Madame Duval—who was born into the lower class—they will negatively judge Evelina based on this. However, Evelina does not want to jeopardize her relationship with Madame Duval, as Madame Duval is family and may help her reunite with her estranged father, Sir John. Sir Clement is curious about Evelina’s connection to Madame Duval because he is shallow and obsessed with social status—he wants to know more about Evelina’s rank.

Eighteenth-century Britain was strictly organized according to class, and social mobility between these classes was largely impossible. The theater represents this social separation, as Evelina is dressed to sit in the upper-class section (she was originally going with the upper-class Mirvans), while the Branghtons are not. The Branghtons are middle-class and have made their money through trade rather than inherited family wealth. Therefore, the Branghtons are not familiar with upper-class culture, such as the opera. Mr. Branghton does not want to admit his ignorance to Evelina, however, because he is a social climber and wants to blend in with the nobility—even though he cannot because of his middle-class status.

The Branghtons are ambitious and want to blend in with the nobility—but their outfits and their ignorance about upper-class customs immediately give them away. This suggests that just because people have money (the Branghtons have earned money through trade) does not mean they can transcend their class and join the nobility. Ultimately, the Branghtons end up in the lower-class section (the gallery) even though they tried to avoid this.

Although the Branghtons hoped to get seats in the pit with the nobility, they inadvertently end up in the gallery, where lower- and middle-class people sit. This demonstrates that social mobility was impossible in this period, and that the Branghtons, who have made their money through trade rather than inherited family wealth, will never be accepted among the nobility.

Evelina displays natural sensibility—a fashionable concept in the 18th century which was associated with empathy, authentic emotional reactions, and a natural ability to appreciate art. The Branghtons, however, are totally insensible to the performance. Evelina is out of place in the gallery (where middle- and lower-class audience members sit) because she is dressed for the upper-class pit. This signifies that, although Evelina was raised middle-class, she is still a noble by birth. Social mobility is rare in 18th-century Britain: Evelina cannot blend in with the middle class, just as middle-class people like the Branghtons cannot blend in with the nobility.

Again, Evelina displays natural sensibility through her deep appreciation of art. In contrast, the Branghtons are totally insensible and see no value in the opera. Therefore, they wrongly assume that no one could truly enjoy it, and they think that Evelina only pretends to enjoy it to show off.

Although the Branghtons treat Evelina as though she is naïve about fashionable, city life, really, Evelina is more refined and cultured than the Branghtons even though she was raised in the countryside (an area that was associated with innocence and naïveté in this period). Evelina is more accepted in polite society than the Branghtons because, although she is unfamiliar with upper-class etiquette, she is naturally sensible. Sensibility in this period referred to a person’s capacity for empathy and consideration for others, qualities that suggested they had naturally refined tastes.

Evelina is inexperienced and does not fully understand etiquette conventions, which governed 18th-century life. Because of her inexperience, she makes a mistake (going off with Sir Clement alone) and finds herself caught in a social trap: it is both improper for her to be in public alone and improper for her to be unchaperoned with a man. This is because 18th-century British society valued women’s purity—if an unmarried woman was seen alone with a man, it could seriously damage her reputation and negatively impact her chances of marriage.

Evelina is worried that if people see her in public with Sir Clement, without a guardian, her reputation will be damaged. Women’s reputations were extremely fragile in the 18th-century Britain, and rumors about a woman’s conduct could ruin even an innocent woman’s good name (as evidenced by what happened to Evelina’s mother, Caroline). Lord Orville behaves politely and considers Evelina’s reputation. Sir Clement, however, does not consider this and uses Evelina’s naïveté to his own advantage, to get time alone with her.

Evelina rightly worried about her reputation, as women in this period were expected to maintain their purity or risk their good name. Even if a woman does not accept a man’s advances—as in Evelina’s case—society will still believe a man’s word over a woman’s word. Sir Clement uses his power over Evelina as a man in a patriarchal society to try and pressure her into loving him.

Although Sir Clement makes a seemingly emotional appeal to Evelina, Evelina knows that this is all for show and that Sir Clement does not actually care about her. Sensibility (which referred to a person’s capacity for empathy) was fashionable in this period, and Sir Clement exaggerates his emotional state even though he has no genuine attachment to Evelina. Instead, he wants to seduce her. This is the opposite of authentic sensibility, as Sir Clement does not consider Evelina’s feelings and inconsiderately frightens her.

Sir Clement uses his status as a powerful noble man to try to take advantage of Evelina, who is young and inexperienced. He demonstrates that he is extremely insensitive and does not genuinely care about Evelina’s feelings, or the fact that her reputation could be destroyed if he seduces and then refuses to marry her.

Sir Clement appears extremely emotional when he realizes that he has upset Evelina. However, Sir Clement’s emotional outpouring is not genuine—he only apologizes because he realizes that he is not going to get his own way with Evelina, whom he’s trying to seduce. Lord Orville, in contrast, demonstrates his genuine sensibility as he is authentically concerned for Evelina’s well-being. He does the responsible thing by alerting her guardian.

Sir Clement made his driver go the wrong way on purpose, so that he could try to seduce Evelina. This suggests that Sir Clement is disingenuous:  he did not care about offending Evelina, a powerless young woman, yet he worries what Lord Orville thinks about him. This is because Lord Orville is a powerful nobleman and has more social clout than Evelina. Evelina worries that her reputation will be damaged if people know she was alone with Sir Clement. Eighteenth-century society valued purity in women, and most people felt that it was improper for unmarried women to go out alone with men.

Evelina worries that her reputation will be damaged if Lord Orville thinks that she planned to be alone with Sir Clement. Purity was highly valued in 18th-century Britain, so even innocent women could have their reputations destroyed if people believed that they had had premarital sex. Consequently, a damaged reputation could put suitors off and destroy a young woman’s marital prospects.