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
The next morning, Mr. Smith brings Evelina a ticket to a ball at Hampstead and asks her to go with him. He is shocked when Evelina says that he is rude because he did not ask Madame Duval’s permission first. Mr. Smith then apologizes to Madame Duval and flatters her until she agrees to take Evelina to the ball. Evelina is irritated that she must go and dance with Mr. Smith.
Evelina has not been educated in etiquette, a strict manners system that dictated social interaction among the upper classes in 18th-century Britain. However, she has spent time with upper-class people like the Mirvans, so she understands that it is improper for a man she hardly knows to invite her to a ball without first asking her guardian. Madame Duval, who is Evelina’s guardian in London, is also uneducated in etiquette, however. She isn’t a good role model for Evelina, as she does not follow etiquette conventions and therefore may lead Evelina into situations that compromise her social reputation.
Themes
The next day, Evelina writes that she has been involved in a shocking incident and has saved a person’s life. That morning, Madame Duval sends her to call upon the Branghtons, but Miss Branghton and Polly are not home when she arrives. Mr. Branghton invites Evelina upstairs and says that she can wait for them there. While Evelina waits, she sees Mr. Macartney rush upstairs past the Branghton’s door toward his own room. He trips on his way and, to Evelina’s horror, a pistol falls from his pocket.
Evelina is highly sensible (sensibility was an 18th-century term for empathy and strong emotional responses to other people’s suffering). She tends to have strong emotional reactions to shocking or surprising incidents in her life, whereas those around her merely pretend to be sensible.
Themes
Evelina suspects that Mr. Macartney plans to hurt himself with the pistol. At first, she wants to fetch Mr. Branghton—but suddenly perceiving that there is no time to waste, she hurries after Mr. Macartney. Once upstairs, Evelina finds Mr. Macartney kneeling on the floor of his room with two pistols in his hands. She rushes to him, knocks the weapons away, and begs him not to harm himself. Mr. Macartney is stunned and cries out that Evelina must be his angel. Thinking quickly, Evelina grabs the pistols and hurries out of the room, taking them back downstairs to Mr. Branghton’s flat.
Although Evelina is young and inexperienced, her trip to the city puts her in situations where she must learn to think quickly and responsibly by herself. Evelina’s sensibility guides her decision making here and causes her to act impulsively. Although impulsive behavior was often considered impolite or improper by strict 18th-century etiquette codes, Burney demonstrates that sometimes, it is better to be guided by instinct than by manners.
Themes
Mr. Branghton is not in his room when Evelina gets downstairs. She immediately flings the pistols away, collapses on a sofa, and bursts into tears. When she looks up, Mr. Macartney is standing at the door with a look of wonder on his face. He tries to take the pistols again, but Evelina begs him to think of his life and to reconsider. Mr. Macartney says that he must be dreaming. Just then, they hear the Branghtons on the stairs; Mr. Macartney hurries away to his room, leaving the pistols behind.
Evelina has just saved Mr. Macartney from suicide, and she has an extremely emotional reaction to his suffering further demonstrates her natural sensibility. Genuine sensibility was also associated with virtue, which Evelina clearly possesses in saving Macartney’s life.
Themes
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Evelina faints as soon as Mr. Macartney leaves the room and is woken by the Branghton’s screams as they enter and see her lying on the floor. They noisily interrogate her about what happened, and Evelina begs them to watch over Mr. Macartney for the next few days. Evelina knows that if Mr. Macartney is determined to hurt himself, no one can stop him—but she hopes that she has done some good in giving him time to think.
Again, Evelina’s sensibility guides her behavior here. Whereas the Branghtons were quick to brush Mr. Macartney off and mock his sadness, Evelina’s genuine concern for him ended up saving his life. Her sensibility reflects her innate virtue: she saves Mr. Macartney for his sake rather than for any personal gain, much like Lord Orville looked out for Evelina and expected nothing in return.
Themes
Literary Devices
