Reviews

The Coquette by Cathy N. Davidson, Hannah Webster Foster

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musingswithmiranda's review against another edition

3.0

I had not heard of this novel before, but I had to read it for an American literature class. Overall, it was pretty enjoyable. I really appreciated my class discussions as well; I think they really enhanced the novel and helped explore what it might mean.

Hannah Webster Foster’s The Coquette is a tragic tale of Eliza Wharton seeking freedom and independence for the first time. Eliza is also being pursued by two men, Reverend J. Boyer and Major Peter Sanford. The story is told in a series of letters, so we get to see multiple perspectives. Eliza hopes to enjoy independence before settling down, but her friends have other ideas of what she should be doing and who she should marry. I really enjoyed how this novel discusses marriage and wealth. In that regard, it reminded me a lot of Jane Austen’s Emma and Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.

In my literature class, we talked about how this novel is actually a metaphor for the birth of democracy. It was interesting to play around with this idea and what it meant for the story as a whole. We saw Eliza as early America and the male suitors as the two political parties. These ideas were strengthened because we also read some of the Federalists Papers beforehand. I appreciated how Foster seems to use letters as a metaphor for democracy while also considering the effects of social conventions.

ebussa47's review

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adventurous lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A new favorite. I’m very sick of the conventional moralizing of early American writing, but this novel is pleasantly and surprisingly subversive.

lberestecki's review against another edition

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3.0

I felt like the different characters didn't have distinct enough voices, which is a big problem in an epistolary novel. It was a fine book, but there are definitely better society novels out there (like Edith Wharton or F. Scott Fitzgerald) that I would recommend over this one.

Received from netgalley.

katherine_kelley's review against another edition

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2.0

I might come back to this once we discuss it in class, but I liked parts of it. I just don’t approve of the thesis and ending of this novel. I also don’t think it’s particularly skillful. Anyway, it’s just my opinion of my enjoyment.