Fanny Burney's Evelina, or the History of a Young Lady's Entrance into the World

Abstract

The aim for the composition of this dissertation is thoroughly elaborate the debut book of Fanny Burney entitled Evelina, or the History of a Young Lady's Entrance into the World, which belongs to the eighteenth-century novels of sensibility tradition. The attempt primarily has been made to illuminate the issues of namelessness of women and their perpetual search for identity, innocence as a personality trait, patriarchy and its magnanimous effects on both fictional and non-fictional realms and the two types of delicacy that are prevalent in the work; in addition, male imprudence, the clash of model selves, parasites and paragons and how Burney treats them, and last but not least, male condescension are discussed, too. Even though the novel focuses on Evelina and her progress in her new, less protective environment; the confirmative features of those of the secondary figures are additionally employed. The truly admirable chivalry of Orville, and how he practices gallantry to perfection have been analyzed in depth, especially in comparison with the other male characters that appear in the book. There are also a number of pertinent references to other novels produced in the same period, all of which this specific reader deems instrumental to the exploration of the discursive focus. Furthermore, a body of secondary readings by various authors have been consulted in an attempt to accurately examine the aspects that render the work one of the most eminent in its time of publication, as well as provide a strong basis for the entirety of the book in question. Accordingly, there are allusions to the authoress’ familial bonds to which she gave utmost priority, her arduous quest for approval for her creations, her subtle resentment for her father, her relationship with her siblings in her childhood, the formidable literary circle into which she was introduced thanks to her father’s prudently climbing the social ladder and its mighty contribution to her career and her friendship with Hester Thrale, since they all served to construct and shape her presence in the professional scene.