| Front | Clarissa |
|---|---|
| Back | the history of a young lady S Richardson 1747 like his first novel Pamela, it's epistolary in the form Robert Lovelace she runs away with him to discover his real nature is dishonorable eventually he drugs and then rapes her she dies of Shame and grief the longest novel in English Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady is an epistolary novel by English writer Samuel Richardson, published in 1748. It tells the tragic story of a young woman, Clarissa Harlowe, whose quest for virtue is continually thwarted by her family. The Harlowes are a recently wealthy family whose preoccupation with increasing their standing in society leads to obsessive control of their daughter, Clarissa, who ultimately dies as a result. It is considered one of the longest novels in the English language (based on estimated word count). It is generally regarded as Richardson's masterpiece. Picture from "Lettres angloises, ou histoire de Miss Clarisse Harlove." 1751. Quick facts: Author, Country … In 2015 the BBC ranked Clarissa 14th on its list of the 100 greatest British novels. Plot summary Clarissa's older sister, Arabella, begins to be courted by Robert Lovelace, a wealthy “libertine” and heir to a substantial estate. However, she rejects him because she felt that he put more effort into gaining the approval of her parents than in wooing her and felt disrespected by this. Lovelace quickly moves on from Arabella to Clarissa, much to the displeasure of Arabella and their brother James Harlowe. Despite Clarissa's insistence in her dislike for Lovelace, Arabella grows jealous of her younger sister for Lovelace's interest in her. James, also, dislikes Lovelace greatly because of a duel which had occurred between the two of them. These feelings combine with resentment that Clarissa was left a piece of land by their grandfather and leads to aggression towards Clarissa from her siblings. It is proposed that Clarissa marry Roger Solmes, a match that the entire Harlowe family, except Clarissa, accepts. Clarissa, however, finds Solmes to be unpleasant company and does not wish to marry him. This makes her family suspicious of her feelings towards Lovelace, and they begin acting paranoid towards her insistence that she does not care for Lovelace either. |
Learn with these flashcards. Click next, previous, or up to navigate to more flashcards for this subject.
Next card: Man young claverings trollope harry schoolmaster resolved engineer
Previous card: Poem pilgrimage holy melville american great land melville's
Up to card list: Wordsworth companion to literature by Bahman Moradi