Foster - Coquette

The demise of a respectable but unloved fiancé introduces a sudden and intoxicating freedom into Eliza Wharton's life. Two new beaus vie for her attention: Reverend Boyer a staid and proper clergyman and Major Sanford a dashing libertine. Reluctant to commit to either suitor Eliza struggles with the conflicts between duty romance and her new-found independence.Based on the true story of Eliza Whitman the much-talked-about focus of America's first tabloid scandal this 1797 novel both satirizes and pays homage to its sentimental precursors. The tale unfolds from a variety of perspectives recounted in a series of letters between the heroine and her friends and family. Eliza's situation reflects the limited options available to middle-class women of her era and her dilemma and its resolution offer fascinating historical literary and cultural insights into early American society.