Clarissa: p. 1-136

Or, for Nat, 9 mm.

Briefly, the novel, published 1747-48, is about a young woman who is tricked into running away from her overbearing family, is raped, and then dies. Clarissa is an epistolary novel, that is, a novel composed entirely of letters written between characters, a common literary genre in the 18th century.

The first section describes the deterioration of Clarissa's relationship with her family, who are trying to force her to marry a rich man whom she finds repulsive, physically and morally. The novel begins in media res, though there is some useful summary of antecedent action. Structurally, I'm struck by Mrs. Harlowe's three visits to Clarissa's set of rooms (taking place in increasingly intimate spaces—her library and then her closet) where she tries to persuade her to marry the odious Mr. Solmes. There's a stage-y confrontation in a parlour which Clarissa directs and then escapes (as if into the wings), and a gradual curtailing of her personal space—the places in the house where she can go.

I've also noticed the gradual introduction of Lovelace's voice into the text. At first, Clarissa only paraphrases one of his letters in a letter to her best friend, Anna Howe, and in a later letter she quotes a few sentences from another letter. Also, Clarissa occasionally quotes a snippet or two of Lovelace's conversation which she remembers. This seems to be foreshadowing Lovelace's appearance as a letter writer in the novel. He will eventually dominate the letter writing, not only writing the longest letters and the most frequently, but also by intercepting Clarissa's letters and forging letters from both Clarissa and Anna.

There also seems to be something at work regarding the theme of freedom and independence. Clarissa frequently declares that her heart is free (her family suspects she secretly loves Lovelace). I think there's a connection between her free heart and her economic independence, which stems from a small estate left to her by her grandfather. I just can't figure out if it is indeed a simple correlation (Clarissa's independence of heart = indpendence of fortune) or a misunderstanding of how a woman's public worth is measured not in dollars but in reputation and virtue. Clarissa's heart may be free, but if it is not seen to be so (and it's not), then she will never fully escape the plots and snares of her family.

And finally, I cannot shake the sense of dread I have when re-reading this novel. Knowing all the bad things that are going to happen makes me less eager to get into the book.