Although Hannah Webster Foster calls her book The Coquette, there is ambiguity as to who the true coquette of the story is. Eliza Wharton, nicknamed the coquette by Foster and the other characters in the story, does not follow the rules of coquetry. Instead it is Major Peter Sanford who fits the social definition of a flirt which allows Eliza to demonstrate more masculine characteristics, as the primary female identity is not hers. Foster creates a gender role reversal in an attempt to challenge contemporary visions for women in the public sphere. Foster presents Eliza as the victim to define society's rules that govern women's actions in public. Eliza's actions—the activities that her female counterparts deem flirtatious—with Major Sanford's flirtatious behaviors are not reconcilable but instead offer a reason as to why women are not permitted to pursue the individual freedoms defined by patriarchy. The freedoms Eliza desires include: sexual freedom, access to wealth and material gain, and a strong public appearance. The attack on Eliza's flirtatiousness has nothing to do with virtues or her character, but rather a cover story to hide contemporary fears of gender roles, heterosexuality and marriage, and above all agency feminine in a changing world. The role reversals within the story create a new dynamic for gender roles, aiding Eliza in her search for "power" in a masculine world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The primary role reversal within The Coquette is Eliza's grasp on male power. Eliza Wharton, along with the rest of the women in The Coquette, struggles to deal with the loss of self-definition as she tries to maintain the balance between the space of the republican mother and that of the marginalized coquette (Richards). While decidedly not a republican mother, throwing away all thoughts of marriage and family, Eliza finds herself facing the fate of a ruined coquette.[i] When speaking of the domestic sphere Eliza says, “Back at the thought of forming immediately a bond that must confine me to the duties of domestic life…(Foster 23).”Although Eliza does not desire to be a man, she rejects the expectations of the women of her time in an attempt to gain male power. According to "Consent, Coquetry, and Consequences," "her plot to evade the marital expectations placed on her causes her friends to call her flirtatious." She is not easily persuaded by Boyer's open exclamation of love nor does she seem interested when Sanford admits his feelings towards her. Eliza thinks of “marriage as the tomb of friendship. All previous acquaintances are neglected or forgotten, and the tenderest bonds between friends weaken or dissolve (Foster 19-20).” She has no interest in marrying anyone because she enjoys her freedom and friendships among other women. According to the author of “Can Your Fickle Daughter Ever Acquire Your Wisdom? Luxury and False Ideals in The Owl", Laura Korobkin, "Eliza's resistance to the constraining forces of bourgeois marriage and the conformist advice of her social cohort mark her as a powerful advocate for personal freedom and political autonomy." In today's society it is often the man to reject the social construction of marriage due to his lack of commitment and desire to be with the "boys", but Eliza makes it clear that she will not be a republican mother Boyer throws herself into the idea of ​​love and of marriage, while Sanford, though accidentally in love with her, refuses to marry someone inferiorfinancial value. Eliza is the only character in control of her emotions and those around her. It is because of Eliza's rejection of feminine norms that she is considered a flirt. However, by definition, it lacks the means to be so. By social definition, a coquette is “a bewitching girl” who is “happily thought to break a husband's heart.” (Anonymous)." Although the article "A Modern Coquette's Account of Herself" found in The Salem Chronicle is a work of satire, it provides a social definition of what a coquette does. The article reads: "If a gentleman, therefore, has the slightest inclination to become both a beggar and a cuckold, he can by no means turn to one. person most devoted to her service." Eliza seeks to improve herself through marriage, but for this reason she does not try to play both Boyer and Major Sanford. Instead she suffers within herself in choosing the “right” suitor. Her romantic actions of taking the time to choose the man are contradictory to the characteristics of a coquette. Instead of being the coquette or the republican mother, Eliza Wharton offers a new definition of the contemporary woman and the role of women in society. In the case of The Coquette it is a "bewitching" man who wreaks havoc not only in Eliza's heart, but also in her reputation and relationships. Knowing the effects a flirt has on a man, Sanford plans to beat Eliza at her sex game. He says “But I fancy this young woman is a coquette” and plans to “avenge [her] sex, avenging the wrongs she mediates against us (Foster 15).” Sanford is not the only man considered a coquette of his time. According to Gillian Brown's article, "There are as many flirtatious men as women and they are far more pernicious parasites on society, for their sphere of action is wider and they are less exposed to the censure of the world." Lucy evaluates Sanford's disposition by saying, "Fatility for this Major Sanford...he is a libertine, my dear friend (Foster 21)." During this time period, men were considered libertines while flirtation was reserved for flirtatious women. Although Major Sanford is considered a libertine, he is still invited to all the parties where women want to be with him and men envy him. According to Korobkin, "Foster clearly censures Eliza's society for allowing his apparent good fortune to overcome scruples about his character so as to fail to exclude him from their social circle. He also makes Eliza the recipient of a chorus of pointed condemnations of Sanford who reject him as an appropriate suitor women were judged more harshly while holding the title of coquette than a man who held the title of libertine Eliza wishes to have the power of a public appearance as Sanford claims, but she is lost due to her conviction as a coquette, being a woman with few material resources, she is “confined to the rigid rules of prudence and economy” while Sanford's entire style is devoted to “spectacle” and accoutrement” (Richards). ) The culture of the party she is a member of is that of “women being asked to invest deeply in their appearance and then be mocked for this obsession” (Rosenman).” Sanford's elegant dress and excessive extensions of his wealth are what characterize him as masculine, while Eliza's attempt to appear in public is rejected. The importance of appearance is seen most when Eliza prepares for the visit of Boyer and says, “I have to start fixing my physique and try, if I can, to come up with one that will look crazy (Foster 48).” Although she tries to look rich, she fails and is still considered a coquette, losing not only the his reputationbut also his life. As Sanford takes the form of a ruined owl who says, "I'm broken!" after plotting to avoid poverty by marrying the heiress, Eliza is the one who ends up pregnant and a single beggar. Major Sanford's reputation and appearance give him the allure of masculinity that Eliza craves in contrast to Boyer's demure, feminine demeanor. What Eliza loves about Sanford is not him but the materiality, clothing, and self-image enhancement he offers. Although Eliza rejects Boyer's advances, this grants her more masculine power over the man, and her lust for Sanford is not simply for his own being but more for the power of his masculinity.he holds. When a woman was called a flirt, she was said to have ulterior motives, such as financial gain, to seduce the man. Eliza wants the power of wealth that men hold, but she wants it without the title of marriage. Eliza's attraction to Sanford is due to her desire for financial freedom that he presents to her. He states in a letter to Lucy that Maj. Sanford possesses “a fortune sufficient to secure the enjoyments of all the pleasant varieties of social life… My fancy carries me for happiness into the festive haunts of fashionable life (Foster 42) ." It is evident that Eliza desires Sanford's fortune for her own comfort in an attempt to gain material gain (Korobkin). However, it is not Eliza who pursues Sanford to gain wealth, nor does she attempt to cuckold him after his marriage. Instead, Sanford forces Eliza to become the beggar. However according to Korobkin, "Sanford's apparent wealth and privilege are doubly deceptive: he does not have them to offer", but because he is a man his wealth is not questioned. Due to Eliza's interest in material gain, she is considered a flirt, however her arts of seduction are not specific to materiality but rather another act of male power. On the other hand, men who behaved promiscuously were not judged out of self-interest, but had the excuse of sexual nature on their side. Although Eliza finds pleasure in flirting with both Boyer and Major Sanders, she therefore does not necessarily do so for financial gain, but only to enjoy the pleasures of the moment due to her fickle nature. If any of Eliza's relationships were to be considered flirtatious, it would be her first engagement arranged by her parents. Her parents arrange her marriage to Mr. Haly in an attempt to improve their daughter's financial situation. In her description of the man Eliza says: “Mr. Haly was a man of valor; a man of real substantial merit (Foster 1).” Eliza has no real emotional attachment to the man but rather to his wallet. She does not wish to marry Mr. Haly out of love but out of duty. According to "Consent, Coquetry, and Consequences by Gillian Brown," her consent to this "alliance" did not mean 'passionate love for Mr. Haly,' only her respect for her parents' wishes." In her submission to her parents represents a common bond to female and filial consent (Marrone). During Mr. Haly's illness it is Eliza who takes on the role of competent nurse. This is the only point in which Eliza takes on the role of Republican Mother in an attempt to save the wealth .When Mr. Haly dies, she escapes the role of republican mother and expands her pursuit of wealth into the male world (Rosenman). ". Eliza exercised her personal desires by following her parents' will, but she did so with a sense of probability that places a "rick" on her “future happiness.” Seeing the “firstacquaintance with Mr. Haly, his declining health,” Eliza was more willing to tolerate the affair with the reverend. His speculation turns out to be a success. This blatant rejection of patriarchal authority gives Eliza her newfound power in the public world (Brown). It is Maj. Sanders who pursues Eliza for financial gain only to abandon her when he meets a richer woman. He also shows no remorse in hurting Eliza when she marries, nor does he show remorse when he cheats on his wife who recently lost their son. In “A Modern Coquette Tells About Herself” the author says: “I could say: My life! to a husband, at the same time I winked at another man in company, and called him “dear creature!” Sanford does exactly this by seducing Eliza while remaining “happily” married to his wife. Eliza's lack of conformity towards a coquette or lady of the time offers a new type of role for women in society and creates the image of the modern woman, while Major Sanders' behavior is that of the masculine man of the time . Eliza takes great pleasure in playing with both Major Sanford and Boyer, but lets her feelings get involved; thus breaking the first rule of coquetry. In Foster's The Coquette, Boyer takes on the female role. This may be why Eliza's female counterparts push her to marry him. His virtue is above all his majestic valor and his careful thought before every action place him among the best women in society, perhaps even above Mrs. Richman who is the holder of feminine virtue and the image of female expectation. While Sanford acts on impulse and desire, Boyer thinks about social customs and feelings. Boyer sees women both as objects of conquest but above all as objects of affection. Eliza doesn't deal with affection when dealing with either man, but focuses primarily on controlling them both. When Boyer comes to press Eliza for an answer to the proposal, but is afraid of losing the object of his intrigue when he finds Sanford in the garden with Eliza (Richards). When Boyer discovers Sanford and Eliza discreetly talking at his mother's house, he immediately begins to cry. Not only does he leave, but he says that Eliza has made him "the victim of an artifice of flirtation." Because of his broken heart he says, “I gave free rein to the sensibility of my heart, and the effeminate relief of tears materially lightened the burden that oppressed me (Foster 67).” He does not confront Eliza with the problem but instead writes a letter explaining his behavior and ending the relationship. It's almost as if he's too fragile to even deal with the situation (Richards). Major Sanford, however, is not concerned about Boyer's interference with his relationship with Eliza. Sanford is not threatened by Boyer's presence but is instead the most dominant man in Eliza's life. Major Sanford believes he has power over Eliza's heart. Eliza exercises her power of sexual freedom within her relationship with Boyer. Even if she cares about the man, she still wants the power to express sexual desire outside of a relationship; the same power Sanford wields in his marriage. Eliza has extended her need for material luxury to sex. Her attempt at marriage having failed, Eliza begins a sexual relationship with Sanford because she associates him with her lost dream of the power of material gratification. Her sexual promiscuity guarantees her satisfaction in the world of patriarchy (Korobkin). As Eliza plays the role of the Owl, a woman who flirts and controls the emotions of men, one can see that she is the true holder of masculinity or power. He has power over both Boyer and Major Sanford, who believe they. 12.