The fault in her sex

     Throughout the novel Olivia Fairfeild is characterized as the ideal woman, as long as her color is not being addressed. Insights about her  moral character are shown through her actions, her words, and how others perceive her. Though it is not stated explicitly in the novel, Olivia is characterized as the type of woman that other women  should aspire to be like. Though I believe the latter statement to be true, the improvement that women could gain from acting more like Mrs. Fairfield is much less radical than women who act in the ideal presented by Wollstonecraft. Olivia is an improvement from the general female population in England, but she is still clearly in a woman's place,  

     Olivia is a christian, learned woman who defies the negative stereotypes of women in her day while reaming in her "place". A phrase that often stated by Olivia in reference to her sex, or specifically negative dissociation from her sex. A sex that has been characterized by other characters in the novel as "superficial characters" with "frivolous pursuits" and "worse than childish behavior" (65). Her statements include but are not limited to her sex's "vanity" ,"weakness", or "limits".

                                                        
While other women, though not all, have been portrayed in this negative light, Olivia has been described as having "numerous and unrivaled virtues and perfections"(93). Throughout the book, Olivia is put up on a pedestal for her moral perfections. The way she is shown and the way other women are show are vastly different.  Through these themes, the novel subtlety encourages for more women to act in a manner more like that of Mrs. Fairfield   

Interesting website of pictures portraying the daily life of people in London during the 1800's.

The exotic down and outs of Victorian London


What effect did you perceive/ was intended by the author,about Olivia's character through the letters from other characters?

If Olivia is the "ideal" woman, what purpose did the author have in making her a mulatto woman considering the strong negative connotations that are carried with brown skin.