This story takes place in Bell Tavern, Massachusetts. Elizabeth Wharton, or Eliza as most people call her, is a young lady who likes to have fun. In the very beginning of the novel, she is engaged somewhat against her will to marry a Mr. Haly. He is a well-known and liked man, but he dies before they are married. Reacting to this, Eliza is deeply saddened, but at the same time, somewhat happy because she isn't reduced to a domesticated life. Also, she is happy is that she was scared to get married because she wants to have a life that is full of excitement and adventure. She thinks that when she gets married that she will be confined to the one she marries and all of the housework. She doesn't really want to marry the man that she 'should' because to her that is really boring. After Mr. Haly's death, Eliza decides to spend some time at The Richmans to get her mind off things.
Through different dinners and balls, Eliza meets a lot of new people. Of these including the Rev. Mr. Boyer, and Major Sanford, who both are very fond of Eliza and want to be the one who spends the rest of their lives with her. Of the two, Major Sanford is probably who she likes the most but he is very mysterious. While reading his letters, they are somewhat mischievous because he is always plotting to keep Eliza away from Mr. Boyer even though he knows that he wouldn't marry her. He is looking to marry into wealth and Eliza doesn't have the kind of money that he wants. Mr. Boyer is an all around nice guy, who everyone seems to like, but he is rather boring. He is a minister and is well educated. All of Eliza's friends and family press her to be with him and to stay away from Major Sanford. As Mr. Boyer finally gives Eliza one last chance to decide if she is ready to marry or not, the plot thickens. Eliza decides that she will end things with Major Sanford and meets him in the garden. As she is talking with him, Mr. Boyer walks up, sees them and gets really mad. Before Eliza can explain herself, Mr. Boyer tells her that he doesn't want to see her anymore and tells her she is a coquette. After the break up, Eliza is very sad because she starts to realize that she had a good thing with Mr. Boyer. After realizing this, she writes him a letter in hopes of getting him back, but is disappointed even more. He replies telling her that she is too late, he has already found himself a new fiancé and that she deserves him while Eliza didn't. It is a pretty sad part because Eliza feels like she has hit rock bottom.
Once she starts healing a little bit from all the drama, she finds out that Major Sanford is getting married. She become very distraught after this news and it is soon followed by Major Sanford himself, showing up at her doorstep to talk. By the end of the book Sanford’s wife leaves him because of the history between him and Eliza, and Eliza gets pregnant. She has a still born child and dies shortly afterwards in a roadside in.

The first half of the book introduced the characters and then left with a cliff hanger at the mid point because Mr. Boyer had just confessed that he was not going to persue Eliza anymore. So from then on I think Eliza will start going to more parties with Majour Sanford. Her life will go into a downward spiral because Boyer was sort of a rock that Eliza could anchor against. Eventually Majour Sanford and Eliza will get romantically involved but I think that Sanford's true motives for being with Eliza is just to use her, even though Sanford did send a letter to Charels Deighton saying that he loved Eliza. I also think that Eliza will atleast think about Boyer and miss him a little bit since he ended things so abruptly. Eliza will probably have a meltdown because she has found out that Sanford was just using her for fun. She will run to Mr. Boyer to console her in that time but Mr. Boyer will have moved on with his life. Eliza will see that she missed out on a great opportunity to have a steady relationship that would last but instead she went with the wild and crazy one. She will eventually end up wandering aimlessly because she feels used and abandoned and thinks there is no where else to go. Along the way she will die of either a disease or lack of love.

Eliza v. Society - Eliza has conflicting ideas with what is expected of her within the boundaries of society. She wishes to be free and gay, while society expects her to be submissive, domestic, and to marry. This conflict is illustrated in the book numerous times, especially in letters back and forth between Eliza and Lucy, for the fact that Lucy is Eliza's best friend, she has 'the right' to critique Eliza's actions as compared to societal standards.

Eliza v. Friends/Family - Eliza’s friends and family find Eliza’s ambitions in life to be unworthy of contemplation. She should not be out in society just to “have fun” and she can’t keep waiting around for “true love”, she needs to settle down and find a good husband, one that will provide finical comfort and companionship. They have options about Eliza’s suitors. They like Boyer, who is steady and safe, but they disapprove of Sanford, who is wild and dangerous. Eliza's mother and best friend (Lucy) are especially wary of the situation, however they regard her with compassion because their sole purpose is to support Eliza no matter what she does, despite any disapproval they might have regarding Eliza's social practices.

Friends/Family v. Sanford - Eliza’s friends and family don’t approve of Eliza and Stanford relationship. They wish Eliza to end all connections with him because he is well known as a womanizer. Sanford can also be considered to represent a typical chauvanist. It seems as if everyone in the story, except Eliza, is wholly aware of his true intentions. However, it is apparent in various instances that Eliza is aware of his intentions, but she chooses to disregard her 'gut feelings' towards him in pursuit of her own happiness.

Eliza v. Boyer - While Eliza likes Boyer and knows that he is smiled upon in society, she finds him dull. Eliza and Boyer don’t see eye to eye on their life ambitions. Boyer would like Eliza to consent to an engagement, while Eliza would like to enjoy her freedom a little more and just have fun. Furthermore, Eliza sees Boyer as being to up front about marriage, and too persistent. Boyer also dissapproves of Eliza's beliefs regarding her freedom to see different men -- again, a view that is also reflected in societal standards.

Eliza v. Sanford - Eliza is attracted to Stanford, but tries to push him away because he is a “bad boy” in society’s eyes. Stanford wishes to continue to pursue Eliza, so he follows her around and “accidentally” runs into her on her daily excursions, making it had for Eliza to break off the relationship. So there for, society cast a disapproving eye on them both. Everyone involved in Eliza's life has similar opinions about Sanford as well, and even in cases where Eliza seems to agree, she constantly gives Sanford the benefit of the doubt in their 'relationship'.

Boyer v. Sanford - There is obviously a conflict between these two, because they are each vying for Eliza’s favor. Each wants to spend time with Eliza and be bestowed with the honor of being her suitor. This conflict is ever-present in the story and is illustrated throughout many of the letters in the book. Boyer considers Sanford 'a deciever' and warns Eliza of this fact. Sanford considers Boyer is just a minor 'roadblock' in the relationship and considers himself the 'superior man' and 'best suited' for Eliza.

Central Characters

Eliza Wharton:
Eliza is the main character within the book. She is a young, intelligent, eloquent and attractive girl. At the very beginning of the story Eliza’s fiancé dies of an illness that he has been deteriorating from, his death is no surprise to Eliza. Although Eliza felt a strong friendship for him, she was never passionate in the relation ship. Instead of being grief stricken she is somewhat relieved and excited at the prospect of freedom and fun. Being uncommitted Eliza is very social, outgoing, and quite popular with the male sex. Eliza has a strong sense of right and wrong from her upbringing but despite her wishes and best, often mislead intentions she has a difficult time sticking to her morals. She is pursued by a few different men, but is not ready to make a commitment. Eliza wants to be married at some point after she has fulfilled her fun and freedom seeking, but because of her coquettish ways she has several men pinning for her hand in marriage, which ultimately ends in tragedy.

Reverend J. Boyer:
He is another primary character and the first man who is suited to Eliza after her fiancé’s death. He too is young and intelligent. He is known to be very modest, polite, and sincere. However he tends to be timid, naive, and sometimes seems nervous when he speaks, which seems to work against him when trying to receive her hand in marriage, but after becoming close friends with Eliza she notices him becoming more confident. He is a minister and is viewed to be spiritual and selfless. Despite his earnest want to be married to Eliza, her attitude toward marriage and her interest in other men eventually lead him to stop seeking her hand. Later in the story he marries a different woman more fitting of his desires and lifestyle.

Major Peter Sanford:
He is the third main character in The Coquette. He is the foil to Boyer, meaning he is pretty much the exact opposite. He is the bad boy and is described as rugged, witty, determined, charming, fashionable, and an all around ladies man. Eliza views him as immoral, seducing, and reckless, somebody who would not make a good suitor but she cant help being strongly attracted to him. Sanford is not affluent of his own accord and therefore seeks to marry a woman of money. Although Sanford loves Eliza and will not bear to see her with another, she has no money to offer him so he disappears and marries another. He returns to her life with disregard for her well being and that of his wife and creates sizeable mess of things.

Supporting Characters

General S. Richman and Mrs. Richman:
A wealthy couple with whom Eliza stays during her "mourning" period after the death of her fiancé. Mrs. Richman is Eliza’s cousin. They are giving, loving, and wise. They often try to give Eliza good advice, in honest concern for her best interest, but to Eliza they are just being prudish.

Mr. T. Selby:
He is a confidant and friend to Reverend Boyer. He does not fancy Eliza and views her as a coquette almost right from the start. He worries about his friend Boyer and seems to believe that his friend's best interest is not in marrying Eliza, which proves to be true as the story progresses.

Lucy Freeman:
Lucy plays an important role as of Eliza’s confidant and best friend. She is quite a contrast to Eliza, in that she is much more reserved and marries as soon as she finds someone to suitable to her liking. She does her best to give Eliza good advice, to be there when Eliza is troubled, and to act as somewhat of a moral compass for her.

Julia Granby:
She is another of Eliza’s closest friends. After Boyer has rejected her, and Sanford runs off and returns with his new wife, she is asked to come and give Eliza comfort. She is much like Eliza in her pursuit for fun and entertainment, but appears overtly energetic when compared to Eliza’s depressed state.

Mrs. M. Wharton:
She is Eliza’s recently widowed mother. She is lonely without her daughter and in mourning over the loss of her husband. Mrs. Wharton is quite pleased when Eliza returns home to live with her, and then again saddened by the deterioration of her lovely daughter.

Charels Deighton:
A pal of Sanford. He merely provides Sanford an outlet for his thoughts and emotions. He never actually writes back, but is written to often.

Minor Characters

Reverend Hally:
He was Eliza's fiancé and a good man, but unfortunately passed away due to illness. He is only mentioned in a few pages.

Nancy Sanford:
A minor character who is only mentioned in Sanford's letters. She is a wealthy woman (which is why Sanford married her) and is handsome, but said to be not as beautiful as Eliza. She is well mannered and amiable. Unfortunately she too is afflicted by Sanford’s misbehavior.

Mr. Lawrence:
He plays a minor roll, simply as large estate owner, who’s daughter is the heiress. His daughter was once pursued by Sanford.

George Sumner:
A very minor character, he is Lucy's husband. They move to Boston after the marriage separating Lucy and Eliza. He never writes any letters or is written to, he is merely mentioned from time to time.

Hannah Webster Foster

The style of writing is very unique. It is as if someone collected all the letters that one group of people wrote to each other and then compiled them into a book. There is a romantic air to the letters which I think shows a little precurser to how people started to write during the early 1800's. The characters are not afraid to express how they really feel about another character when they send their letters. typically one person will write to the same person every time. To clarify, Eliza Wharton writes mostly to Miss Lucy Freeman, Reverend Boyer writes to Mr. Selby, and Major Sanford writes to Mr. Charles Deighton.

Not only for perplexity, the letters serve a central purpose. It is a way to get different perspectives of all the characters. Often two characters witness the same event and then retell it in their letters in completely different ways, which is very interesting in itself to watch unfold. Versus, the lack of emotion you feel from the characters in a 400 page novel, each of the seventy-four letters give great detail to not just describing the situation at hand, but more prominently showing how the characters perceive it. Being able to read the letters gives an insight to the thoughts that all the characters are having about each other. In a standard novel the book mainly focuses on one character and you only get to know the thoughts of just it, but with this novel the author embodies each of them with thoughts and you get to read and know their thoughts as they occur.

The Coquette is an adaptable book in terms of reading, but not something that you can skim quickly through. This may not seem engaging to some, but it includes rather risqué material that could indeed entice the attention of the reader. It is important that when reading a novel such as this, you embrace the writing style for what its worth and what it had to offer.

As this book was based off of the true story of the actual circumstances of Elizabeth Whitman’s seduction and death, The Coquette (published in 1797) has many themes that held relevant to the issues facing woman of that time.

The book was published as a teaching tool for women. It was a story, a lesson of cautionary advice, showing women what could happen if their personal liberties and female rights were taken too far. “The Coquette was said to have been, next to the Bible, the most popular reading material of early 19th century New England.”(Marchione) After all who doesn’t like to read about scandal?

Purity is the main theme because it deals with the idea of “the fallen woman”, which is what Eliza eventually becomes. Women were expected to come into the marriage “pure”, a fallen woman was not viewed as very desirable in marriage because she showed a lack of control, values, and loyalty. Women were expected to be pious, pure, and submissive as it was considered their “natural state” (History 7) “Less than 10% of newly married woman gave birth less than 8 ½ months after marriage.” (Digital 10) The "fallen woman" theme is one that has manifested itself in other early American literature -- does the Scarlet Letter sound familiar?

The theme of the oppression of woman ties directly into the story. The novel underlines the helplessness that women welded in the late 18th century. “[The
Croquette]…realistically examine[s] the ‘parameters of female powerlessness and female constraint’…It also exposed the fundamental injustices of a patriarchal culture that places opportunities of women within a limited domestic sphere.” (Davidson quoted in The Coquette Intro) Women were not expected to do anything in life outside of their home. Their “job” was to find a proper husband, get married, and care for their husband, children, and home. Education and employment were not acceptable attributes in women of her time.

The theme of marriage is thread throughout the novel, which illustrates the extent to which women were tied down by social expectations. It shows us the views on marriage at the time and how once a woman was married, she became the property of her husband and had no rights of her own. A women’s “legal existence […] was suspended during marriage, or at least incorporated and consolidated into that of her husband.” (Patai 492-93) For Eliza, “Marriage is the tomb of friendship. It appears to me a very selfish state” (24) No wonder Eliza wanted to remain free and gay!

The final theme that seems to indirectly manifest itself into The Coquette is one of constant conflict. With the numerous aforementioned conflicts, the idea of mainly struggles between Eliza and society, shown through the words of the people in her life, is a theme that cannot be overlooked.