History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless, Vol. 1

This is one of the first great English novels, published in 1751 by Eliza Haywood, a writer so popular her novels outsold Richardson and Fielding combined. Miss Betsy Thoughtless is a beautiful, impetuous young heiress surrounded by suitors, but her refusal to take marriage seriously, to play the game society demands, has consequences she cannot foresee. Through Betsy's eyes, we see the brutal mathematics of the Georgian marriage market: women as currency, beauty as capital, and choice as an illusion. When her guardian intervenes and compels her into a disastrous match, Haywood strips away the romance to reveal marriage as an institution where women are property. But this is no grim tract. Haywood writes with sharp wit, psychological acuity, and genuine sympathy for a heroine who learns, painfully, that the world will not forgive her for being young and foolish. It is a landmark of proto-feminist literature that reads like a sparkling comedy of manners with teeth.