Reviewing Conduct Literature (Part 2)

For Part 2, this posting will focus specifically on Eliza Haywood's The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless, its status as conduct literature, the social mores of the 17th-18th Centuries, and Haywood's change from amatory to conduct literature. In comparison to writers such as Jane Austin, Haywood's characters get into numerous scrapes and unpleasant incidents. Furthermore, they are complex, flawed, and concerned with social rules and practices of the era. Conduct literature itself did contain many rules and restrictions for women.

The character of Betsy Thoughtless herself is a rather proud, vain, and somewhat self-absorbed, and she has a tendency to get into trouble due to her coquetry. In the first portion of the book, Betsy is nearly raped on four occasions, and her inability or unwillingness to avoid such situations indicates a certain naivety on her part. Like Haywood's Fantomina, Betsy's elders punish her by sending her away; however, the main difference is forcing her to be married instead of becoming a nun. With regard to historical context, women were looked upon as property rather than people, and many of them did not know if their husbands would turn brutal after marrying them. It would not be hard for men to get away with spousal abuse or infidelity in this era. The art of courting was a highly-ritualized practice, but it lacked intimacy and instead focused on tradition and rules. When Betsy is courted by Mr. Munden ("mundane"), he is well-meaning but lacking in sensibility, and his habit of sending her gifts does not result in her returning his love. Upon finally being married, he becomes quite unpleasant in his treatment of Betsy and means to which he intends to break her resolve (i.e- killing her pet squirrel).

The rest of the characters are interesting in their own character arcs and interaction with Betsy. Her adoptive sister Miss Flora is obsessed with ruining Betsy's reputation by plotting and scheming against her. Further adding to the irony, she engages in an affair with Mr. Trueworth, who is the object of Betsy's affection. Of all the characters, Lady Trusty is probably the voice of reason and arguably the one person who cares for the well-being of Betsy. As a giver of advice, she attempts to play a role in guiding Betsy towards young womanhood. Haywood appears to be speaking to the audience via Lady Trusty as a vessel of sorts. However, she is removed for the majority of the text, because Betsy has to experience life as it really was for young Victorian women.

While Betsy is not deceptive like Fantomina, she is a forward-thinking character with a penchant for getting into trouble without intending to do so. Regardless of her good intentions, she would be more fixated on appearing good by others rather than being good. However, she is prone to re-examining her behaviour and wonders what unmarried would be like. Given Haywood's transition from amatory fiction to conduct literature, it is possible that she intended Betsy to demonstrate her changing way of thinking. For this reason, The History of Betsy Thoughtless is important to Victorian literature, because it indicates a difficult era for women concerned with social mores and restrictions in society.