Evelina: Or the History of a Young Lady's Entrance Into the World (Penguin Classics)

by Margaret Doody (Editor), Frances Burney (Author), Margaret Doody (Editor), Frances Burney (Author)

• New

  Paperback
  1994

  $14.05

  Leaving the secluded home of her guardian for the first time, beautiful Evelina Anville is captivated by her new surroundings in London's beau monde - and in particular by the handsome, chivalrous Lord Orville. But her enjoyment soon turns to mortification at the hands of her vulgar and capricious grandmother, and the rakish Sir Clement Willoughby, who torments the naive young woman with his unwanted advances. And while her aristocratic father refuses to acknowledge her legitimacy, Evelina can hold no hope of happiness with the man she loves. Published anonymously in 1778, Frances Burney's epistolary novel brought her instant fame when the secret of its authorship was revealed. With its ingenious combination of romance and satire, comedy and melodrama, Evelina is a sparkling depiction of the dangers and delights of fashionable society.

• Used

  Paperback
  2007

  $3.25

  An epistolary novel, first published in 1778, Evelina tells the story of a young girl who is abandoned by her aristocratic father, who refuses to acknowledge his child's legitimacy. Left to enter the unfamiliar world of London society alone, and naively unprepared for the dangers it hides, the beautiful Evelina is dazzled by her new surroundings, and quickly becomes captivated by the handsome, gallant Lord Orville. But the experience soon turns bitter, when, exposed to the realities of fashionable society, she discovers that her beauty also attracts the unwanted attentions of the dissolute Sir Clement Willoughby. This romantic tale about a heroine who must raise herself to social prominence through the essential quality of her nature struck a chord with the reading public of the time, and Evelina became a publishing sensation. Today it is a novel which continues to attract new audiences with its simple tale of character and personal strength.

• New

  Paperback
  2008

  $13.31

  'Lord Orville did me the honour to hand me to the coach, talking all the way of the honour I had done him! O these fashionable people!' Frances Burney's first and most enduringly popular novel is a vivid, satirical, and seductive account of the pleasures and dangers of fashionable life in late eighteenth-century London. As she describes her heroine's entry into society, womanhood and, inevitably, love, Burney exposes the vulnerability of female innocence in an image-conscious and often cruel world where social snobbery and sexual aggression are played out in the public arenas of pleasure-gardens, theatre visits, and balls. But Evelina's innocence also makes her a shrewd commentator on the excesses and absurdities of manners and social ambitions - as well as attracting the attention of the eminently eligible Lord Orville. Evelina, comic and shrewd, is at once a guide to fashionable London, a satirical attack on the new consumerism, an investigation of women's position in the late eighteenth century, and a love story. The new introduction and full notes to this edition help make this richness all the more readily available to a modern reader. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.