Susanna Rowson is Feisty

Susanna Rowson gets a little feisty with her readers during the last few chapters of the novel.  The examples I am thinking of specifically are in Chapter XXVIII and XXX, when she addresses her readers directly.  I would like to point a couple of things about these passages that caught my attention.

In chapter XXVIII, Rowson addresses the "dear, cheerful, innocent girl" who is supposedly reading her novel.  She means to make any girl who is not considered innocent to feel guilty for their lack of morality.  In addition, she believes other girls to be blinded by "prosperity."  She writes, "But if perchance the heart is rendered impenetrable by unbounded prosperity, or a continuance in vice, I expect not my tale to please, nay, I even expect it will be thrown by with disgust."  Rowson even calls herself "conceited" in the eyes of her readers. She really means to make her readers feel horrible and especially guilty if they do not finish her novel.  What struck me particularly about this aside is that Rowson assumes her female readers are only interested in happy endings, and since her novel is pretty much the epitome of spiraling depression, she had to find some way to make sure the girls reading this novel finish it--lest they decide to follow the path of La Rue, since she seems happy enough with her life by this point in the novel.  It bothers me that Rowson would consider all her female readers fickle enough to put down a book just because it's a bit sad, and then proceed to tell them exactly what they are supposed to feel about each character.  We should get to decide for ourselves what to think, or at least not have it spelled out to us like we don't have any idea who is on the good side and who the bad.  It's rather insulting.

Speaking of insulting, in Chapter XXX, Rowson speaks directly to her male readers.  She calls them out for assuming that Charlotte was stupid enough to assume herself in poverty while still holding on to multitudes of expensive possessions. Then she writes, "I hope, sir, your prejudices are now removed in regard to the probability of my story? Oh they are. Well then, with your leave, I will proceed."  Although we can see this is Rowson standing up for Charlotte's intelligence (and her ability to avoid plot holes) in the face of skeptical readers, it felt like another blow to my poor, feeble heart (sarcasm). Why should Rowson assume that only her male readers would question her story?  I like to consider myself a questioning person and had, in fact, asked this same question about Charlotte possessions to myself before she mentioned it.  I guess us innocent girls just don't know how to question anything we are told, unlike the "wise, penetrating gentlemen" of the 1790's.

I might be reading into these lines a little too much, but these were just some thoughts I had about Rowson's (feisty) asides to her audience.  Let me know if you agree or disagree or have anything to add!  Also, sorry for the lack of page numbers.  I also am reading a Kindle version.