Published in 1801, Maria Edgeworth's Belinda is an absorbing novel that mirrors social and domestic life among the English gentry. In her pursuit of a suitable marriage, Belinda encounters an array of characters including the dazzling socialite Lady Delacourt, the feminist Harriet Freke, the wealthy and handsome West Indian Mr Vincent and the impulsive Clarence Hervey. Belinda follows the tradition of society novels charting the journey of an intelligent young woman in search of an ideal husband, with its heroine Belinda eschewing material wealth in favour of happiness and self-fulfilment. Anticipating the realism of Jane Austen's female heroines, the novel presents a vivid portrayal of life in late 18th-century London, depicting leisured society in all its aspects.
