The Coquette

Many of the events of consequence in The Coquette take place in the garden of the Richmans’ or the Whartons’ estates. Gardens are a motif that represents freedom from social constraints as well as privacy; by the same token, gardens also represent deception and seduction.

Eliza describes the garden where she first speaks to Mr. Boyer as a place where one can experience “the beauties of art and nature, so liberally displayed, and so happily blended” (8). Eliza is “an enthusiastic admirer of scenes like these” (9). It is in line with her independent nature that she seeks out places where she can avoid the scrutiny of her peers. If the interior of the house is the most socially-policed location in the novel, the solitude and opportunity for self-reflection that the garden affords offers some degree of freedom. It is in the garden that both Boyer and Major Sanford make many of their advances toward Eliza. This is for two reasons. Boyer, an honorable man, wishes to impress upon Eliza the seriousness of his romantic overtures. The garden is a place where the two can have a quiet moment together without interruption by Eliza’s friends. Though they are alone together, they can stroll the garden without approbation; Boyer’s position is highly regarded, and Eliza’s friends approve of their union. 

Sanford, on the other hand, uses the garden for secretive, underhanded reasons. On the fatal day that separates Eliza and Boyer, Sanford comes to call in secret. Because he has fallen out of favor with Eliza’s friends, he is not welcome in the house. The two meet in the garden, which has now become a scene of trespass and seduction. Boyer is suspicious that Eliza “had gone out into the garden; but desired that no person might intrude on her retirement” (81). The very fact that Eliza wants privacy is suspect, and therefore the location of her retreat has been rendered suspect as well. The garden at the Wharton estate later becomes the location of Eliza and Sanford’s illicit affair, and possibly the location where their child is conceived.

Characters in the novel (mainly Eliza) turn to poetry and Biblical hymns to illuminate certain sentiments, maxims, and commonplace thoughts. Use of verse in letters is a symbol of refinement and education; it marks the user as well-read and creative. In The Coquette, poets’ names are seldom used; characters usually use phrases such as “As the poet says.” This marks an appeal to authority. Poems were often cited as masterful articulations of the human condition, and someone well versed in poetry had a bank of culturally-grounded ideas to draw from and add depth to their correspondences. Poets quoted in the novel include Alexander Pope, Joseph Addison, James Thomson, and John Dryden. 

Eliza is the most frequent user of verse. This may be due to her inexperience: by citing lines from more authoritative voices, she is able to borrow wisdom that she herself does not yet have. Ironically, Mr. Boyer and Major Sanford both quote Alexander Pope at different times to completely opposite effects. While Boyer uses Pope’s lines in Letter 39 to describe the importance of the soul over earthly pleasures, Sanford, in Letter 54, uses the poet’s words to rail on just such stoic constancy.