The Old Gentlewoman’s Proposition
Left destitute and embittered by Horatio’s betrayal, the narrator resolves to take revenge on men by employing the same manipulative, cruel tactics they used against her. Soon after, an older woman visits her, feigning sympathy for her misfortunes and professing disinterested friendship, before subtly suggesting that the narrator can build a fortune using the natural beauty she has been gifted, by forming relationships with wealthy men. The woman offers to act as her procurer, and proposes splitting all profits from these arrangements equally between them.
A New Path Chosen
The narrator immediately grasps the older woman’s proposal and agrees to the terms, deciding to divide all earnings from the wealthy men the woman introduces to her. Her first act of deception under this new path is targeting a judge, to whom the woman introduces her as an innocent young woman newly arrived from the countryside.
CAPÍTULO XXII.
Miss Williams recounts how she was raised by a strict Presbyterian aunt after her merchant father’s financial ruin, became a freethinker through the influence of a female acquaintance, and was summoned back to her father’s country estate where she was rescued from a drunken squire by the gentleman Lothario, whose resemblance to the narrator particularly struck her. She fell deeply in love, surrendered her virtue based on his promises of marriage, and when he abandoned her for another woman, she traveled to London in a fury, attacked him with a poniard, and then engaged Horatio to kill him in a duel, later learning her father had died of grief, and was ultimately reduced to prostitution by an old gentlewoman, with her first client being a judge.
Early Life and Education
The narrator describes her father as an eminent merchant who suffered considerable losses in trade and retired to a small estate in the country with his wife when she was eight years old. She was left in town with an aunt who was a rigid presbyterian. The aunt confined her closely to religious duties, and she grew weary of these doctrines and developed an aversion to the good books her aunt recommended.
Becoming a Freethinker
As she grew older and became more attractive, she acquired many acquaintances among women her own age. One friend advised her to abandon the prejudices instilled by her aunt and “think for herself” by reading Shaftsbury, Tindal, Hobbes, and other authors noted for deviating from conventional thinking. She followed this advice, studied these writers with pleasure, and soon became a professed freethinker. Proud of her new philosophy, she argued successfully in company and acquired a reputation as a philosopher, with few daring to dispute with her.
Life in the Country
When her aunt wrote to her father about her heresy, he ordered her to the country at age fifteen. She found herself suddenly deprived of town pleasures and initially grew melancholy, though she eventually grew accustomed to solitude. She consoled herself with a good library and divided her time between family management, visiting, and rural diversions. Having more imagination than judgment, she addicted herself too much to poetry and romance, becoming regarded as an extraordinary person by everyone in the neighborhood.
Assault by the Drunken Squire
One evening while reading in a wood bordering the high road near her father’s house, a drunken squire rode by, perceived her, and alighted to treat her rudely. She shrieked and opposed his violence with all her strength. During this struggle, another horseman came to her assistance, dismounted, and flew to help her.
Rescue by the Gentleman Stranger
The squire, maddened by the intervention, drew a pistol and fired at her protector, who suffered no damage. The stranger then struck the squire down with his whip and threatened him with his own second pistol. The narrator interceded and begged for the squire’s life, which was granted after he asked pardon and claimed his intention was only to obtain a kiss. The stranger unloaded the remaining pistol before giving him liberty. He then conducted her home.
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