Profile of the Eccentric Virtuoso Mistress
The prospective mistress is described as a maiden of forty years, notable not for beauty but for learning and taste, famous throughout the region as a perfect female virtuoso. Her eagerness for knowledge reaches such intensity that she neglects her personal appearance to the point of sluttishness. Her physical neglect combined with contempt for men serves her nephew’s interests, as he likely stands to inherit her considerable fortune and therefore permits her eccentric lifestyle. She resides in a private apartment comprising dining room, bedchamber, and study, maintaining her own cook maid, waiting-woman, and footman, rarely dining or conversing with the main family except her niece—a lovely young woman whose frequent late-night company with her aunt damages her own health. The mistress follows Rosicrucian principles, believing invisible beings inhabit earth, air, and sea and can be contacted through chaste living. Upon hearing rumors of the widow and her cat, she visited hoping to meet the cat as a familiar but was disappointed. Her visionary mindset renders her abstract from common worldly affairs, resulting in frequent absences and strange mistakes requiring attentive correction.
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The narrator arrives at the eccentric lady’s residence as a footman, having been recommended by Mrs. Sagely, and is immediately struck by his new mistress’s peculiar appearance and mannerisms as she scribbles verses in her study surrounded by books and scientific instruments. During his first dinner service, he catches sight of her niece Narcissa and falls desperately in love at first sight, subsequently spinning a tale of his shipwreck and mistreatment to win her sympathy. He learns that Sir Timothy Thicket has been proposed as a match for Narcissa by her brother, creating in him a mortal hatred for this rival suitor. The following morning brings a noisy fox hunt, and the narrator observes Sir Timothy and the young squire departing while also discovering his mistress’s alarming tendency toward bizarre delusions, including imagining herself a hare pursued by hunters. When Narcissa plays the harpsichord to soothe her aunt’s disturbed mind, the narrator experiences pure bliss at hearing her voice, and despite his lowly station, he begins to nurture confident hopes of eventually winning her love.
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