Clarissa Harlowe; or the history of a young lady — Volume 2

Presented entirely through a series of letters, this early‑modern novel follows the inner life of Clarissa Harlowe, a young woman caught between the rigid expectations of her aristocratic family and her own yearning for moral independence. As she writes to her trusted confidante, Miss Howe, Clarissa details strained relationships with a domineering brother, a distant mother, and a parade of suitors whose intentions range from sincere to self‑serving. The correspondence reveals a sharp, witty mind that measures each proposal against the standards of virtue and personal freedom.

Through lively exchanges that blend humor, philosophical musings, and heartfelt pleas, the narrative sketches the social pressures facing women in the eighteenth‑century English gentry. Clarissa's letters capture her struggle to navigate love, duty, and the threat of coercive power without sacrificing her sense of self. Listeners will be drawn into a richly textured portrait of a woman whose intelligence and moral resolve illuminate the timeless conflict between agency and authority.