Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady

By Samuel Richardson, Angus Ross (editor),

Book cover of Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady

Book description

Pressured by her unscrupulous family to marry a wealthy man she detests, the young Clarissa Harlowe is tricked into fleeing with the witty and debonair Robert Lovelace and places herself under his protection. Lovelace, however, proves himself to be an untrustworthy rake whose vague promises of marriage are accompanied by…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

The towering achievement of eighteenth-century fiction, but long, very long—and not because of the plot so much as the form. “There is no Story,” wrote Hester Thrale, an early admirer of Clarissa (1747-8): “A man gets a Girl from her Parents—violates her Free Will, & She dies of a broken heart.” Around this brutal, elemental tale of toxic courtship and finally rape, however, the novel uses competing, divergent points of view to problematize access to the action, its causes and effects, its rights and wrongs, its large implications for sexual politics and social class. With its multiple narrators, Clarissa probes…

From Tom's list on stories written before 1800.

If you love Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady...

Ad

Book cover of Norvel: An American Hero

Norvel by Kenneth F. Conklin,

NORVEL: An American Hero chronicles the remarkable life of Norvel Lee, a civil rights pioneer and Olympic athlete who challenged segregation in 1948 Virginia. Born in the Blue Ridge Mountains to working-class parents who valued education, Lee overcame Jim Crow laws and a speech impediment to achieve extraordinary success.

He…

Want books like Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady.

Browse books like Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady

Book cover of A Journal of the Plague Year
Book cover of Pride and Prejudice
Book cover of Oroonoko

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,875

readers submitted
so far, will you?

Ad

📚 If you like Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady, you might also like...

Book cover of The Road from Belhaven

The Road from Belhaven by Margot Livesey,

The Road from Belhaven is set in 1880s Scotland. Growing up in the care of her grandparents on Belhaven Farm, Lizzie Craig discovers as a small girl that she can see the future. But she soon realises that she must keep her gift a secret. While she can sometimes glimpse…

Book cover of Acquaintance

Acquaintance by Jeff Stookey,

Acquaintance is a work of LGBT historical fiction, a gay love story set in 1923 when the Ku Klux Klan was growing in influence, the eugenics movement was passing human sterilization laws, illegal liquor was fueling corruption, and Freud was all the rage.

Based on extensive period research, the story…

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in romantic love, coming of age, and bildungsroman?

Romantic Love 954 books
Coming Of Age 1,409 books
Bildungsroman 331 books