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Brian Williams
Dr. Lorraine Dubuisson
ENGL 2112
5th May 2015
Fantomina
The Age of Enlightenment is a vital part in human history. This time
period was one of a new-found understanding. The world was vastly different
from the world in which we live today. This story is a very heartfelt one to say
the least. Some would say a person who isn’t enlightened has characteristics of a
child. Many women accepted society for what it was and depended on men for
guidance. Eliza Haywood’s Fantomina is a derision of class structure. It displays
a woman pursuing a man during the enlightenment era. In Fantomina, the main
character is a symbol of wealth and importance, “A young lady of distinguished
birth, beauty, wit, and spirit” showed how women were supposed to be
(Haywood, 569). Because of her placement in society, there were many
restrictions placed upon her. She was restricted from having any type of
conversations which society deemed inappropriate with the opposite sex. She
could not pursue them in any way either.
Society’s values taught that a woman of her status was not to partake in
any conversations with the opposite sex or even chase them. She meets a man
named Beauplasir who is in the same social standing as her. He views her as a

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superior mistress, “He believed her a mistress, but believed her to be one of a
superior rank” (571). The difference was he was a male. He can pursue her at his
own will without any judgment. This is truly not the move of an enlightened
individual. She showed not only men could become enlightened, women could
also be enlightened. This is a true display of what she thought was female
authority.
Fantomina became very discontented with the restrictions society has
placed upon her. She changes her look so that she looks similar to a prostitute.
This allowed her to go after Beauplasir without any restricted access towards him.
She was so interested that she changed her identity in order to pursue an
adventure to love. Her curiosity led her to making this decision. Here Haywood
was showcasing the restrictions of women with higher social standards. Now
that she resembles a prostitute, she can pursue Beauplaisir at her own free will.
Beauplasir was not able to recognize her due to the change of her social standing.
This was where it all had begun.
Fantomina quickly falls in love with Beauplaisir. Beauplasir was the
typical gentleman to her in the beginning, but because she portrayed a prostitute
his intentions were obviously lustful. Beauplasir respected her virginity and
reputation. This was all an act. It was obvious that Fantomina was also lustful in
the beginning. Their relationship started from sexual encounters between each
other. Marriage was the only way they could satisfy their desires in a politically
correct manner. Marriage for the two was very unlikely though considering their

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social differences. Despite her feelings for Beauplasir he became tired of her. In
denial to this fact, she continued to try and pursue this man that she has gained an
attraction for. She now needs a new identity so she can continue this quest for
love with Beauplasir. Her new identity will be a woman named Celia,
Beauplasir’s new acquired maid. She begins a brand new relationship with him.
Once again he becomes tired of her and leaves her behind as he did once before.
Fantomina’s affection increased gradually over the course of the text. She
continued this act by using different disguises. She continued to change her
identity many different times to attempt to change the outcome of their
relationship, “And if he should be false, grow satiated, like other men, I shall but,
at the worst, have the private vexation of knowing I have lost him” (574). She
disguised herself as “Mrs Bloomer” and “Incognita”. The fact that she played
these significant roles showed her increased affection for Beauplasir, “it was only
he whose solicitations could give her pleasure”(575).
Beauplasir had a strange inability to recognize her disguises. This
showcased if her social standing was changed, then her identity was changed.
She enjoyed these relationships because she was able to take control over
Beaplasir. When she was the member of a higher social standing she could do
anything that she wanted to do. She really was interested in a relationship.
This novel symbolizes how men thought during the Enlightenment era.
Beauplasir is used to represent all men during this time who didn’t use their time
wisely. Why would an Enlightened man go against his standards by pursuing a

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prostitute? The unnamed woman in this novel does not represent a true woman.
She represents the women during this time that kept themselves locked down
under society’s stereotypes on women. This is why many women couldn't
advance in society during this time period.
In every knowledgeable movement of this amazing character you will find
some form of hypocrisy. Fantomina was the modern day hypocrite during this
time. She would always wonder how some women let men destroy their lives.
She didn’t even realize how she let Beauplasir waste her precious time as she
chased him down with different identities.
Although Fantomina believed in the independence of women she still
somehow found time in her life to be just like any other women by falling in love
and wanting a relationship with a man, “If he is really (said she, to herself) the
faithful, the constant lover he has sworn to be, how charming will be our
amour?”(574). Fantomina placed herself above these women. She could not
understand why women were so tied down to men. Fantomina felt as if she was
smarter than men. This was a unique part to this novel. She attempted to break
out of the shell that society had placed her in. Despite her intelligence that she
spoke of, she still failed in deceiving Beauplasir. Was any woman truly capable
of outwitting a man?

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This story can be depicted as two players battling to the very end.
Beaplasir was easily deceived and did nothing to prevent it from happening.
Fantomina used all of her social power to cover her reputation. Haywood showed
that ignorant men are still viewed superior to women by society. Fantomina hit
rock bottom considering her social standing. This behavior was obviously
unacceptable for a woman to partake in. Her actions showed she was very
intelligent but in the end she still fell into society's views of women. She failed at
deceiving a man tremendously.
Society chose what was acceptable for men and women. There was an
obvious double standard pertaining to unfaithful men and women. Fantomina
stayed with no effect to his reputation. This showed the big difference between
men and women during this time.
In the text more than one element was being satirized. It displayed women
and men’s view on their expectations in society. She was writing about society in
general and the expectations that it places upon people. Fantomina goes to great
heights to be with the man of her dreams while attempting to disguise her true
identity. Because of her wealth she was not allowed to go to the theater that he
was in. This was her reason for being disguised as a prostitute.
She was almost discovered with each identity she portrayed. Despite this
she still continued to deceive him. The novel goes through different stages from

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the beginning to the end. In the beginning it seems that the main focus was on
feminism. That would make sense during this time period. Beauplasir was tricked
numerous amount of times. It would have been very obvious if he attempted to
try and know each identity Fantomina portrayed. She disguised herself in order to
see a man. She ended up getting pregnant and was ashamed of her actions.
Feminism is the main focus throughout the entire text. Haywood showed
that women have different standards compared to men in the first few paragraphs.
She would make women seem undefeatable at times. The main theme is
feminism, but the story becomes very overwhelming at times so she kept it at a
minimum. The main character would have to fall. In this story the woman was
not at fault for her pregnancy, but blatantly the man’s. He was the reason this
happened to her.
From the beginning of the text Fantomina was in a constant battle within
herself. It wasn’t until she transformed into Incognita that she realized the true
nature of men. Beauplasir taught Fantomina that his pleasures come from the
challenge of getting a woman to comply with his sexual desires. The thrill was
very exciting to him. He felt he was talking to multiple women at once. This was
how blind he was to the fact.
Fantomina’s morals were questionable because of her conversations with
prostitutes. This was totally against her social class. She only contained power in
a relationship when hiding behind her true identity. She did not have that as the
lady she was born as. Men would never marry or publicly be seen with her.

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Fantomina was an act to gain freedom. She wanted to converse freely without any
judgment. In order for her to accomplish this she had to hide her true or real
identity. The talks she had with Beauplasir lacked depth. How could she expect
anything of this relationship when she only makes sexual advances?
Fantomina find out that women did not matter to these types of men.
Incognita made Beauplasir feel as if he couldn't move on to the next victim
without knowing her identity. Beauplasir stated she resembled the lady that she
really was. The identity of the woman didn't matter to him until it was gone.
Fantomina was fully aware of the power she had over him. When Fantomina
gained an advantage, she wanted to keep it. In the upper class world the two are
kept apart because of the rules they have to abide by.
In the end Fantomina’s curiosity was finally satisfied. She learned the
reason that men pay more attention to prostitutes than the beautiful ladies. The
relationship between men and prostitutes are very short Beauplasir would have
nothing to gain from a serious relationship with Fantomina. Her aim was to
acquire all of his attention in order to keep him entertained. This was why she
frequently changed her disguises. Their relationship was built on frequent lies and
deceitful actions. The only thing she satisfied was her sexual desires and his for
the most part. Despite her being able to speak freely from her mind, she decided
to make up lies to gain attention from Beauplasir. The focus was always mainly
on containing a good reputation. Fantomina developed a major amount of secrecy
by trying to keep her identity covered. She was very ashamed of this behavior.

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The ironic part of this story was that the upper class was very deceitful and
hypocritical.
In conclusion, Fantomina believed her roles gave her power and freedom.
Each role she played gave her an opportunity to experience love in a different
way. In the end her many identities didn’t accomplish exactly what she was
looking for but sexual relations were what she received. She lost her reputation
and ruined her life by becoming pregnant and unmarried. Even though she was
precise with every identity she portrayed, her identities only satisfied her sexual
fantasies.
Men of that time period were unenlightened, unwilling and unable to
move forward. They saw women as nothing but an object of their desires and as
mothers of their children. They would even go as far as to say the women were
just like their children. Even though Fantomina fed her curiosity about love and
men she did not accomplish what she had hoped in finding love and a meaningful
relationship.
Works Cited
Emerson, Ralph. The Longman Anthology of World Literature. Ed. David Damrosch and
David L. Pike. 2nd ed. Vol. D. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2009.568-586. Print.

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