Abstract

The story of Becky Sharp is at the heart of the literary case study presented in this book. Becky’s exploits are no mere fictional examples illustrating Smith’s theory; rather, the complex and rich narrative of VF deepens our understanding of some parts of TMS while helping us question others. The profile of Becky offered here contains a first sketch of her character and anchors the conversation about the many vices, virtues, and moral sentiments in the chapters to follow. It also introduces the societal system within which Becky operates and her relationship to this system. Becky is well aware of the existence of social inequalities and she resents people for what she perceives as their unfair superiority over her. But she is not outraged by the existence of inequality as such; on the contrary, she welcomes it – just as long as she sees opportunities to be upwardly mobile. Her concerns and interests are egocentric through and through: Becky cares for herself and all her calculations are geared toward her own success. She does not empathize or feel solidarity with those who share her plight, be they fellow governesses, fellow wives, or fellow mothers. People are means, not ends in themselves (Nuyen does not discuss Becky Sharp but focuses on Jos Sedley as a “paradigm” of vanity and a snob. He refers to Kant’s notion of snobbery to explain that the vain person values everything (including other people) as means to an end. Even when the vain person desires something that is inherently valuable (like a virtuous character trait), he or she values it not for its inherent worth but its instrumental nature (Nuyen, Vanity, The Southern Journal of Philosophy 37: 613–627, 1999)). Becky is undaunted in the face of uncertainty and takes risks when she expects high rewards; she has an eye for opportunity and reinvents herself whenever circumstances call for an innovative approach. She is, as the narrator of VF suggests, is a skilled and effective manager, using all tools at her disposal to realize her goals. Implicit in Becky’s story is a sharp critique of the gender ideology that marks Thackeray’s time (For a thorough analysis of Thackeray and early Victorian feminism, see Micael M. Clarke, Thackeray and Women Dekalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 1995). Elements of this ideology are introduced here and explored in later chapters.