The cycle of success : mentoring in Sarah Grand's Morningquest trilogy

Abstract

Sarah Grand's titular character, Ideala, is unconventional, outspoken, and a mentor to other women. Appearing in all three of Grand's Morningquest narratives, Ideala is also immediately recognisable as a "New Woman". Yet few studies have analysed Ideala's critical role as mentor or her extended narrative across the three novels: Ideala, The Heavenly Twins and The Beth Book. Taking a fresh approach to the "Woman Question" and Grand's understudied trilogy, this thesis aims to closely examine the cyclic pattern of mentoring; specifically, how Ideala becomes a mentor, how she actively mentors her own sex, and subsequently, how her prote'ge's become mentors. Read as an organised whole, this thesis argues that Grand's Morningquest trilogy is an intimate exploration of one character, Ideala, on a crusade to improve women's rights in marriage and society, as well as to improve women's opinions of each other. This thesis argues that Ideala is only a New Woman because she is a mentor to other women. By fixing the argument on Ideala's relationship with other characters, this thesis invites the reader to reconsider Grand's purpose in writing fiction for her nineteenth-century audience. Additionally, what emerges out of an analysis of the Morningquest trilogy is a comprehensive understanding of the female mentor as a central figure in Grand's formation of the New Woman.

Date of Award	2019
Original language	English