The Female Quixote

The Female Quixote is a 1752 novel by Charlotte Lennox. The novel borrows ideas and themes from Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. Like Don Quixote, the protagonist Arabella is obsessed with fictional stories about heroes and heroines. The satirical novel, Lennox’s second, was praised on release, and critics today note its importance in the history of literature by women authors.

This guide refers to the 2008 Oxford World Classics edition.

Plot Summary

The Female Quixote is set in England during the early 1700s. The story begins by introducing Arabella, an attractive and intelligent young woman who has been raised in seclusion by her father, Sir Charles Glanville, after her mother’s death. Sir Charles, a scholar with a passion for literature, has filled Arabella’s head with tales of chivalry and romance, leading her to believe that she is a noble heroine destined for great adventures. She has come to view the entire world through the lens of these romantic adventures and believes that she lives in a world of knights, ladies, and courtly love. She often behaves in ways that seem strange or eccentric to those around her.

Early in her life, this causes misunderstandings with the men in her life.