Hannah Webster Foster and Benjamin Franklin: Addressing the Coquette through the Male and Female Voice

Throughout history, women have carried the weight of social expectations that have been thrust upon them by a patriarchal society, within which men are not held to nearly the same moral standard and scrutiny. This is reflected in both Benjamin Franklin’s and Hannah Webster Foster’s tales of a “coquette” damned by society for becoming pregnant outside of marriage. However, each of these narratives presents readers with a unique picture of a “coquette.” Both “The Speech of Miss Polly Baker” and The Coquette provide criticisms about the archetype of the coquette. However, while The Coquette presents a cautionary tale dissuading young people from falling victim to the system, “The Speech of Miss Polly Baker” provides a critique of the system itself. Both authors show sympathy towards the coquette, offer commentary on religion and constricting social structures, and confront gender and class inequities. However, Foster’s approach is more understated due to standards imposed upon her by her gender, while Franklin’s position of power allows him to use the voice of a woman to openly challenge the system without facing intense public criticism. Putting these two texts into context with one another, acknowledging the circumstances of their authors that influenced their individual approaches, leaves readers with the following question: is a woman of this time period realistically afforded the power to defend her autonomy against patriarchal threat, and if not, how can a woman operate within strictures imposed upon her to still rebel against the oppressive patriarchy?