Charlotte Lennox's Arabella & John Locke's Theories

In Charlotte Lennox's The Female Quixote her protagonist, Lady Arabella, has strange ideas about people's behavior and circumstances of life. This story is famous for being a feminine variant of Cervantes well known Don Quixote. The stories share the common problem that both Don and Arabella have filled their minds with books of fantastic stories believing them to be true.  Whereas in Don's story though, his mental derangement may have stemmed not only from the stories but some physical brain discorder, Arabella seems to suffer from no such problems, but rather is in the bloom of youth and very intelligent.  So why is she so deranged in her ideas about society?  Certainly there is more to the explanation than just a secluded childhood and a stack of outlandish French written romances, not necessarily according to the behavioral theories of 17th century philosopher John Locke.

In his book, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke spends a great deal of time explaining how he believes human memory and reasoning work. Many of Locke's theories about human learning and reasoning are drawn from philosophies dating back to Aristotle. Persian philosophers likened the state of a newborn's brain to that of an empty vessel with pure potential. It was from these and the writings of other influential thinkers that John Locke formulated the theories which he shared in his text. Like those before him, Locke asserts in his writings that the human brain begins life in a Tabula Rasa state, that is a blank sheet.  He further reasons that the only sources for human thought, memories and reasoning are accumulated through the senses, first building up a foundation of basic building blocks then gradually putting these blocks to more and more sophisticated uses. Only those things which the developing human being are exposed to via their senses can be drawn upon for more complex ideas and reasoning.  This is the critical premise, according to Locke, for comprehending human understanding. It is this key premise which appears to form the basis from which Lennox develops the behavior of Arabella in The Female Quixote.

If we apply what Locke says about memory and reasoning to Arabella's character, her eccentric behavior is quite easily justified.  Arabella, at the age of four, was removed from the care of the women who had been attending her in infancy and early childhood (Lennox 6).  Her father provided for her grammar school  education, ensuring she learned the basics.  He then provided her with higher education, in language and social skills, in order to give young Arabella the mental tools to be an intelligent, thinking woman. However, once the foundation was laid, the father seems to have stepped back and left her to her own devices.  He allowed the girl to continue her education via reading books from his amply supplied library.  It is easy to picture the type of books that the old Marquis valued.  Books of ancient learning, dry histories, writings of great thinkers, and tomes related to the running of a manorial property.  To a young girl such literature would be...BORING!  Then Arabella chanced to find a different sort of book, one which her dead mother had procured in order to more pleasantly pass the hours of the seclusion into which she had married.  Here at last the girl found grand tales of adventure and romance, reading in which her imagination could find pleasure and excitement.  Certainly other young women read similar tales, but the difference for Arabella is that the only input she had was these French Romances from which "she drew all Notions and Expectations" (7).  Upon the fertile mental foundations her father had ensured were laid down, the seeds of higher reasoning were laid, but the sources of these seeds were dubious indeed.  Having no real-life experiences, Lady Bella takes the romances as her mirror on society, they would become the basis upon which all of her more complex ideas would form.

Locke suggests that there are three actions possible through combination of mental materials, i.e. putting together ideas.  First are complex idea, second are the combining and comparing of two or more ideas, third is creation of general ideas though abstracting basic patterns from the person's pool of mental material. Given what Arabella had filled her mind with, it is no wonder that her complex ideas always lead her to suspect convoluted plots and sub-plots being played out by totally innocent, normal people.  Moreover, that she always believes the behavior of others must be in some way related to romantic love, either suffering by a spurned lover or valiant, heroic action by a lover proving themselves, since this is the only reference points to "real-life" that the girl has.  According Locke's theories, the only conclusions Arabella can possibly draw are those which she does, because those are the only mental building blocks she has available.  Is a person like Arabella trapped by their upbringing? Locke appears to suggest that they are.

Through her portrayal of Arabella in The Female Quixote, what does Lennox suggest about the importance of a balanced and varied social life to accompany a well guided education?  Does she agree with Locke? Do you agree with either or both of them?  Think about how kids are raised today on a steady diet of video games and TV?  How different is this from Arabella's upbringing.  If Locke's theories are really viable, then is not modern society creating its own Quixote's?

For a more detailed discussion of John Locke and the philosophy of his theories see http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke/ from which much of the information here has been drawn.