Alexander Pope's poem "An Epistle to a Lady" clearly sets out to show
the qualities of an ideal woman. These qualities are further enforced
through the contrast of portraits of women who are in some way immoral or
otherwise not ideal. The themes of Pope's poem use the portraits to sound a
theme and then turn the theme to positive advantage in the final compliment
to Martha Blount. The form of this poem is a Horatian Epistle. Usually the
receiver of a Horatian Epistle is an Aristocratic male who serves both to
modulate the poet's tone and to suggest that even aristocrats can be
educated by a poet. In "An Epistle to a Lady", Pope defies this
characteristic trait of Horatian Epistles and dedicates his poem to a woman
of middle class standing, the readers of such poems are encouraged to agree
that such folly is wrong and far from the ideal behavior. Pope's "Epistle
to a Lady" is set within the tradition of literature directed at teaching
women how to be proper, polite young women. The influences and the context
of this poem are eighteenth century conduct books, moral essays, sermons,
biographies, and poems directed at a predominately female audience. Pope
establishes a social relationship between author and reader as well as
author and recipient of the epistle. It is the respect and friendship of
the author and recipient, which starts the poem and then permeates it. Pope
also establishes a pleasant personal relationship with his lady, he will
draw the lady's own values to counterbalance the romantic folly in most of
the poem. The portraits in Pope's epistle depict the traits of bad women
including, inconstancy, fickleness, excessive self-love, and ostentatious
displays of wit. The activities of undesirable women contradict every
expectation of appropriate and decorous behavior in the sex, which is
exemplified in the Lady. Narcissa scorns good nature, Flavia shows excessive
spirit and quickness, Atossa is furious and has violent passion, and Cloe is
incapable of generosity and love. Perhaps the most interesting part of
Pope's "An Epistle to a Lady" is that Pope celebrates a middle class woman.
Pope finds value in the Lady, Martha Blount, because she is not an
aristocrat, she has a wonderful sense of humour and wit. Pope is critical
of women who live a public aristocratic life, while he celebrates a woman
who shines in the private life.