Meanwhile, Jemima has grown more and more fond of Henry and Maria and shares the story of her past with them. Maria and Henry eventually declare their love for one another. Darnford explains that he has also been unjustly imprisoned and is working diligently to secure his freedom. Eventually, with Jemima’s help, Maria and the inmate, Henry Darnford, begin to correspond and even meet in Maria’s cell. Maria notices that the books, which Jemima obtains from the cell of another prisoner in the asylum, have thoughtful notes in the margins, and she becomes curious about this man. Maria passes time by reading and writing a narrative of her past life so that she can eventually pass it on to her daughter. Jemima is not willing to risk her employment by helping Maria to escape, but she does begin to bring Maria books and writing materials. No one seems to have sympathy for her plight, although Maria is hopeful that she can persuade Jemima, a woman who works at the asylum, to eventually help her. Maria desperately pleads that she does not belong there and laments that she has been separated from her infant daughter. The novel begins with Maria imprisoned in an asylum her husband, George Venables, has forcefully imprisoned her there. Additionally, this guide maintains the source text’s use of the word “asylum” to refer to institutions that were early precursors of modern psychiatric hospitals. The source text also uses outdated, offensive terms in reference to mental illness and sex work, which are replicated in this guide only through direct quotations.

This guide references the 1993 Penguin Classics edition, which includes Maria, as well as additional short novels by Wollstonecraft and her daughter, Mary Shelley.Ĭontent Warning: This guide includes references to domestic violence, sexual assault, abortion, and death by suicide.

Maria mary wollstonecraft