The Dangers of Prejudice

For every character in the novel, the main power struggle can be traced to the theme of grappling with the nature of truth. Everyone is in the process of decoding rumors and lies to achieve their own ends. Mrs. Vernon seeks to expose Lady Susan by proving the allegations against her are true; Reginald De Courcy is torn between his love for Lady Susan and the truth about her character; Lady Susan seeks to obfuscate the truth as much as possible so she may win the heart of Reginald for her own egotistical pleasure and so she can marry off Frederica to secure a financial future. The truth is layered in complex Victorian dynamics of social interaction and the various letters which form the novel's structure. The letters are then coded in levels of subtext and lies.

The novel argues how the truth...