Department or Program
English
Abstract
Ann Radcliffe’s The Italian can be read as a meditation on sight; what can be seen can be understood as a truism at the crux of the novel. In an effort to explicate how vision invites curiosity, this thesis explores Radcliffe’s obsession with the veil, the sublime, and authority. Originating from a reading that focuses on what the eye sees, my argument examines the concept of female agency and its portrayal as bearing similarities to the portrayal of vision. As a novel written by a woman with a female protagonist, the idea of agency is often treated as a source of critical interest. I argue, however, that an ocular lens offers a perspective that views female agency as both intricate and often conflicting. Female characters in The Italian are hardly always or never in control of their own fate.
Level of Access
Restricted: Campus/Bates Community Only Access
First Advisor
Freedman, Sanford
Date of Graduation
5-2025
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Recommended Citation
Sablan, Emma, "The Visual Conversation and the Politics of Curiosity in Ann Radcliffe’s The Italian" (2025). Honors Theses. 505.
https://scarab.bates.edu/honorstheses/505
Number of Pages
62
