Grieving a Lost Identity

Written by Nina Brown

Charlotte Temple by Susanna Rowson is a novel that contains arguments on a myriad of themes, some of which ring true today, and some of which we now consider to be outdated. Two themes discussed in the novel that are still considered to be universal to the adolescent experience are grief and identity. Rowson makes the argument that forfeiting an identity prematurely or in the “wrong way” will come with extreme grief and anguish. Being a seduction novel, this argument is to be expected. Rowson is warning young girls against trading in their virgin identities too early or inappropriately. If they do, she warns, the pure part of them will die, causing immense grief for what was lost. Rowson makes her opinions clearly known when she breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to her readers. Her argument is not veiled or watered-down in any way when she writes, “Oh my dear girls—for to such only am I writing—listen not to the voice of love, unless sanctioned by paternal approbation…” (Rowson 26). With this Rowson warns them against trading away their innocence and virginity for romance and love, unless their parents approve of it and say it is the right time. 

While many adolescents today feel grief over leaving their childhood, Charlotte’s case is extreme. Her grief extends to the level of depression and her change in identity has a monumental impact on her life. By leaving with Montraville, she forfeits her identity as a virgin child, but doesn’t quite reach the prescribed next step for women in that time: wife. Thus, Charlotte finds herself trapped in a strange grey area, with no real identity of her own to grasp onto for comfort. Typically, the pain of losing an old identity is supplanted with the excitement and joy of gaining a new one, but in Charlotte’s situation, there is no joy to be had, so she is overwhelmed by the grief. 

Charlotte and the people who love her spend most of the novel grieving. Charlotte grieves for the loss of her family, her future, and her childhood. The extent to which she grieves who she once was may explain her intense suicidal ideations in the second half of the novel. She feels like such a big piece of her died that she wants to fully die herself. Her feelings really highlight the power placed on a person’s identity at that time, because the loss or alteration of it can lead to such devastating results. In addition, Charlotte’s parents grieve the loss of their daughter even before she is dead, and then have to truly grieve for her when she actually dies at the end of the novel.  The author’s heavy-handed use of this theme is expected because, in her time, the elopement of a young girl was “one misfortune which is worse than death” (Rowson 44). Both Charlotte and her family’s reaction to her elopement was therefore one of grieving as if she had truly died. 

In a less extreme manner, the concept of grief over the loss of one’s identity is something almost all young teenagers have to deal with. From the time someone’s born until they are in their late teens, they are referred to as a child and their life is filled with activities and relationships and emotions that are specific to childhood. Then, as they grow older, they all of a sudden start to look more like adults and are expected to act as such. It can be the most jarring adjustment in a person’s life. Rather quickly, the identity of child is replaced by the identity of young adult. Of course, in the time of Charlotte Temple, there was no such thing as “young adult” or “teenager,” so this transition, even if done “properly,” would be even more of a shock to the system because they skipped right to adult. It can take time to loosen the grip on childhood and fully accept a new identity. Seeing as this is a common phenomenon, I expect the theme to recur frequently in future young adult novels. While the form it takes may vary, the general idea of relinquishing childhood and stepping into adulthood, as well as the grief that can come with that, is central to most adolescent issues and is at the forefront of many young adult novels, including Charlotte Temple.