The Foolish Virgin

The Foolish Virgin is a novel written by George Gissing, first published in 1897. The book tells the story of a young woman named Mary Barfoot, who is determined to live an independent life and make her own way in the world. Mary sets up a school for girls in London and hires a young woman named Rhoda Nunn to help her run it. Rhoda is also fiercely independent and has little interest in marriage or traditional gender roles.As the story progresses, Mary and Rhoda find themselves at odds with the men in their lives, including Mary's former lover, Everard Barfoot, and Rhoda's friend, Dr. Madden. Both men are determined to marry the women and force them into traditional roles as wives and mothers. However, Mary and Rhoda are determined to maintain their independence and resist the pressure to conform.The novel explores themes of gender roles, marriage, and the struggle for independence in a patriarchal society. It is a complex and nuanced portrayal of women's lives in Victorian England, and remains a powerful and thought-provoking work of literature today.Resolutely silent, Miss Jewell listened to a conversation the drift of which remained dark to her, until some one spoke the name 'Mr Cheeseman'; then it was with difficulty that she controlled her face and her tongue. The servant brought her an egg. She struck it clumsily with the edge of her spoon and asked in an affected drawl: 'What are you people talking about?'This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.