Influence of Marina Less as a Writer
Marina Less, an 18th century female writer, gets plenty of fan mail, yet she only rarely replies. She feels compelled to answer to one woman in particular, Pierce, an older female dreaming to be a writer. Less’ inspires Pierce by relating to her in many ways. Being a female writer in (1866), she appeals to her character and credibility by sharing personal experiences and shared values. She also informs Pierce about the qualities that she herself has that helped her to succeed.
Time and wisdom is what Less feel is necessary to become a successful writer. By making a personal connection between the two women, Less is able to tell Price what it takes. The most important qualities that Less says are needed are wisdom and experience. With that being said, one gains wisdom through experience- you cannot make your writing believable without it. Using loaded words such as “genuine, trashy, and unripe”, Less expresses the importance of waiting until you have been more fulfilled in life. Less also appeals to Pierce’s emotions by “stooping to her level” to con next more strongly with Price.
In this way, Price will take Less’ advice more to heart. Because this letter is written in 1866, the reader is lead to imply that women had very little rights. Women were given no respect in general, much less while being a woman author. Still today is the 21st century; women authors are using pen names so that their readers will see them as equals. They feared their male readers would not want to read her books because she is a woman. Considering all of this plus the time period, Price is at a disadvantage. In order to connect to on a more intimate level, Less uses feminism to unite their goals in a world run by men.
Less reassures Price that even though she is a woman and although she is monotony she can still do whatever she puts her mind to. Although the reader is unaware of Pierce’s writing abilities, Less feels confident in her and uses her own credibility to relate the two writers together in order to boost Pierce’s confidence as a writer. Informing Pierce of their common ground, Less’ persuades her by tapping into her emotions. Because she feels compelled to respond, she also succeeds in motivating Pierce by using rhetorical schemes such as personal experience and the two women’s shared values.
