Proposal Wrought by Sensible Girl (1870)

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Victorian-era American newspapers tell tales filled with morals. With some Victorian Americans courting far too long without bearing fruit and others shockingly brief, it’s no surprise tales like this came about. “A Sensible Girl,” some twenty years past (circa 1850) managed to bring her courting beau to heel.

This vintage newspaper article is a “how to make your beau propose marriage,” certainly. Yet it’s more. Note the cautionary tale shaded in nuance. Marriageable girls, the tale hints, shouldn’t allow beaus to dawdle. Courtships must move along toward an inevitable conclusion. For if the beau won’t propose, then he’s the mockingbird preventing the honorable red-breast from courting and wedding her.

Ladies, that means it’s up to you.

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How did the Sensible Girl Prompt a Proposal?

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Kristin Holt | Proposal Wrought by Sensible Girl 1870. Tale of a sensible girl; how she simply brought her beau to the altar. From The Osage County Chronicle of Burlingame, Kansas, January 8, 1870. Part 1 of 2.

1 of 2). “A Sensible Girl,” and her simple solution to an indecisive beau. The Osage County Chronicle of Burlingame, Kansas on January 8, 1870.

2 of 2). “A Sensible Girl,” and her simple solution to an indecisive beau. The Osage County Chronicle of Burlingame, Kansas on January 8, 1870.

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Invitation

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What do you think of this “sensible” advice? Is this advice applicable today?

Do you see additional Victorian-American mores beneath the surface of this 1870 newspaper article?

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Kristin Holt | The Art of Courtship, quote from within: "Here, girls, is what you must do to induce him to propose:." From the Des Moines Register of Des Moines, IA on Feb. 20, 1887.

The Art of Courtship, quote from within: “Here, girls, is what you must do to induce him to propose:.” From the Des Moines Register of Des Moines, IA on Feb. 20, 1887.