Performing in the Opera-box in Vanity Fair Michelle Qiu College

The opera-box is an essential part of social life in William Thackeray's Vanity Fair. There are scenes in operas of every city the characters go to, including in London, Brussels, and Paris. For an author that is obsessed with performance, it is strange that Thackeray rarely describes the actual performance at the Opera. Instead, he focuses on the constant performance that being in society induces, which is particularly evident in the opera setting because of its layout. His descriptions of the opera revolve around the people play-acting in it, particularly Becky, who utilizes the opera-box to her social advantage by performing for others.

Becky is hyper aware of the social dynamics at play all the time. She often seems to be the only one aware of how to control the characters around her. If she is not the only one who is aware, she is certainly the only character brazen enough to act on it by challenging the unspoken rules that the other characters follow. She does not play her assigned societal role and tries to climb the social ladder is a very blatant way. This is why women dislike her. Men, however, attribute this to her cleverness and wit, which she uses to further her own desires. One of the particular places that...