Essay Questions

What is the culture that is represented in the book, When He Was Wicked?

The culture that is depicted in the book is the culture of England during Napoleonic times. The novel is set after a war between England and Napoleon in London. The culture is shown from the laws of inheritance, the class system, the death and burial rituals, and marriage ceremonies. These show cultural significance.

In the book, John Stirling was the son of the Earl of Kilmartin. As the son of the earl, he was the heir of the title and the estate. As the firstborn son, he inherited everything that his family-owned. On the other hand, Michael Stirling the cousin of John did not receive any inheritance from the estate. This was because he was the son of the second-born son. These were the rules of inheritance. After John died, because he did not leave behind any children, Michael became Earl of Kilmartin.

There was an elaborate class system in England at the time. The class system was composed of two groups of people. The aristocrats and the working class. The aristocrats had more wealth that they inherited from their parents and their role in society was to rule the country. The other group of people was the working class who worked for the aristocrats and were conscripted to war.

What does the book reveal about love?

There are two kinds of love that are depicted in the novel. There is romantic love and philia love which is love between family and friends. The book is a romance novel. It is set in a society that is composed of the Kilmartin family, the Bridgerton family, and the duke and duchess.

John and Francesca Bridgerton were in love and were married. John was the Earl of Kilmartin and Francesca became the Countess of Kilmartin after the marriage. They had romantic love. They celebrated their anniversary and spent quality time together. The that blossomed between Michael and Francesca was also romantic love. They courted after the death of John Kilmartin.

The book depicts the love between family and friends. Society is shown to be accepting of its members. The people help each other when there are hurdles. They also come together to celebrate each other. The aristocrats came together to celebrate the birthday of Violet Bridgerton.

What is the personality of Michael Stirling in the book?

Michael Stirling was introduced in the book as a jealous lover because he was in love with the wife of his first cousin. He was also not favored by the aristocratic society because he was the son of the brother of the Earl of Kilmartin. Michael was a very adventurous fellow for he had gone to travel to India, in the Napoleonic wars and he had a reputation as a playboy.

However, the station of Michael Stirling in life changed suddenly and dramatically after the death of John Stirling. Michael became the earl and inherited the estate that John left behind. Michael struggled with the love that he felt for Francesca Bridgerton because she was his late cousin's wife. Michael had an internal conflict because he felt that he was replacing John in life since he took over the earldom and the inheritance from John.