Class/wealth: Olivia’s status is complex because she is a woman of color, the daughter of her white father and black mother who was enslaved by him. She does not consider her father evil despite his being the enslaver of her mother. When he dies, he leaves in his will that Olivia needs to marry her cousin Augustus Merton, who will receive a large dowry. If he does not marry her, Augustus’ older brother and his wife will inherit the estate. Olivia, rather than being enslaved after his death, has a chance to leave her country and go off to London.
