Most literary representations of the sexes include implicit, binary differences between women and men. Women are typically written as pure archetypes who strive to find constancy in their relationships. In contrast, men are seen as libertines who seek multiplicity, novelty, and otherwise dissolute desires. In Fantomina, a feat of sex, love, and cross-dressing, Eliza Haywood challenges these standards through Fantomina's multiplicity and identity change to deceive Beauplaisir. Fantomina counters Beauplaisir's male gaze and, with her foresight and constantly being one step ahead of him, finds a way to reverse typical gender dynamics. Through the heroine's sexual assertion, verbal expression, and Beauplausir's deception, she rebels against feminine constructs and ultimately contributes to Fantomina's position as a proto-feminist text. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The unnamed protagonist's initial disruptive sexual transformation and her subsequent sensual affirmation exemplify her determination and ingenuity. Although she adopts the character of Fantomina and appears as a prostitute, it is not her mission to seduce Beauplaisir at first, and he initiates the first sexual encounter despite her resistance and rapes her. But after this scene, Fantomina proves to be a quick learner and takes revenge sensually (Levin). She uses multiple disguises to deceive Beauplaisir into believing that he is seducing her, when in reality she is seducing him: "...remembering the height of transportation she enjoyed when the friendly Beauplaisir knelt at her feet, begging for her first favors, he wished to prove the same again” (Haywood 51). Through his disguises, Beauplaisir blindly falls into his trap and believes he has control over multiple different women, when the protagonist is also in control of his own sexual decisions Haywood uses sexual imagery to describe Fantomina's plan: “Her design was once again to involve him, to hear him sigh, to see him languish, to feel the strenuous pressures of his greedy arms, to be forced, to be gently forced to what he desired with equal ardor, was what he wanted” (Haywood 51). Here, the rhetorical conventions radically capture the experience of sensual passion and address the desires of the woman, which was certainly unusual for the time. Of course, despite the heroine's rape, she embraces her sexuality and uses it to gain power in her relationship with Beauplaisir. After her sexual statement, the heroine's confident rhetoric and use of verbal expression reveal her wit and cunning intrigues. When he first puts his plan to deceive Beauplaisir into action, he weighs the possible consequences to himself. He realizes how his deception could have little consequence on his character and public opinion: “The hateful word forsaken will never hurt my ears; …it will not even be in the power of my destroyer to triumph over me; and while he laughs, and perhaps despises the affection of the yielding Fantomina, he will revere and esteem the virtuous and reserved lady” (Haywood 49). With cunning rhetoric, he reiterates the value of his disguises and thus affirms confidence in his intrigues. As the plot develops, he continues to become more and more immersed in his plan to deceive Beauplaisir. He mischievously notes his ingenuity: "He could not help laughing heartily at the thought of the tricks he had played on him, and applauding his own strength of genius and strength of resolution, which in such unexpected ways could triumph over the inconstancy of his.