Isabella Thorpe, Basic Character Information

Northerner Abbey heroine Catherine Morland meets Isabella Thorpe in Bath. The two young women become friends through their shared love of horrid novels.

Basic Information:

Age: At least 21, she is described as being at least four years older than the 17 year old Catherine Morland.
Primary Residence: During the course of the book she is staying in Bath with her mother and sisters, but their principle residence is near London, probably in a town called Tunbridge.

Spouse: Probably not any time soon. Isabella was briefly engaged to Catherine’s older brother James, but that relationship ended due to her pursuit of Captain Tilney.
Other Family: Isabella lives with her mother and two younger sisters. She also three brothers: John, Edward, and William. Her father is deceased.

Physical Characteristics: Isabella is described as having great personal beauty.

Personality Characteristics: Isabella is a manipulative fortune hunter. She consistently tries to make friends with people based on their usefulness to her and her goals of marrying someone with money.

What to call her:

• Isabella – Her family and close friends. This is likely a larger group than is typical for the time as the Thorpe family seems prone to casualness. Also, the fact that she and Catherine are using each other’s first names from a very early point in their friendship along with other behavior hints that she is prone to fast-tracking emotional connections.
• Miss Thorpe – Anyone she is not on a first name basis with.