In this interpretation, Maria's narrative is read as a parody of sentimental fiction that aims to demonstrate the "wrongs" that women inflict upon themselves when they overindulge in sensibility. Although Wollstonecraft promotes sensibility in this text, it is not the same kind that she condemns in the Rights of Woman; proper sensibility, she contends, rests on sympathy and, most importantly, is controlled by reason.
In this interpretation, Maria's narrative is read as a satire of sentimental fiction that aims to expose the "mistakes" women make when they overindulge in emotionalism. Although Wollstonecraft advocates for emotional sensitivity in this text, it differs from the kind she criticizes in The Rights of Woman; genuine emotional intelligence, she argues, relies on empathy and, most crucially, is tempered by rationality.