The letter is very interesting, my belief is that this letter is written and sent by Lady MaryWortley Montagu to a child who is most probably her daughter. The reason for this is because, at the end, the letter says “your most affectionate mother” and then mentions M. Wortley, meaning she is the writer. The letter’s audience is the daughter and based on the language used, I would say it’s formal. Lady Montagu uses the letter to inform her daughter about her personal beliefs towards her life and especially why she should be educated. She does this by explaining how a woman benefits by acquiring education, passing this message using three important rhetorical tools, including allusions, personal references, and contrasting.

Lady Montagu contrasts the traditional to non-traditional views using the statement, “True knowledge consists in knowing things, not words”. In this case, she challenges the conventional wisdom of reading, and this involves reading the original books and not relying on the translation. This is a very interesting point the writer makes is basically saying that you can obtain much more from reading the real copy in its language, then what is changed to.  She also uses a personal reference to show her daughter how education is important not only to her but the entire family line. For instance, she names some of the best people in England, including Admiral Sandwich, Wise William, and the Duke of Argyle. These were great people due to their educational qualifications or intelligence and hence preferred by the author. The letter applies allusions, especially to popular authors, by referring to some people like Waller when exploring love poems.  She says that most of the girls are not educated, especially in poetry, and stresses the importance of her daughter learning poetry to ensure people do not take advantage of them. Lastly, The author uses ethos to convince the audience to acknowledge the importance of education since she is a woman who is educated in poetry hence authoritative.