Paper question on Sentimental Novels (Rowson & Brown/Foster)

The second round of papers are due one month from today, so it is time to get a new round of topics out. Here is the assignment if you choose to write on the sentimental novels. Another set of questions on slavery (using Clotel and the included documents) will follow soon:

Read Susannah Rowson's Charlotte Temple (the sequel Lucy Temple, is optional) and either The Power of Sympathy by William Hill Brown or The Coquette by Hannah Foster. Compare and contrast Charlotte Temple and the other novel. Then answer the following questions:

• Why were books like this (especially Charlotte Temple) such a hot sellers in the Early American Republic? In what ways did the novels' themes seem to resonate with the social experience of young American readers in this period? AND/OR
  
• We will be discussing the greatly elevated moral and cultural standing American women enjoyed in the wake of the Revolution, along with much greater access to basic education. Susanna Rowson was a great beneficiary participant in these trends. Do sentimental novels reflect that in any way? Can it reasonably be given any sort of feminist or pro-female reading, despite the fact that the heroines of these novels almost always die?