Becky Sharp is the fiercely ambitious and resourceful protagonist of Thackeray’s Vanity Fair. Born an orphan in Soho—the illegitimate daughter of an impoverished English artist and a French dancer—she rises from humble beginnings by transforming herself into an attractive, cunning social climber. Unlike her more demure and dependent school friend, Amelia Sedley, Becky is determined to reinvent her identity, using her wit, charm, and theatrical talents to navigate and manipulate the rigid social hierarchies of Regency England.

From the outset, Becky is depicted as a woman who understands that appearance and charm are her most valuable assets. She adopts the guise of an ideal English lady, meticulously cultivating an image through fashionable clothes and refined manners—tools she uses to seduce upper-class men and secure her financial future. Her relentless drive leads her to pursue advantageous marriages and extramarital liaisons alike; whether courting a wealthy husband or consorting with influential aristocrats, Becky’s relationships are strategic moves in her broader plan for social elevation.

Her character is a study in contrasts. On one hand, she is vivacious, adaptable, and full of life—qualities that make her irresistibly attractive to those around her. On the other hand, she is morally ambiguous and relentlessly self-interested, willing to lie, cheat, and reinvent herself whenever circumstances threaten her ambitions. This duplicitous nature not only allows her to exploit the vulnerabilities of the genteel society she both admires and derides, but also makes her a continual source of scandal and intrigue.

Throughout the narrative, Becky’s journey is marked by her capacity to transform herself to suit the demands of each new social milieu—from the fashionable drawing rooms of London to the bohemian circles in continental Europe. Her exploits during turbulent times, such as the period surrounding the Waterloo campaign, further underscore her opportunistic spirit: even in the face of national crisis, she is busy plotting her next move, untroubled by the conventional moral or patriotic sentiments that bind her peers.

All published appearances of Becky Sharp from before January 1, )-(95)}} are public domain in the US.

Some notable appearances are listed here:

*Vanity Fair (1847)
*The Eustace Diamonds (1873)
*Old Friends: Essays in Epistolary Parody (1890)
**From Mrs. Proudie to Mrs. Quiverful

*Vanity Fair (1899)

*Vanity Fair (1911)
*Vanity Fair (1915)
*Vanity Fair (1923) (lost film)
*Becky Sharp (1935) (Academy Award nominee)

*The 1935 film adaptation is the first feature film to use three-strip Technicolor.

*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Becky_Sharp# Wikipedia]
*[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/VanityFair TV Tropes]
Category:1847 Debuts
Category:Female Characters
Category:Protagonists
Category:William Makepeace Thackeray - Creator
Category:Literary Characters
Category:Movie Characters
Category:Femmes fatales
Category:Orphan Characters
Category:Sharp Family Characters
Category:Humor Characters
Category:Television Characters
Category:MGM Characters
Category:RKO Characters
Category:Universal Studios Characters
Category:Academy Awards Characters
Category:The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad characters
Category:Live-Action Characters