17th century gender roles considered women the lesser sex. Clearly, with Brehn's characterization and description of Imoinda, women are given more power than ever in Brehn's society, even though she expresses a Eurocentric view. Brehn supposedly takes the side of women, who, in his text, “are not contained by any fixed position or perspective” (Homsland 59). Ironically, the fact that an author even gives women the time of day shows a more progressive perspective. Edwin Johnson shows that this perspective is unique; consists of a court-intended impact on social policy involving the implicit explanation that “the English people possess a genetic disposition towards violence, greed, and restless disobedience” (Visconsi 673). These behaviors are something Brehn wishes to change in British society. With his application of the novel, he implicitly conveys his then-progressive views regarding slavery and gender rights, but does not dare to challenge the established order. Slavery is never an entirely evil institution; Brehn purposely evades the issue to avoid upsetting the Crown, to whom he is loyal (Knoll 576). The Crown would certainly have canceled his funds and Brehn would have been left homeless; clearly, Brehn was saving his own skin. However, this no longer makes Brehn's failure to denounce slavery as an evil institution any more justifiable: on the contrary, it makes Brehn