Eton College is boys boarding school established in 1440 by Henry VI. Initially established to provide free schooling for poor boys, with the intent for them to continue their education at the King’s College, Eton is known for being a prestigious, wealthy, and historical school. Many of its alumni are notable and influential. Shelley’s choice to have Fitzhenry go to school here speaks to Lodore’s societal status and financial means. It also shows early signs of Fitzhenry’s pride and dissatisfaction with society.
“At the age of thirteen he went to Eton, and here every thing wore an altered and unpleasant aspect. Here were no servile menials nor humble friends. He stood one among many — equals, superiors, inferiors, all full of a sense of their own rights, their own powers; he desire to lead, and he had no followers; he wished to stand aloof, and his dignity, even in privacy, was perpetually invaded.” (81)