Focusing on Elizabeth Singer Rowe's significant yet overlooked contribution to prose fiction, this study explores her impact on the development of the English novel. Despite her four-volume collection achieving bestseller status for a century, Rowe remains largely unrecognized in literary history. The book aims to revive interest in her work and highlight her influence on the genre.
Inventing Agency, Inventing Genre
The book explores various canonical and popular verse forms, highlighting women's use of religious poetry to address themes of patriarchy and sexual violence. It examines the evolution of friendship poetry and the representation of same-sex desire in elegies by both women and men. Additionally, it positions Charlotte Smith as a significant figure of the long eighteenth century, emphasizing her contributions beyond the Romantic era.
Featuring 368 poems from 80 British women poets of the long eighteenth century, this anthology highlights works that have largely remained unprinted since their original publication. It serves as a vital resource for understanding the literary contributions of women writers during this period, showcasing their unique voices and perspectives that have shaped literary history.
Exploring Daniel Defoe's extensive body of work, Paula Backscheider recontextualizes his contributions within the literary landscape of his time. She highlights Defoe's artistic ambitions, showcasing how his extensive reading and engagement with contemporary issues shaped his writing. By analyzing his poetry, pamphlets, and novels, Backscheider argues for the thematic and stylistic coherence of his oeuvre, positioning him as a pioneer of the historical novel and emphasizing the significance of his unique narrative style in the evolution of the English novel.
Women in Wartime demonstrates the startling acuity and prescience of the repertoire in responding to the war-steeped culture of the period.