We’re happy to introduce a new series of essays called “Emerging Voices,” written solely by undergraduate students working on authors and titles in the Stainforth library catalog. The editors are particularly excited to share these essays because not only do they offer valuable new insights into lesser-known titles and women authors between the sixteenth and … Continue reading Emerging Voices, an Introduction
Essay by Catherine Newcomb Dr. Leuner ENGL 144G May 16, 2018 The Platonic Wife, a play written by British author Elizabeth Griffith in 1765, explores themes of female oppression and the patriarchal usage of women for economic advancement through the story of the separation of a man and woman, Lord and Lady Frankland (their first … Continue reading Women’s Lib and the Chastity Police: Explorations of Female Friendship in The Platonic Wife (1765), by Elizabeth Griffith
Essay by Meredith MacLennan 25 May 2018 Professor Leuner 18th Century British Women’s Literature Recovery Essay- Anna Barbauld Anna Letitia Barbauld was a well-known woman in her day. She was a prominent writer, teacher, and poet during the 18th century in Britain. Like all other female authors from this time, her writing alone was unusual, … Continue reading Anna Barbauld & Fables in A Legacy for Young Ladies (1826)
It is stunning to me that Alice Flowerdew does not have a record in VIAF.org, the Virtual International Authority File. I started searching for Flowerdew while spot-checking our person authority records completed by new student editors (they’re amazing!) at the University of Colorado Boulder. “Flowerdew (A)” appears on page 161 of the catalog and has … Continue reading Alice Flowerdew, Robert Bloomfield, and VIAF #Fail
Our newest Stainforth researcher, Faith, sent me a Slack message saying that she found a case of a male author in the Stainforth catalog publishing under the name of a woman. This would be James Templeman publishing as Miss Edgworth Temple, author of The Mysterious Shriek, or, Alexander and Lavinia: a metrical tale. Also, the ancient … Continue reading Miss Edgworth Temple or James Templeman?
Restore me to my rights; Cast off they paramour; I am not now The pliant girl, whose easy, yielding heart You moulded to your will. The slave of man, Too long consigned to tyranny and wrong, I know the value of the power I hold; And, taught a better lesson, will return The evil I … Continue reading “I will proclaim my sorrows to the world, / And force thee to an act of justice.” Emma Roberts, Oriental Scenes (Calcutta, 1830)
The difference between seeing a J or a T means, for Mrs. T Smith, having your work accessible in digital archives or remaining concealed. We originally transcribed the author’s first initial as a J. The entry is in Stainforth’s wish list, page 562, line 15. The initial is added above the line, and I must … Continue reading Poetic Flowers, Geneva, [1824]
This morning I’ve been chasing down a lead to a Stainforth bookplate I found in Stoddard and Whitesell’s A Bibliographical Description of Books and Pamphlets of American Verse. Their bibliography contains a work by Sarah Wentworth Apthorp Morton (1759-1846) called Ouâbi : or The virtues of nature. An Indian tale. In four cantos / By Philenia, a lady of Boston (pseudonym). This is from the … Continue reading Ouâbi : or The virtues of nature. An Indian tale. In four cantos / By Philenia, a lady of Boston.
I discovered Mary Roberts while designing the website assessment test form for the Stainforth project website. I wanted to find an author whose first and last names were common to test our database search functionality, and I wanted to use an author who I was not yet familiar with. I was drawn to the title … Continue reading Mary Roberts (1788-1864), Poet Naturalist
“K1 Baths of Bagnole (The) 1826” (28.06) – I don’t recall what drew me to this entry, but I wound up researching it for long enough to figure out that it’s difficult to find. I wonder why the “Baths of Bagnole” would be the title or subject for a juvenile miscellany? Stainforth lists this title … Continue reading Baths of Bagnole; or the juvenile miscellany