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Women, Gender and Children

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Women Writers in the 19th Century. Women writers of nineteenth century history (including the Victorian era): women who have made an impact through their fiction or journalism or poetry.

Women Writers in the 19th Century

Hannah AdamsHannah Adams, published at the end of the 18th and first part of the 19th centuries, wrote about New England and about religion. In 1832, published her own memoir, which gives valuable insight into the culture of the educated class of New England. Delia BaconDelia Bacon was the first writer to propose the theory that the historical man, William Shakspear, did not write the plays attributed to Shakespeare. Jane Austen. The Brontë Sisters. Gender in Victorian Literature.

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, literature written specifically for boys and girls became increasingly popular.

Gender in Victorian Literature

In fact, the New York publisher, Charles Scribner's 1894 catalog, Popular Books for Young People, separates reading by the sexes and Scribner's selections of book reviews highlights the different manner in which boys and girls were to enjoy their reading. Included in the $1.50 recommendations of Books for Boys are the following: Sou'wester and Sword. Victorian Children illustrated. I've had very limited internet access recently, as my wife has been desperately trying to meet a deadline for some copy-editing work.

Victorian Children illustrated

Hopefully, she'll earn enough to pay for our next holiday in France, so I don't want to get in her way. However, I managed to take advantage of a quiet moment to scan some images from a Victorian children's book from the 1880s: This link contains a very brief biographical sketch about the illustrator, Alice Havers, who was a member of the Society of Lady Artists and exhibited her work at the Royal Academy. The biographical sketch describes her pictures of children as "sentimental" and "pretty awful" and I can't say I passionately disagree, but there is something captivating about her idyllic, pastoral scenes.

It isn't just the contrast these images strike with childhood today, but also the reality of the 1880s.

19th Century Heroines (Trailers)