Gender and Space in British Literature, 1660-1820 (British Literature in Context in the Long Eighteenth Century)

Between 1660 and 1820, Great Britain experienced significant structural transformations in class, politics, economy, print, and writing that produced new and varied spaces and with them, new and reconfigured concepts of gender. In mapping the relationship between gender and space in British literature of the period, this collection defines, charts, and explores new cartographies, both geographic and figurative. The contributors take up a variety of genres and discursive frameworks from this period, including poetry, the early novel, letters, and laboratory notebooks written by authors ranging from Aphra Behn, Hortense Mancini, and Isaac Newton to Frances Burney and Germaine de Staël. Arranged in three groups, Inside, Outside, and Borderlands, the essays conduct targeted literary analysis and explore the changing relationship between gender and different kinds of spaces in the long eighteenth century. In addition, a set of essays on Charlotte Smith's novels and a set of essays on natural philosophy offer case studies for exploring issues of gender and space within larger fields, such as an author's oeuvre or a particular discourse. Taken together, the essays demonstrate space's agency as a complement to historical change as they explore how literature delineates the gendered redefinition, occupation, negotiation, inscription, and creation of new spaces, crucially contributing to the construction of new cartographies in eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century England. About the Editor: Mona Narain is Associate Professor of English and faculty affiliate in the Women's Studies Program at Texas Christian University, USA, and Karen Gevirtz is Associate Professor of English and Co-Director of the Women and Gender Studies Program at Seton Hall University, USA. Publisher's note Between 1660 and 1820, Great Britain experienced significant structural transformations in class, politics, economy, print, and writing that produced new and varied spaces and with them, new and reconfigured concepts of gender. In mapping the relationship between gender and space in British literature of the period, this collection defines, charts, and explores new cartographies, both geographic and figurative. The contributors take up a variety of genres and discursive frameworks from this period, including poetry, the early novel, letters, and laboratory notebooks written by authors ranging from Aphra Behn, Hortense Mancini, and Isaac Newton to Frances Burney and Germaine de Staël. Arranged in three groups, Inside, Outside, and Borderlands, the essays conduct targeted literary analysis and explore the changing relationship between gender and different kinds of spaces in the long eighteenth century. In addition, a set of essays on Charlotte Smith's novels and a set of essays on natural philosophy offer case studies for exploring issues of gender and space within larger fields, such as an author's oeuvre or a particular discourse. Taken together, the essays demonstrate space's agency as a complement to historical change as they explore how literature delineates the gendered redefinition, occupation, negotiation, inscription, and creation of new spaces, crucially contributing to the construction of new cartographies in eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century England. About the Editor: Mona Narain is Associate Professor of English and faculty affiliate in the Women's Studies Program at Texas Christian University, USA, and Karen Gevirtz is Associate Professor of English and Co-Director of the Women and Gender Studies Program at Seton Hall University, USA. Publisher's note Between 1660 and 1820, Great Britain experienced significant structural transformations in class, politics, economy, print, and writing that produced new and varied spaces and with them, new and reconfigured concepts of gender. In mapping the relationship between gender and space in British literature of the period, this collection defines, charts, and explores new cartographies, both geographic and figurative. The contributors take up a variety of genres and discursive frameworks from this period, including poetry, the early novel, letters, and laboratory notebooks written by authors ranging from Aphra Behn, Hortense Mancini, and Isaac Newton to Frances Burney and Germaine de Staël. Arranged in three groups, Inside, Outside, and Borderlands, the essays conduct targeted literary analysis and explore the changing relationship between gender and different kinds of spaces in the long eighteenth century. In addition, a set of essays on Charlotte Smith's novels and a set of essays on natural philosophy offer case studies for exploring issues of gender and space within larger fields, such as an author's oeuvre or a particular discourse. Taken together, the essays demonstrate space's agency as a complement to historical change as they explore how literature delineates the gendered redefinition, occupation, negotiation, inscription, and creation of new spaces, crucially contributing to the construction of new cartographies in eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century England. Constructing Place In Oroonoko / Laura L. Runge -- Creole Space: Jamaica, Fallen Women, And British Literature / Aleksondra Hultquist -- Going Native: Geography, Gender, And Identity In Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's Turkish Embassy Letters / Ambereen Dadabhoy -- Margaret Bryan And Jane Marcet: Making Space For Space In British Women's Science Writing / Kristine Larsen -- The Space Of British Exile In Frances Burney's The Wanderer And Germaine De Staël's Corinne / Pamela Cheek -- Ever Restless Waters: Female Identity And Coastal Space In Charlotte Smith's The Young Philosopher / Zoë Kinsley -- Writing From The Road: Space And The Spectacle Of Hortense Mancini, Duchess Of Mazarin / Courtney Beggs -- New Models For The Literary Garden: Women's Amatory Novels Of The 1720s / Mary Crone-romanovski -- Anne Finch's Strategic Retreat Into The Country House / Jeong-oh Kim -- Masculinity, Space, And Late Seventeenth-century Alchemical Practices / Laura Miller -- Invaded Spaces In Charlotte Smith's The Banished Man (1794) / Heather Ann Ladd -- Seeking Shelter In Charlotte Smith's Emmeline / Kathleen M. Oliver. Edited By Mona Narain And Karen Gevirtz. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 211-230) And Index.