LEADER 05959nam 2201009Ia 450 001 9910779143603321 005 20200520144314.0 010 $a0-8122-2248-2 010 $a1-283-89102-6 010 $a0-8122-0352-6 024 7 $a10.9783/9780812203523 035 $a(CKB)2550000000104528 035 $a(OCoLC)794702353 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebrary10576059 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000631200 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)11404066 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000631200 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10590792 035 $a(PQKB)10415316 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000810955 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)12357083 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000810955 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10854329 035 $a(PQKB)10658093 035 $a(MdBmJHUP)muse18482 035 $a(DE-B1597)449202 035 $a(OCoLC)1013962504 035 $a(OCoLC)1037982120 035 $a(OCoLC)1041976665 035 $a(OCoLC)1046612971 035 $a(OCoLC)1047011010 035 $a(OCoLC)1049611915 035 $a(OCoLC)1054871023 035 $a(OCoLC)979748298 035 $a(DE-B1597)9780812203523 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL3441619 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr10576059 035 $a(CaONFJC)MIL420352 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC3441619 035 $a(EXLCZ)992550000000104528 100 $a20080811d2009 ub 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aurcn||||||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 10$aFirst lady of letters$b[electronic resource] $eJudith Sargent Murray and the struggle for female independence /$fSheila L. Skemp 210 $aPhiladelphia $cUniversity of Pennsylvania Press$dc2009 215 $a1 online resource (507 p.) 225 1 $aEarly American studies 300 $aBibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph 311 $a0-8122-4140-1 320 $aIncludes bibliographical references (p. [387]-471) and index. 327 $t Frontmatter -- $tContents -- $tPreface -- $tPART I. Rebellions: 1769-1784 -- $tIntroduction -- $tChapter 1. "This Remote Spot" -- $tChapter 2. Universal Salvation -- $tChapter 3. Independence -- $tChapter 4. Creating a Genteel Nation -- $tPART II. Republic of Letters: 1783-1798 -- $tIntroduction -- $tChapter 5. "Sweet Peace" -- $tChapter 6. A Belle Passion -- $tChapter 7. A Wider World -- $tChapter 8. A Career of Fame -- $tChapter 9. "A School of Virtue" -- $tChapter 10. Federalist Muse -- $tPART III. Retreat: 1798-1820 -- $tIntroduction -- $tChapter 11. "We Are Fallen on Evil Times" -- $tChapter 12. Republican Daughters, Republican Sons -- $tEpilogue -- $tAfterword -- $tArchival Sources -- $tNotes -- $tIndex -- $tAcknowledgments 330 $aJudith Sargent Murray (1751-1820), poet, essayist, playwright, and one of the most thoroughgoing advocates of women's rights in early America, was as well known in her own day as Abigail Adams or Martha Washington. Her name, though, has virtually disappeared from the public consciousness. Thanks to the recent discovery of Murray's papers-including some 2,500 personal letters-historian Sheila L. Skemp has documented the compelling story of this talented and most unusual eighteenth-century woman.Born in Gloucester, Massachussetts, Murray moved to Boston in 1793 with her second husband, Universalist minister John Murray. There she became part of the city's literary scene. Two of her plays were performed at Federal Street Theater, making her the first American woman to have a play produced in Boston. There as well she wrote and published her magnum opus, The Gleaner, a three-volume "miscellany" that included poems, essays, and the novel-like story "Margaretta." After 1800, Murray's output diminished and her hopes for literary renown faded. Suffering from the backlash against women's rights that had begun to permeate American society, struggling with economic difficulties, and concerned about providing the best possible education for her daughter, she devoted little time to writing. But while her efforts diminished, they never ceased.Murray was determined to transcend the boundaries that limited women of her era and worked tirelessly to have women granted the same right to the "pursuit of happiness" immortalized in the Declaration of Independence. She questioned the meaning of gender itself, emphasizing the human qualities men and women shared, arguing that the apparent distinctions were the consequence of nurture, not nature. Although she was disappointed in the results of her efforts, Murray nevertheless left a rich intellectual and literary legacy, in which she challenged the new nation to fulfill its promise of equality to all citizens. 410 0$aEarly American studies. 606 $aAuthors, American$y18th century$vBiography 606 $aAuthors, American$y19th century$vBiography 606 $aFeminism and literature$zUnited States$xHistory$y18th century 606 $aFeminism and literature$zUnited States$xHistory$y19th century 606 $aFeminists$zUnited States$vBiography 606 $aWomen and literature$zUnited States$xHistory$y18th century 606 $aWomen and literature$zUnited States$xHistory$y19th century 610 $aAmerican History. 610 $aAmerican Studies. 610 $aAutobiography. 610 $aBiography. 610 $aCultural Studies. 610 $aGender Studies. 610 $aLiterature. 610 $aWomen's Studies. 615 0$aAuthors, American 615 0$aAuthors, American 615 0$aFeminism and literature$xHistory 615 0$aFeminism and literature$xHistory 615 0$aFeminists 615 0$aWomen and literature$xHistory 615 0$aWomen and literature$xHistory 676 $a818.2 700 $aSkemp$b Sheila L$01493724 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910779143603321 996 $aFirst lady of letters$93757932 997 $aUNINA