Craciun, Adriana. “Mary Robinson’s Essay ‘Present State of the Manners, Society,
Etc. Etc. of the Metropolis of England.’” Introduction. PMLA 119 (2004): 103-7.
Craciun focuses on Mary Robinson’s essay which appeared in Monthly Magazine
in 1800. According to Craciun, Robinson’s essay illustrates the “volatility of British pring
culture” during the turn of the century (103). The article provides details which Craciun
feels demonstrate the shift in concepts of rustic urbanity in contrast to the polish of the
cosmopolite. Furthermore, the time frame of Robinson’s essay leads Craciun to question
whether Wordsworth’s preface to Lyrical Ballads portrays literary influence as a result of
Robinson’s essay. The introduction nicely highlights aspects of the introduction that
deserve further study, but the question of literary debt between Wordsworth and
Robinson provides little toward my topic.
Cross, Ashley J. “From Lyrical Ballads to Lyrical Tales: Mary Robinson’s Reputation
and the Problem of Literary Debt.” Studies in Romanticism 40 (2001): 571-605.
Cross points to the transience of reputation in Romantic times, especially for
women. Where men were credited with “poetic genius,” gifted women writers are a credit
to their male contemporaries’ influences; in and of themselves, however, women writers
(particularly poets) lack credit for any independent, literary genius. Cross focuses on the
ambitions and goals of Mary Robinson in relation to her “poetic genius” as she struggles
to gain recognition equal to her male contemporaries. Cross argues that Robinson’s
writing of Lyrical Tales in response to Lyrical Ballads reflects an announcement of her
ability as an author, equal to her male contemporaries. Cross evolves from literary debt to
literary responses exchanged between Robinson and other poets. Through this venue,
Cross discusses Robinson’s attempt to entwine her work with that of the male poets.
Cross elaborates further through thematic discourse contrasting Robinson’s work to that
of Coleridge and Wordsworth.
Cross touches on the same points as Ross and Hofkosh regarding the shift in
readership toward women, but Cross’s discussion of reputation and debt between authors
offers a perspective not previously encountered. Further details relating to the
establishment of literary debt would provide aid toward my study of Mary Robinson’s
poetry.
Hartman, Geoffrey H. “Romanticism and ‘Anti-Self-Consciousness.’” Romanticism
and Consciousness: Essays in Criticism. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Norton,
1970. 46-56.
Hartman discusses the idea of “consciousness” as it pertains to the Romantic
writers. “Every increase in consciousness is accompanied by an increase in selfconsciousness.” (47). Romantic writers focus on harmony of the self, and Hartman points
to this theme in various literary works and figures: Sartor Resartus, Mill’s
Autobiography, Coleridge’s Mariner, and Tennyson’s Tithonus among others. Romantics
explore their religious beliefs on a “journey” to progress the writer spiritually and
creatively (53). Hartman briefly touches on the shift in poetry for the Victorians. The
distinction between the two remains vague and lacks clarifying details. Hartman’s
analysis of the Romantic journey and experiences with consciousness offer detailed
analysis through literary works, but more details pertaining to the shift in poetic styles
would provide greater insight. Hartman touches on a number of issues relating to self-
consciousness, and the role of anti-self-consciousness through the varying poetic styles
lacks clarification.
Hofkosh, Sonia. “The Writer’s Ravishment: Women and the Romantic Author- The
Example of Byron.” Romanticism and Feminism. Ed. Anne K. Mellor.
Indianapolis: Indiana UP, 1988. 93-114.
This article describes poetry as an internal force. It erupts from within the poet’s
body; in turn, the work becomes a reaffirmation of the poet’s self. Hofkosh discusses
issues that challenging a writer’s internal drive; personal and professional lives would
overlap because of literary commercialism, correspondence with publishers, and shifting
readership. Correspondence between poets and publishers demonstrates an awareness of
the growing female writers. Hofkosh points to Byron’s outspoken criticism of women
writers for the shifting literary demands that lead to the fluctuations in his success. In
contrast, women faced difficulty in being acknowledged as writers capable of internal
genius; men were said to write for art, while the women wrote for money.
Similar to the articles of Ross and Cross, Hofkosh emphasizes the marketplace,
increase of feminine writers, and the biased treatment of female poet. The examples of
Byron offer helpful details, but the examples of Keats and Scott stray from the topic and
dwell upon each man’s literary style more than any negative treatment of women as the
title suggests.
Labbe, Jacqueline M. “Selling One’s Sorrows: Charlotte Smith, Mary Robinson, and the
Marketing of Poetry.” The Wordsworth Circle 25.2 (1994): 68-71.
Labbe proposes the idea that Charlotte Smith and Mary Robinson each
demonstrate market savvy in their literary endeavors. Both women used their positions as
women to their advantage and manipulated society’s expectations which remained
gender-based. Both women gained insight as they wrote for money and suffered from
husbands whose lives involved debtor’s prison. The women focus on the theme of
women in distress to gain sympathy while simultaneously surviving monetarily. Labbe
suggests that they use themselves to advance by inserting their private persona into their
literature. Labbe’s examples of literary self-presentation develop my research ideas.
However, Labbe’s article only focuses on Robinson for one-third of the paper. The focus
on Charlotte Smith offers more research and examples.
Mellor, Anne K. “Making an Exhibition of Her Self: Mary ‘Perdita’ Robinson and
Nineteenth-Century Scripts of Female Sexuality.” Nineteenth-Century Contexts
22 (2000): 271-304.
Mellor examines the life of Mary Robinson through four, distinct interpretations.
She presents each analysis independent of the others due to conflicts that arise if one tries
to accept them simultaneously. Four representations of Robinson’s life have developed
and gained a following: a whore; a victimized and vulnerable wife; “a star-crossed
lover”; or a skilled artisan. Through these depictions, Mellor examines nineteenth century
scripts of femininity. This study provides differing areas for discourse, and Sharon
Setzer’s article refers to Mellor’s study pertaining to Robinson as a skilled artisan as both
an actress and a writer. Mellor provides summaries of pre-existing theories, but her
unique approach enables them to be read without confusion due to constant conflicts
within the text.
Miskolcze, Robin L. “Snapshots Of Contradiction in Mary Robinson’s Poetical Works.”
Language and Literature: A Journal for Scholars and Critics of Language and
Literature 31 (1995): 206-19.
Miskolcze calls current perceptions of the Romanticism into question regarding
the literary movement. According to Miskolcze, present trends discourage the focus on
judgments based on aesthetic value. Criticisms follow this trend regarding analysis of
Mary Robinson’s work. Instead, Miskolcze focuses on “cultural, sociological, economic,
and psychological factors” that impact the writer’s life and work (206). Through this
approach, Miskolcze draws attention to Robinson’s literary figures within themes of
isolation, exile, and societal alienation. This insight aids a renewed perspective of the
Romantic movement’s historic and artistic values.
Miskolcze’s focus on Robinson’s themes of alienation offer additional input
regarding both the author and her writing, and additionally, this benefits my argument
regarding Robinson’s self-representation within her work.
Richardson, Alan. “Romanticism and the Colonization of the Feminine.”
Romanticism and Feminism. Ed. Anne K. Mellor. Indianapolis: Indiana UP, 1988.
13-25.
Richardson presents a Romantic Age in which the male writers sought to
immortalize themselves through their poetry. However, emotion in poetry gained a
feminine connotation because it emphasized the heart over logic. In response, male
writers began to represent ideas such as masculine rebirth and rejuvenation through
symbols such as tears. However, Richardson points out that such expression was always
tied in with a mother or sister. Mothers represent a healing power; in poetry, nursing
mothers often symbolized this. As a whole, the female dominates within poetry as the
healing, nurturing power. Richardson also refers to some androgynous characters as well
as women who resented the “subjective” role of women in poetry. However, Richardson
tries to maintain the focus on the idea of emotion as a feminine. The feminine aspect ties
in with the Labbe article about Mary Robinson’s manipulation of society’s sensibilities to
the figure of a woman in distress, but Richardson’s article focuses more on male writers’
attempts to copy this feminine style. The present course of my research avoids contrast of
Robinson’s poetry to that of others.
Ross, Marlon B. “Romantic Quest and Conquest: Troping Masculine Power in the
Crisis of Poetic Identity.” Romanticism and Feminism. Ed. Anne K. Mellor.
Indianapolis: Indiana UP, 1988. 26-51.
Ross discusses how poets delve into the self, trying to locate an inner strength or
spirit through which the poet can gain control over his own person and eventually the
world around him. Such “self-possession” enables control of inner doubts, fears,
anxieties, and other inner turmoil. By controlling these chaotic emotions, a harmonious
state results that leads to mastery of his surroundings. Ross attributes this sense of
dominance to a masculine sense of power in a time when women lacked equality.
However, women gain importance as consumers and mass publication leads to increasing
feminine readership. The trend towards a feminine audience disrupts the male sense of
self-possession and leads to male writers attempting a more feminine style of writing in
an attempt to maintain their control. Ross provides further analysis of self-possession
through examples of the poetic traits of Byron and Wordsworth. Where Byron contrasts
the conflict of masculine and feminine through his poetry, Wordsworth seeks further
“poetic identity.” Ross discusses the path of each during this shift in readership and the
role of self-possession in each man’s “quest.”
Ross provides a clearer explanation of self-possession than most references.
However this article emphasizes the male resentment of increased feminine readership,
similar to the articles of Hofkosh and Cross. The article’s focus on the masculine
experience in response to shifting times provides little toward the topic of my paper.
Setzer, Sharon. “Mary Robinson’s Sylphid Self: The End of Feminine Self-Fashioning.”
Philological Quarterly 75 (1996): 501-20.
Setzer discusses the analysis of Mary Robinson’s text regarding a feminist
agenda. Robinson’s popularity during her lifetime has enjoyed a resurgence through her
literature in recent years. Many feminists look to answer the “questions such as ‘Who
gets to write the story of female sexuality?’ and ‘How does a woman become a poet?’”
(501). Setzer argues that Robinson’s creation of the Sylphid persona attests to Robinson’s
creative feminine genius and offers possible answers to the feminist perspective of her
character as a writer and through her poetry. The dates and notations that Setzer points to
as influences in Robinson’s pertain particularly to the later years of Robinson’s life that I
am researching and draw additional connections between her public and private life.
Mary Beth Lewis
Professor Fitzpatrick
English 6280
November 27, 2006
Annotated Bibliography