Full Description
The Father and Daughter was one of the most widely read novels of the early nineteenth century, captivating readers with its pathos and melodrama. It tells the story of Agnes Fitzhenry, whose seduction by the libertine Clifford causes her father to descend into madness. Rooted in the social conditions of late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century Britain, the novel is both an affecting narrative and a compelling social commentary.
Opie's first novel, Dangers of Coquetry (1790), also addresses issues of female sexuality and the social construction of gender. It is the story of a young woman who, while possessing many virtues, is given to coquetry. She attracts the attention of a sternly moral gentleman who dislikes coquettes, and mutual love ensues.
This Broadview edition includes a careful selection of contextual documents, such as Opie's letters, dramatic adaptations, and texts on coquetry, chastity, and the treatment of insanity.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Amelia Alderson Opie: A Brief Chronology
A Note on the Text
The Father and Daughter
Dangers of Coquetry
Appendix A: Extracts from Amelia Opie's Letters
Appendix B: Reviews of Dangers of Coquetry and The Father and Daughter
Reviews of Dangers of Coquetry
The European Magazine (May 1790)
Critical Review (September 1790)
The English Review (March 1791)
Reviews of The Father and Daughter
The Critical Review, or Annals of Literature (May 1802)
The Monthly Review; or Literary Journal (May 1801)
The European Magazine (September 1801)
The Edinburg Review (October 1802)
Appendix C: Contemporary Responses to The Father and Daughter
Thomas Robinson to Henry Crabb Robinson, 31 July 1801
Mrs. Thomas Clarkson to R.E. Garnham, 20 May 1802
From "Mrs. Opie," The European Magazine, and London Review (May 1803)
From The Gentleman's Magazine (August 1806)
From "Mrs. Opie," The Ladies' Monthly Museum (February 1817)
Appendix D: L'Agnese
From Agnes; A Serio-Comic Opera, in Two Acts
Reviews of L'Agnese
Appendix E: Smiles and Tears
From Mrs. C. Kemble, Smiles and Tears: or, The Widow's Strategem (1815)2. Reviews of Smiles and Tears
Appendix F: The Lear of Private Life
From Agnes; A Serio-Comic Opera, in Two Acts
Reviews of L'Agnese
Appendix G. Songs and Airs
"A Hindustàni Girl's Song"
"A Mad Song"
"The Orphan Boy's Tale"
Appendix H: Chastity
From Hannah More, Essays on Various Subjects, Principally Designed for Young Ladies (1777)
Catharine Macaulay, from LETTER XXIV, Chastity in Letters on Education (1790)
From William Godwin, Memoirs of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1798)
From Hannah More, Strictures on the Modern System of Female Education (1799)
Appendix I: Coquetry
Joseph Addison, The Spectator No. 281, January 22, 1712
Catherine Jemmat, "The Lady's Resolve" (1762)
From Memoirs of a Coquet; or the History of Miss Harriot Airy (1765)
Catharine Macaulay, Letter XXII, Coquetry in Letters on Education (1790)
From Ladys Monthly Museum (June 1799)
Appendix J: Madness
From Cecilia Lucy Brightwell, Memorials of the Life of Amelia Opie (1854)
"Proposals for the establishment of a Lunatic Asylum under the Care of Friends, to be called The Southern Retreat" and letter from Amelia Opie to Joseph John Gurney, August 8, 1939
From William Battie, M.D. A Treatise on Madness (1758)
From John Munro M.D., Remarks on Dr. Battie's Treatise on Madness (1758)
From William Cullen, First Lines of the Practice of Physic (1788)
From Andrew Harper, A Treatise on the Real Cause and Cure of Insanity (1789)
Appendix K: Substantive Variants in The Father and Daughter
Select Bibliography
