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Literary Criticism General

An Audience of One

Dorothy Osborne's Letters to Sir William Temple, 1652-1654

by (author) Carrie Hintz

Publisher
University of Toronto Press
Initial publish date
Jun 2005
Category
General
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781442670778
    Publish Date
    Jun 2005
    List Price
    $93.00
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780802088338
    Publish Date
    Jul 2005
    List Price
    $93.00

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Description

When first published in 1888, the letters of Dorothy Osborne to William Temple - written between 1652 and 1654 - created a kind of cult phenomenon in the Victorian period. Osborne and Temple, both in their early twenties, shared a romance that was opposed by their families, and Osborne herself was almost constantly under surveillance. Osborne's letters provide a rare glimpse into an early modern woman's life at a pivotal point, as she tried to find a way to marry for love as well as fulfil her obligations to her family.

Combining historical and biographical research with feminist theory, Carrie Hintz considers Osborne's vision of letter writing, her literary achievement, and her literary influences. Osborne has long been overlooked as a writer, making a comprehensive and thorough analysis long overdue. While the nineteenth-century reception of the letters is testament to the enduring public fascination with restrained love narratives, Osborne's eloquent and outspoken articulation of her expectations and desires also makes her letters compelling in our own time.

About the author

Carrie Hintz is an assistant professor in the Department of English at Queen's College, City University of New York.

Carrie Hintz's profile page