{"id":3827,"date":"2021-08-01T08:22:58","date_gmt":"2021-08-01T08:22:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/?p=3827"},"modified":"2021-08-15T08:15:49","modified_gmt":"2021-08-15T08:15:49","slug":"on-this-day-elizabeth-inchbald-1753-1821","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/?p=3827","title":{"rendered":"On This Day: Elizabeth Inchbald (1753-1821)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The BARS \u2018On This Day\u2019 Blog series<\/a> celebrates the 200th anniversary of literary and historical events of the Romantic period. Want to contribute a future post? Get in touch<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elizabeth Inchbald passed away on 1 August 1821. Today we mark the bicentennial of her death with a blog post on her works by Rose Hilton. Rose is an English Literature PhD Student funded by the Vice Chancellor\u2019s Studentship at Sheffield Hallam University. Her research focuses on the works of eighteenth-century British female playwrights, and the constructions and presentations of selfhood in their plays. Using a selection of four playwrights spanning the mid-late eighteenth century (Griffith, More, Inchbald, and Baillie), her research applies close reading to the play texts and contextualises contemporary ideas of self using medical and philosophical writing from the same period. She is vice-president and secretary of the SHU postgraduate society and co-organiser of the annual Earth(ly) Matters conference<\/a> taking place this year 6th<\/sup>\/13th<\/sup>\/20th<\/sup> August (free registration now open!). She would love to share memes with you on Twitter @RoseMHilton.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I stumbled onto the work of Elizabeth Inchbald (n\u00e9e Simpson) about three years ago when selecting female playwrights for inclusion in my thesis. Inchbald stood out because of the tone of her writing and the political, personal, and social themes that she draws on in her work. These features quickly made her one of my favourite eighteenth-century authors. Inchbald\u2019s work has given me plenty to sink my teeth into, both in its successes and its limitations. On the bicentenary of her death, I invite you to join me in considering and celebrating Elizabeth Inchbald\u2019s career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"1796
Mrs Joseph Inchbald, by Thomas Lawrence, c.1796
(c) Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Inchbald\u2019s Drama:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Inchbald was an actor, author, playwright, critic, and translator. Throughout this varied career she had many connections to the world of the theatre. Born into a Roman Catholic family,[1]<\/a> she moved to London in 1772 with aspirations of becoming an actress.[2]<\/sup><\/a> She also had familial ties to the theatre as her brother George started acting at the Norwich Company in 1770.[3]<\/sup><\/a> Inchbald was 17 and unmarried when she moved to London, and it was under these circumstances that she faced sexual harassment from theatre managers including James Dodd in whose face she threw a basin of hot water.[4]<\/a> Thomas Gilliland, in The Dramatic Mirror <\/em>(1808), reports the story of Inchbald\u2019s encounter with Dodd in this way: \u201cIndignant at his proposals, and not being perfect mistress of her temper, she availed herself of the tea equipage which lay on the table, and discharged the contents of a bason<\/a>[HR(1]<\/a>  of scalding water in his face. This spoke sufficiently plain her resentment\u201d.[5]<\/a> Elizabeth married the actor Joseph Inchbald in 1772, possibly as a way to gain \u201ca protected entrance into her chosen profession\u201d[6]<\/a>. However, her experiences within, and contributions to, the theatrical world were not limited to personal connections or onstage performances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inchbald became a successful playwright, and \u201cshe wrote twenty plays, ten of which were adaptation, and ten of which were original\u201d.[7]<\/a> Inchbald not only wrote a lot, she wrote with a complexity that, as Betsy Bolton wrote, \u201cdeserves and repays attention\u201d.[8]<\/a> In my own work I give Inchbald\u2019s dramas this attention through close reading as well as a thematic analysis of her plays alongside prominent medical and philosophical writing from the eighteenth-century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Annibel Jenkins characterises Inchbald as \u201cbeautiful, witty, and independent\u201d.[9]<\/a> Inchbald\u2019s wit and dialogue often has a modern feel with lines like the following from her play Wives as they Were, Maids as they Are <\/em>(1797):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lady M: \u201cWhy don\u2019t you marry, and throw all misfortunes upon your husband?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miss Dor: \u201cWhy don\u2019t you <\/em>marry? For you have as many to throw\u201d.[10]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite this modern feel to her writing, Inchbald\u2019s work is rooted in the climate in which she wrote. Inchbald\u2019s desire to criticise and reveal the hypocrisy of the forms of power prevalent in British society in this time has led critics like Anna Lott to claim that \u201cInchbald\u2019s entire corpus of work was boldly radical\u201d.[11]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inchbald\u2019s Novels<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Although Inchbald used her dramas to express her opinions on a range of topics including social behaviour, her success as a playwright was not the pinnacle of her career. The financial success of her dramas enabled her to continue writing. This writing included two novels \u2013 A Simple Story <\/em>(1791) and Nature and Art <\/em>(1796). A Simple Story <\/em>broadly centres on the romantic relationship between Miss Milner, and her guardian, a Roman Catholic priest called Dorriforth. Nature and Art <\/em>tells the story of Henry Norwynne, a boy born and raised on a fictitious island off the coast of West Africa, later living in England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The radicalism noted in Inchbald\u2019s writing was restricted in the London theatre scene as \u201cwhen she did use drama to explore current controversy, the theatre managers refused to stage it\u201d.[12]<\/a> However, her novels express social and political opinions in a less-censored way. As Kaley Kramer explains \u201cA Simple Story<\/em> is not that simple. Under the guise of genre fiction, Inchbald unravels a deep tension in the political climate of her England\u201d.[13]<\/a> Referring to Inchbald\u2019s treatment of the English Catholic experience in this novel, Kramer\u2019s reading of A Simple Story <\/em>highlights Inchbald\u2019s engagement with political topics. This social criticism is further seen in Nature and Art<\/em>, as her second and final novel \u201cwas openly critical of English social institutions and class structures\u201d.[14]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inchbald\u2019s radicalism in her writing was not without faults and limitations, like the other radicals with whom she associated, for example William Godwin and Thomas Holcroft. This can be seen in her novels as Angela Rehbein notes, Inchbald\u2019s criticisms of European culture in Nature and Art <\/em>are inextricable from the \u201cracial thinking of her time in her repeated descriptions of Africa as a land of \u201csavages\u201d\u201d.[15]<\/a> Further, her dramas also reflected the imperialism of the period. As Mita Choudhury explains, \u201cInchbald\u2019s Orientalism capitalizes upon the most visible Orientalist assumptions, for it is sustained by ridiculing the Other\u2019s power, authority, morality, and legitimacy. It is not an intellectual but a populist discourse\u201d.[16]<\/a> Whilst Choudhury acknowledges the effect of theatre censorship on Inchbald\u2019s creation of a populist discourse surrounding imperialism, she makes the point: \u201cBy refusing to position herself outside the dominant discourse and the material practices of the time, the female playwright implicates herself\u201d.[17]<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her personal life and her literary career Inchbald was capable of complexity, judgement, radicalism, and Orientalism. Although aspects of her life and work are far more laudable than others, her position within and her evident struggle against the prominent power structures of eighteenth-century Britain make her a fascinating author. Just as Bolton argues for giving her drama the attention it deserves, I would encourage any reader to turn to Inchbald\u2019s writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

[1]<\/a> Jane Spencer, \u201cInchbald [n\u00e9e <\/em>Simpson], Elizabeth<\/a>,\u201d Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. <\/em>Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2]<\/a> Annibel Jenkins, I\u2019ll Tell You What: The Life of Elizabeth Inchbald <\/em>(Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 2003), 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[3]<\/a> Jenkins, I\u2019ll Tell You What<\/em>, 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[4]<\/a> Ben P. Robertson, Elizabeth Inchbald’s Reputation: A Publishing and Reception History<\/em> (London: Pickering & Chatto, 2013), 4-5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[5]<\/a> Thomas Gilliland, The Dramatic Mirror: Containing the History of the Stage, from the earliest period to the present time; including a biographical and critical account of all the Dramatic Writers from 1660; and also of the most Distinguished Performers, from the days of Shakespeare to 1807: And a History of the Country Theatres, in England, Ireland, and Scotland <\/em>Volume 1(London: C. Chapple, 1808), 399.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[6]<\/a> Spencer, \u201cInchbald [n\u00e9e <\/em>Simpson], Elizabeth<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[7]<\/a> Ellen Donkin, Getting into the Act Women Playwrights in London 1776-1829 <\/em>(London: Routledge, 1995),86.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[8]<\/a> Betsy Bolton, \u201cFarce, Romance, Empire: Elizabeth Inchbald And Colonial Discourse<\/a>,\u201d Eighteenth Century Theory and Interpretation <\/em>39, no. 1 (1998): 7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[9]<\/a> Jenkins, I\u2019ll Tell You What<\/em>, 7.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[10]<\/a> Elizabeth Inchbald, Wives as they Were, and Maids as they Are <\/em>(Dublin: P. Wogan, 1797), 8-9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[11]<\/a> Anna Lott, \u201cSexual Politics in Elizabeth Inchbald,<\/a>\u201d Studies in English Literature<\/em>, 1500-1900. 34, no. 3 (Summer, 1994): 635.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[12]<\/a> Spencer, \u201cInchbald [n\u00e9e <\/em>Simpson], Elizabeth<\/a>,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[13]<\/a> Kaley Kramer, \u201cRethinking Surrender: Elizabeth Inchbald and the “Catholic Novel”,\u201d in British Women and the Intellectual World in the Long Eighteenth Century, <\/em>ed. Teresa Barnard (Oxon: Routledge, 2015), 87.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[14]<\/a> Spencer, \u201cInchbald [n\u00e9e <\/em>Simpson], Elizabeth<\/a>,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[15]<\/a> Angela Rehbein, \u201cA Small House or Hut, Placed on the Borders of the Sea\u201d: Imperialism, Radicalism and Domesticity in Elizabeth Inchbald\u2019s Nature and Art<\/em><\/a>,\u201d Women\u2019s Writing <\/em>22, no. 2 (2015): 173.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[16]<\/a> Mita Choudhury, \u201cGazing at His Seraglio: Late Eighteenth-Century Women Playwrights as Orientalists<\/a>,\u201d Theatre Journal <\/em>47, no. 4 (1995): 492.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[17]<\/a> Choudhury, \u201cGazing at His Seraglio,\u201d 502.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

 [HR(1]<\/a>sic<\/p>\n\n\n\n

References:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Bolton, Betsy. \u201cFarce, Romance, Empire: Elizabeth Inchbald And Colonial Discourse<\/a>.\u201d Eighteenth Century Theory and Interpretation <\/em>39, no. 1 (1998): 3-24.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choudhury, Mita. \u201cGazing at His Seraglio: Late Eighteenth-Century Women Playwrights as Orientalists<\/a>.\u201d Theatre Journal <\/em>47, no. 4 (1995): 481-502.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donkin, Ellen. Getting into the Act Women Playwrights in London 1776-1829. <\/em>London: Routledge, 1995.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gilliland, Thomas. The Dramatic Mirror: Containing the History of the Stage, from the earliest period to the present time; including a biographical and critical account of all the Dramatic Writers from 1660; and also of the most Distinguished Performers, from the days of Shakespeare to 1807: And a History of the Country Theatres, in England, Ireland, and Scotland Volume 1. <\/em>London: C. Chapple, 1808.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inchbald, Elizabeth. Wives as They Were, and Maids as They Are. <\/em>Dublin: P. Wogan, 1797.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jenkins, Annibel. I\u2019ll Tell You What: The Life of Elizabeth Inchbald<\/em>. Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 2003.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kramer, Kaley. \u201cRethinking Surrender: Elizabeth Inchbald and the \u201cCatholic Novel\u201d.\u201d In British Women and the Intellectual World in the Long Eighteenth Century, <\/em>edited by Teresa Barnard, 87-107. Oxon: Routledge, 2015.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lott, Anna. \u201cSexual Politics in Elizabeth Inchbald<\/a>.\u201d Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900. <\/em>34, no. 3 (Summer, 1994): 635-648.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rehbein, Angela. \u201cA Small House or Hut, Placed on the Borders of the Sea\u201d: Imperialism, Radicalism, and Domesticity in Elizabeth Inchbald\u2019s Nature and Art<\/em><\/a>.\u201d Women\u2019s Writing <\/em>22, no. 2 (2015): 172-188.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robertson, Ben P. Elizabeth Inchbald\u2019s Reputation: A Publishing and Reception History. <\/em>London: Pickering & Chatto, 2013. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spencer, Jane. \u201cInchbald [n\u00e9e <\/em>Simpson], Elizabeth<\/a>.\u201d Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. <\/em>Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The BARS \u2018On This Day\u2019 Blog series celebrates the 200th anniversary of literary and historical events of the Romantic period. Want to contribute a future post? Get in touch. Elizabeth Inchbald passed… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":3833,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[27,32,28,29,26,33,30,25,31,35],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3827"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3827"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3827\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3860,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3827\/revisions\/3860"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bars.ac.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}