Date of Award

Spring 4-20-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

English

First Advisor

Dr. Margaret Yoon

Second Advisor

Dr. Piers Brown

Abstract

This thesis will focus on the life and work of eighteenth-century playwright, critic, novelist, and actress Elizabeth Inchbald. The central question that builds the whole foundation for this thesis is: what did it mean to be a professional woman author in the eighteenth century? This project investigates the beginning and the end of Inchbald’s career as represented by four of her early farces and her critical work Remarks for the British Theater respectively. The picture that has been formed of the professional women writer thus far is one that is heavily reliant on scholarship concerning those women who worked within the frame of the novel. Through the lens of Inchbald, this thesis offers an investigation into two areas that have remained relatively unstudied: playwriting and criticism. These two separate fields are connected in this thesis through the larger ideas about “good” comedy that Inchbald raises in the Remarks which are, subsequently, analyzed in connection with the beginnings of Inchbald’s career.

Rights Statement

All rights reserved. This copy is provided to the Kenyon Community solely for individual academic use. For any other use, please contact the copyright holder for permission.

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