Reading Wollstonecraft after Godwin's Memoirs: Wollstonecraft in Circulating, Subscription, and Private Libraries, 1799–1842.

WOLLSTONECRAFT, Mary, 1759-1797; GODWIN, William, 1756-1836

Following Mary Wollstonecraft's death in 1798, her grieving husband William Godwin made public many of the details of Wollstonecraft's highly unconventional life. The ensuing backlash seemed to ensure that Wollstonecraft's major works ceased to be reprinted for a period of roughly forty years. This article contributes to efforts to revise narratives of Wollstonecraft's early nineteenth century reception by asking how and where readers, in the absence of new editions, might have accessed the books themselves. A survey of 41 circulating and subscription library catalogues dated between 1799 and 1842 reveals that, despite scholarly assumptions otherwise, Wollstonecraft's works remained widely available. Even when books left the library, they did not necessarily disappear, as a copy of Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Woman that moved from a circulating library into a private collection attests. Placing the information in these catalogues in conversation with what can be gleaned from this copy of the work, this article argues that the durability of the hand-press book complicates the narrative of Wollstonecraft's posthumous reputation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Women's Writing is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)