Barker, Jane (Vol. 42) | Marilyn L. Williamson (essay date 1990)
Marilyn L. Williamson (essay date 1990)
SOURCE: "Jane Barker (1652-1727)," in Raising Their Voices: British Women Writers, 1650-1750, Wayne State University Press, 1990, pp. 102-6.
[In the following excerpt, Williamson examines some of the ironies of Barker's poetry, as well as the patterns found in Barker's novels which give advice for women regarding courting.]
Jane Barker was one of the most self-conscious daughters of Orinda, and her career began in a way that would have made the identification logical. Early in her career, Barker enjoyed the encouragement of men: Poetical Recreations: Consisting of Original Poems, Songs, Odes (1688) was jointly created by Barker with "several gentlemen of the universities," who, we learn from the book, were friends of Barker's brother, a physician who shared his learning with her.37 She was also apparently educated by a clergyman in Lincolnshire after her father had lost his court...
[The entire page is 6031 words long]
Navigate
