Resurrecting the Anonymous: An Introduction To Mary Steele, the Author of Danebury and The Power of Friendship, A Tale with Two Odes by a Young Lady

Published anonymously in 1779 Danebury, or the Power of Friendship, a Tale with Two Odes, has retained its anonymity for over two centuries. Evidence found in the Reeves and Steele Collections housed at Angus Library; Regents Park College, Oxford identifies the author as Mary Steele, a provincial young woman with a Nonconformist background who was an active participant in a literary coterie that included other published authors such as Mary Scott, Anne Steele, and Hannah More. Drawing upon the work of Marjorie Reeves as well as the original manuscripts contained in the Reeves and Steele collections, this thesis provides the first in depth discussion of Mary Steeles published work and the role her literary circle of friends and acquaintances and her Nonconformist background played in shaping her poetry.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts in English (M.A.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis (open access)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Department of Literature and Philosophy

Year dc:date.available

2008

Author dc:creator

• Holmes, Amanda J.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Julia Griffin
• Candy Schille

• ETD
• 18th-century poetry
• 18th-century women
• Nonconformity
• Friendship poetry
• Retirement poetry
• Poetry about the American Revolution
• 18th-century manuscripts and letters
• Danebury Hill
• Mary Steele
• Anne Steele
• Mary Scott
• Reeves collection
• Steele collection
• Literary circles
• Steele
• Mary

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/174

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu:etd-1174