Master-and-servant narratives in the English literature of the 1790s

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Stewart Crehan (University of Zambia)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Domains

Literature Topic

Dates

Date of occurrence c.1780- c.1800

Places

England (Location)

Resources

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The revival of English radicalism in the 1760s, the American Revolution in the late 1770s, the French Revolution of 1789 and the republican insurrection of the United Irishmen in 1798 are events refracted in those English narratives where a master or mistress is humbled or brought down by a servant. Examples include Horace Walpole’s

The Castle of Otranto

(1765), where a lady’s maid triggers the fall of usurping prince Manfred; Thomas Holcroft’s

Anna St. Ives

(1792), where a cunning steward and gardener gains financial control over his foolishly ‘improving’ lord; Ann Radcliffe’s

The Mysteries of Udolpho

(1794), where two servants who take sides with the heroine thwart their tyrannical Italian master; William Godwin’s

Things as They Are, or The Adventures of Caleb Williams

…

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5836 words

Citation: Crehan, Stewart. "Master-and-servant narratives in the English literature of the 1790s". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 18 April 2022 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19649, accessed 25 April 2024.]

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