User:Cmconnorusf/sandbox

The page would benefit from a section about her letters. Elizabeth Montagu was known for her lengthy letters and personal writings, and nothing is mentioned on the wiki page.

Adding a section with a list of her works (even though it is very short) will show the reader quickly the scope of Montagu's writings. As is, her two writings are mentioned in paragraphs and leave the reader to wonder what has been omitted from the list. Cmconnorusf (talk) 22:33, 20 September 2015 (UTC)

The most obvious omission on the Elizabeth Montagu page concerns her letters. The first task in my editing is to include a section describing the nature and impact of her letter writing. I will also include information on her two published works, the essay on Shakespeare and the three stories in Dialogue of the Dead.

After reviewing the Samuel Johnson page, I see some more ways to expand the E.M. page (although it won't be nearly as long since her list of works is much shorter). Most notably, I should add a section describing each of her three works: the essay on Shakespeare, the stories in Dead, and her letters. Also, I should look for ways to expand her introduction. Some other ideas: add more pictures, add a quote in a box, discuss more of her personality, add a note on legacy.Cmconnorusf (talk) 21:55, 26 September 2015 (UTC)

Eger, Elizabeth. Bluestockings: Women of Reason from Enlightenment to Romanticism. Basingstoke, England: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.: the textual note in the introduction lists the primary recipients of correspondence and the ways in which her published letters were edited. I could only access the introduction at this time, but it is the only source to note the ways in which her collection of letters were edited by publishers.

Ellis, Markman: Bluestockings Displayed. Ed. Elizabeth Eger. Cambridge : Cambridge U P, 2013.: chapter 10 "Reading Practices in Elizabeth Montagu's Epistolary Network in the 1750s": a detailed survey of the contents of Montagu's letters. Great statistical information including recipients of the letters and topics addressed. Surveys the 1750s including the transition from ignoring commentary on literature to embracing it. Correspondence: Carter (21), Scott (29), G. West (19). Topics: History (61), Fiction (26), Philosophy (17), Poetry (17), Divinity (16).

Myers, Sylvia Harcstark. The Bluestocking Circle : Women, Friendship, and the Life of the Mind in Eighteenth-Century England. Oxford : Clarendon, 1990.: analysis of the primary letter writers (West, Lyttelton, Scott, Carter, Lord Bath) and their influence of Montagu. West's religious influence, Lyttelton's intellectual support, Scott's familial relationship, scholarly respect for Carter, Lord Bath (William Pulteney)as "pseudo-courtship." There is also information on the publication and reception of her Shakespeare essay.

Berg, Temma. Women, Gender, and Print Culture in Eighteenth-Century Britain : Essays in Memory of Betty Rizzo. Lanham : Lehigh University Press, 2013.: chapter 7 “Sarah Scott, Elizabeth Montagu, and the Familiar Letter in Dialogue”: this source notes Montagu and Scott's experience as readers of other people's correspondence including Pope and Swift.

Ellis, Markman. "'An Author in Form': Women Writers, Print Publication, and Elizabeth Montagu's Dialogues of the Dead." ELH 2 (2012): 417-38.: how Lyttelton affected Montagu, the publication process for the Dialogues, the content of Montagu's contributions and their comparison to Lyttelton'sCmconnorusf (talk) 15:31, 11 October 2015 (UTC)

Hill, Bridget. "A Tale Of Two Sisters: The Contrasting Careers And Ambitions Of Elizabeth Montagu And Sarah Scott." Women's History Review 19.2 (2010): 215-229.: this source highlights the relationship between Montagu and Scott, addressing specifically their correspondence. Scott was Montagu's confidant in childhood but a gulf rose between them when Scott contracted smallpox. This article also explains Montagu's relationship and correspondence with Lady Margaret Harley. Harley is the one she wrote to about her dissatisfaction with the idea of marriage but her desire for a companionate marriage that also included financial incentives (because spinsterhood was also disagreeable). Includes her reasons for rejecting suitors. The revolving nature of their relationship: each sister had periods of challenges and successes which affected their dependence on the other.

Woolf, Daniel. “‘A most indefatigable love of history’: Carter, Montagu, and female discussions of history, 1740–1790.” Women's History Review. 20.5 (2011): 689-718.: this article explains the #1 topic mentioned in Montagu's correspondence (according to Eger): history. Basically, Montagu sees history as a valuable source for good examples (as opposed to newspapers and such). Montagu's salons specifically include historians. Cmconnorusf (talk) 20:38, 12 October 2015 (UTC) Cmconnorusf (talk) 20:54, 12 October 2015 (UTC)

Below is a draft of the section I plan to add about Montagu's letters. The citation formats need attention, but are listed here in rough form.

Letters

Montagu was a copious writer of familial letters, both to her coterie and beyond. Her letters include discussions of health, domestic arraignments, travel plans, and reports of social events. About one-third of her correspondence focused on culture such as theater, opera, public spectacles, moral philosophy, and divinity. (Eger 214-15) Of these topics, history was discussed more than twice as much as any other topic. (Eger 218)

Her most frequent on literature correspondence was with her sister, Sarah Scott, followed by her friends, Elizabeth Carter and Gilbert West. (Eger 216) She and Scott were both avid readers of published letters throughout their lives, reading collections by Pope and Swift. (Berg) This influenced the women’s own letter writing. Their frequency of correspondence waxed and waned over the years depending on the circumstances of their lives (Hill); Montagu is recorded to have written Scott more frequently. (Eger 216)

Similarly, Montagu is noted to have sent more letters to Carter than to have received them. (Eger 216) Montagu was an ardent supporter of Carter despite her friend being of a lower class; Montagu respected Carters skill and virtue. Montague felt comfortable enough to correspond with Carter about the responsibility of great wealth. (Myers 190)

Gilbert West influenced Montagu’s thinking about religion, history, and literature. (Myers 179-80) He also affected her style of writing for a time; based on his example, she began writing in a more formal syntax, but she eventually became irritated with the restrictions and reverted back to her freer, more natural style. (Myer 181)

Montagu corresponded with George Lyttelton frequently about literature and history, a relationship which would later lead to Lyttleton including three of her works in his Dialogues of the Dead. Their letters were known to have markedly different tones: hers were serious and intellectual, his responses tended toward flirtatious. (Ellis 420-21)

Montagu maintained a close relationship with the elder statesman, William Pulteney, Lord Bath. Their relationship was purely emotional but described as a “pseudo-courtship.” (Myers 193-94)

Lady Margaret Harley was a lifelong friend of Montagu’s. It was Lady Harley to whom Elizabeth vented her frustrations over the institution of marriage and her desire for a truly companionate marriage--if she must have one at all. Montagu also expressed to Lady Maragaret that marriage should include financial incentive. (Hill 217)

A collection of Montagu’s letters were first published 1809 by her nephew, Matthew Montagu, under the title, The Letters of Mrs. Elizabeth Montagu, with Some of the Letters of her Correspondents. The selection of letters reflect a concern for Montagu’s moral reputation. Another edition of her letters was released in 1906 by Matthew’s granddaughter, Emily J. Climenson, and her friend, Reginald Blunt. This revised collection expanded on Montagu’s view of the social world including fashion, politics, and nobility. (Eger Bluestockings 1) Cmconnorusf (talk) 16:10, 18 October 2015 (UTC)

Chrissy, You have done a great job using solid resources to supply important information about EM; you maintain a good sense of neutrality. Be careful to cite the author of the chapter in Eger's collection on the correspondence. LLRungegordon (talk) 19:22, 20 October 2015 (UTC)

Hi Christina,

<nowiki>It's a great idea to add a section on her letters, and what you have here is a great overview. It was a glaring omission. You might also consider a short section on critical reception. It would be good to add sections on her two other major works as you have suggested. Can't wait to see the finished article! Citing is rather easy. Just hit the cite button from the menu at top and add the information. Unfortunately though, it you use a source multiple times and have different page numbers, you have to fill the entire citation box in again for every different page number. Good luck! ~~~~ The tildes aren't working on the sandbox page for me. Hmmm. Dlaitinen 26 Oct. 2015.

Additions: heading: She is sister to Sarah Scott, author of A Description of Millenium Hall and the Country Adjacent. Early life: but grew apart after Sarah became sick with smallpox.; Montagu later used this model of intellectual discourse in her salons.

Works

Elizabeth Montagu is author of two works published in her lifetime: three sections in George Lyttleton's Dialogues of the Dead (1760) and An Essay on the Writings and Genius of Shakespeare (1769). After Montagu's death, her nephew Matthew Montagu published a collection of her letters, "The Letters of Mrs. Elizabeth Montagu, with Some of the Letters of her Correspondents".

Dialogues of the Dead was a series of critiques about eighteenth century society. In Dialogue 26 Montagu uses Hercules to engage in a discussion of virtue. In Dialogue 27 a character, Mrs. Mopish, cannot go the Elysian Fields because she is endlessly distracted by worldly influences. In Dialogue 28 a bookseller explains to Plutarch the difficulties of publishing in modern society.

An Essay on the Writings and Genius of Shakespeare was an essay defending Shakespeare against the French style of drama, particularly against the attacks of Voltaire. In Essay Montagu claims Shakespeare's success comes from his overall virtue and ability to engaging the audiences' emotion, not from strict adherence to the classical models of drama.~~~~

Letters

Montagu was a copious writer of familial letters, both to her coterie and beyond. Her letters include discussions of health, domestic arraignments, travel plans, and reports of social events. About one-third of her correspondence focused on culture such as theater, opera, public spectacles, moral philosophy, and divinity. Of these topics, history was discussed more than twice as much as any other topic.

Her most frequent on literature correspondence was with her sister, Sarah Scott, followed by her friends, Elizabeth Carter and Gilbert West. She and Scott were both avid readers of published letters throughout their lives, reading collections by Pope and Swift. This influenced the women’s own letter writing. Their frequency of correspondence waxed and waned over the years depending on the circumstances of their lives ; Montagu is recorded to have written Scott more frequently. )

Similarly, Montagu is noted to have sent more letters to Carter than to have received them. Montagu was an ardent supporter of Carter despite her friend being of a lower class; Montagu respected Carters skill and virtue. Montague felt comfortable enough to correspond with Carter about the responsibility of great wealth.

Gilbert West influenced Montagu’s thinking about religion, history, and literature. He also affected her style of writing for a time; based on his example, she began writing in a more formal syntax, but she eventually became irritated with the restrictions and reverted back to her freer, more natural style.

Montagu corresponded with George Lyttelton frequently about literature and history, a relationship which would later lead to Lyttleton including three of her works in his Dialogues of the Dead. Their letters were known to have markedly different tones: hers were serious and intellectual, his responses tended toward flirtatious.

Montagu maintained a close relationship with the elder statesman, William Pulteney, Lord Bath. Their relationship was purely emotional but described as a “pseudo-courtship.”

Lady Margaret Harley was a lifelong friend of Montagu’s. It was Lady Harley to whom Elizabeth vented her frustrations over the institution of marriage and her desire for a truly companionate marriage--if she must have one at all. Montagu also expressed to Lady Maragaret that marriage should include financial incentive.

A collection of Montagu’s letters were first published 1809 by her nephew, Matthew Montagu, under the title, The Letters of Mrs. Elizabeth Montagu, with Some of the Letters of her Correspondents. The selection of letters reflect a concern for Montagu’s moral reputation. Another edition of her letters was released in 1906 by Matthew’s granddaughter, Emily J. Climenson, and her friend, Reginald Blunt. This revised collection expanded on Montagu’s view of the social world including fashion, politics, and nobility.