The Collected Works of Ann Yearsley

Ann Yearsley (1753-1806) was a labouring-class poet and early Romantic figure and is perhaps best known for the dispute she had with her patron, Hannah More. This is the first collected edition of Yearsley's works. Previously unpublished poems are included alongside more familiar verses, whilst her play, Earl Goodwin, and novel, The Royal Captives, are made available for the first time since the eighteenth century. All known copies of Yearsley's letters are also published here for the first time. Recent years have seen a significant growth of interest in Yearsley's writing. Outspoken on the subject of the slave trade, she is often quoted in the context of the early abolitionist movement. As a labouring-class poet her writing also forms part of an under-represented area of Romanticism now growing in academic interest. The material in these volumes brings Yearsley to life as both a public and a private figure. Her literary career is examined along with her roles as businesswoman, mother and friend, with particular emphasis on her relationships with her several patrons and supporters. This new scholarly edition will aid the further development of Yearsley scholarship as well as being of interest to social historians and those concerned with pre- and early Romantic culture. The collection provides the first opportunity in more than two hundred years to read Yearsley's varied writings in their entirety and to re-appraise her within a contemporary context.