William Cowper, Memoir

Neil Curry (Independent Scholar - Europe)

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)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1767

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Non-Fiction
- Autobiography (literary)

Resources

In 1765, shortly after leaving Dr Cotton’s private ‘madhouse’ in St Albans, William Cowper began living with the Rev. and Mrs Unwin in Huntingdon and it is there that he wrote his Memoir, which, it would seem, was intended primarily for her. “I am not at liberty”, he says in its closing pages, “to describe the pleasure I had in conversing with her, because she will be one of the first who will have the perusal of this narrative” (Memoir 137).

It was not until 1816, however, that it was first published and given the full title Memoir of the Early Life of William Cowper, Esq., written by himself. Despite the very frank revelations it contained, any direct reference to his mental disorder was …

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1384 words

Citation: Curry, Neil. "Memoir". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 06 December 2010 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=3665, accessed 23 November 2024.]

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