STAGING MARIA EDGEWORTH'S NEW WOMAN IN WHIM FOR WHIM (1798)

Abstract

Literary lioness Maria Edgeworth (1767-1848) is best known for her narratives of Irish setting and for the pedagogical volumes of children's stories written in collaboration with her father, Richard Lovell Edgeworth. A prolific multifaceted author, Edgeworth composed some plays which, in general, have been overlooked by scholars. Nevertheless, Edgeworth was interested in the stage though drama represented a genre that cast some doubt on the reputation of a woman writer. It is precisely in one of Edgeworth's comedies, Whim for Whim (1798), where she offers a portrait of the new woman as envisioned at the end of the eighteenth century. The play not only inspired memorable characters in Edgeworth's canon, but also explored women's role in the public and private sphere and dealt with women's education and importance in the family.