Anne Stott’s Hannah More: The First Victorian is a biographic novel that explores a less known side of a popular 18th-century writer, poet, and playwright Hannah More. The book makes an argument that her political activity has overshadowed some of her other achievements, which may carry even greater significance. Stott shows More’s life from a unique viewpoint and adds historical context to the events she describes. One of the book’s main features is the fact that it does not obscure the main character’s personality with heavy editing like other biographic works tend to do.
Stott’s biography of Hannah More sheds more light on the life of the exuberant and ambitious literary sensation, who never received her due share of recognition from the later generations. Hannah More was born at Fishponds near Bristol, she had four sisters, and her father was a poverty-stricken school teacher (Stott, 2004). Nevertheless, More endured all the hardships and wrote her first play – The Search after Happiness. Although it was only a pastoral performance intended for her students, this was the beginning of a long and productive career for Hannah. Eventually, her efforts were recognized by David Garrick, who she met in London, starting her journey (Stott, 2004). Hanna’s development contradicted the stereotypical perception of women as purely domestic creatures that was extremely popular at that time.
However, the significance of Hannah More as a public figure has already been acknowledged by other works. What differentiates Anne Stott’s book is the fact that it does not reduce Hannah to a symbol for emancipation or a prolific writer, but instead tries to show as much of her personality as possible. The biography even claims to be the first to use More’s unpublished letters (Stott, 2004). This certainly makes this piece of literature stand out among the more scholarly depictions of the same character. However, the additional factual information is not the center point of this book, but rather a supplement to its larger goal of achieving an impressively sophisticated presentation of Hannah More. The detailed and comprehensive portrayal of the main character has an added benefit of providing a unique perspective on the mostly unexplored time in British history before the start of the Victorian era.
Other works have created and consolidated a shadowy and, in some aspects, dystopian image of the cultural life of 18th century Britain, while Anne Stott’s work argues that there was significantly more freedom for progressive thinkers, than most people were lead to believe. The incredible journey of Hannah More’s life serves as proof of this statement, and the book does not fail to emphasize this fact. The way Hannah has progressed from being a hopeful Bristol school teacher to a member of the most elite political and social circles shows that talent and determination could not be overpowered by oppressive norms and expectations of society. It is clear that Stott is enamoured with More’s legacy as a political writer and a successful playwright, but she is most intrigued by her ambivalence as a person.
Anne Stott’s book highlights three main concepts and ideas that are uncertain in the perceived image of Hanna More’s personality. The first one concerns More’s feelings on issues regarding gender and the role of women in society. While Hannah’s own story is that of a strong, educated, self-possessed woman, her written works tend to support the traditional views of that time (Stott, 2004). More’s position becomes even more ambiguous when the reader takes into account her education and charity work, which helped many women who were trying to follow a similar path.
A similar discrepancy can be observed in Hannah More’s political activity, as her actions differed drastically from her words. More’s essays and tracts supported the established hierarchy in both religious and civil life, whereas her responses to various pressing social issues have threatened that same establishment on multiple occasions (Stott, 2004). This stark contrast between Hannah’s official position and subtle activism is an excellent indicator of the complexity and uncertainty in the life of people in a transforming country.
The third and final undetermined aspect of More’s story in Stott’s book is her role in guiding the English nation through its transition from the instability of industrialization to the reformism of the Victorian era. While Stott does not devote as much attention to this idea, she does mention More’s contribution to concepts like moral responsibility and social activism (Stott, 2004). Hannah More and her friends might not have been the driving force that gave the start to the following reformation of Britain, but this book gives them the well-deserved credit for their fair contribution.
In conclusion, Anne Stott’s detailed biography of Hanna More had ambitious goals. It aimed to offer a comprehensive representation of the life of this historical figure and give her the recognition that her many deeds merit. The book reaches these targets by using unpublished materials and challenging the restrictions that previously kept scholarly writers from accurately depicting More’s personality. Hannah More: The First Victorian is a unique literary work that defies established trends, similarly to its protagonist.
References
Stott, A. (2004). Hannah More: The First Victorian. NY: Oxford University Press. Web.