1st Edition

A Monument to the Memory of George Eliot Edith J. Simcox's Autobiography of a Shirtmaker

Edited By Constance M. Fulmer, Margaret E. Barfield Copyright 1998
    312 Pages
    by Routledge

    312 Pages
    by Routledge

    The Autobiography is the personal journal of an independent Victorian woman who describes her day-to-day activities as a businesswoman, social reformer, scholar, and journalist; makes many insightful observations on gender issues; and provides intriguing details of her relationships with many of the leading political and literary figures of her day, particularly the novelist George Eliot, whom she admired as a writer and as a person
    During the journal years, 1876-1900, Simcox made many significant contributions toward improving people's lives, but she was always particularly concerned with women's issues. With her friend Mary Hamilton, she established a shirtmaking cooperative to provide employment for women, kept the accounts, and managed the enterprise. She helped establish trade unions and promote women's suffrage, served as a delegate to the Trade Union Congress, and worked closely with Emma Paterson, Annie Besant, Harriet Law, Charles Bradlaugh, and William Morris. Simcox was also the author of three books and a regular contributor to leading periodicals
    The Autobiography reveals Simcox's childhood, her attitudes toward men and marriage, and her relationships with her mother and her two older brothers, both noted writers. The journal provides unique insights into the mind of a remarkable 19th-century woman who worked in and left her mark on a man's world. Her book is a fascinating source of facts, observations, and opinions for scholars and readers interested in Eliot, Victorian literature, and society, gender and women's issues.

    A Monument to the Memory of George Eliot; Copyright Page; Contents; Preface; Introduction; Autobiography of a Shirtmaker; Appendix; Index;

    Biography

    Edith J. Simcox, Constance M. Fulmer, Margaret E. Barfield

    "Its publication as A Monument to the Memory of George Eliot is a welcome addition to the literature about George Eliot, about Victorian feminism, and about the workings of the human mind and soul." -- Nineteenth-Century Contexts
    "An altogether admirable piece of scholarship. A welcome edition to Victorian studies at all levels." -- Choice