Resource Paper

Lydia Maria Child (1802-1880)

1. research:

Lydia Maria Child was an American abolitionist, women's right activist, opponent of American expansionism, Indian rights activist, author and journalist. Although she never thought about becoming an author, she began with writing her first novel called Hobomok -- an article in the newspaper "The North American Review," which discussed the field offered to the novelist by early New England history, caught her eye -- because of her brother it was published soon, after six weeks.
I am interested in this female author because she actually was not an author, and she just became one. When I noticed that topic, I thought about Anne Bradstreet, whose poems were published in the same way as Child's novel. She became famous, and she did what one could do to get more women rights. Both authors had similar goals.
The other reason why I am interested in her is that Child devoted herself to write about theory and methodology of education -- I am also interested in that. Additionally, she published many works about education, training and improvement of the female sex.

2. research: (03/16/10)

From:
http://web.ebscohost.com/lrc/detail?vid=3&hid=107&sid=39b6eb0d-5d1d-442c-89c3-1681f360ed75%40sessionmgr114&bdata=JnNpdGU9bHJjLWxpdmU%3d#AN0018749091-3

• Born Lydia Francis in Medford, Massachusetts, youngest of six children
• Parents were Susanna Rand and David Convers Francis (a baker)
• Largely self-educated in contrast to his brother Covers (went to Harvard, became Unitarian Minister and professor)
• After mother’s death she moved to a sister in Maine; in 1824 she moved to his brother and his wife in Massachusetts
• There she changed her name, added ”Maria” to her name and wrote her fist book Hobomok
• In 1826 she started the children magazine Juvenile Miscellany
• In 1828 she married David Child, he was interested both in radical abolition and in saving the Cherokees
• In 1831 her book An Appeal in Favor of That Class of Americans Called Africans led to emancipations of slaves, equality of races and oppose laws prohibiting mixed marriages; wasn’t longer accepted by the society and led to the end of her children magazine

3. research (03/22/10)

From:
http://web.ebscohost.com/lrc/detail?vid=3&hid=107&sid=39b6eb0d-5d1d-442c-89c3-1681f360ed75%40sessionmgr114&bdata=JnNpdGU9bHJjLWxpdmU%3d#AN0018749091-3

• In 1835 she finished a pioneering History of the Condition of Women in Various Ages and Nations
• In 1841 she moved to New York to publish the National Anti-Slavery Standard
• In 1836 she finished her philosophical romance, set in ancient Greece, Philothea
• In short she was an abolitionist, an early feminist, advocate of Native American rights, writer of transcendentalist fiction
• Views often made her controversial, major figure in 19th century -> reform movements

4. research (03/24/10)

From: http://www.jstor.org/stable/362527

"She believed that 'home education' could aid women measurably."