Uploaded July 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Join us as we cast light on little known publications by British women writers of the 18th century.
Mary Astell, Catharine Trotter Cockburn, Catharine Macaulay – these names may not be as familiar to us as late 18th and early 19th century writers such as Mary Wollstonecraft or Jane Austen, but they were equal in their literary, political and philosophical aspirations.
This year’s Foxcroft Lecture will showcase the remarkable work of these 18th century women; debunking the assumption that, constrained by social circumstances, women of this time published little of note.
Building on her extensive research, Karen Green will reveal how, while Mary Wortley Montagu, Mary Delariviere Manley, Sarah Fielding, and Sarah Scott, published anonymously, fearing social censure, a later generation published under their own names, and were celebrated as literary geniuses, paving the way for the women writers we remember.
State Library Victoria Cultural, Family & Student members get early access to our upcoming events. To get your tickets ahead of the crowd, become a member today.
About Karen Green
Karen Green is a Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne and author of A history of women’s political thought in Europe, 1700-1800, A history of women’s political thought in Europe, 1400-1700, with Jacqueline Broad, Catharine Macaulay’s republican enlightenment and Joan of Arc and Christine de Pizan’s Ditié.
About the Foxcroft Lecture
The annual Foxcroft Lecture honours the pioneering bibliographer Albert Broadbent Foxcroft, who began working at State Library Victoria in 1902 at the age of 17 until his untimely death in 1938. He left an enduring legacy of scholarship and was highly regarded and influential in developing the Library's rare books collection.
About the Women Writers Fund
The Women Writers Fund is a pioneering new fund that seeks to redress the historical gender bias in State Library Victoria’s collection by acquiring works by under-represented 19th and 20th century women writers.
If you require a descriptive transcript for this video, please email us at websupport@slv.vic.gov.au.
Join us as we cast light on little known publications by British women writers of the 18th century.
Mary Astell, Catharine Trotter Cockburn, Catharine Macaulay – these names may not be as familiar to us as late 18th and early 19th century writers such as Mary Wollstonecraft or Jane Austen, but they were equal in their literary, political and philosophical aspirations.
This year’s Foxcroft Lecture will showcase the remarkable work of these 18th century women; debunking the assumption that, constrained by social circumstances, women of this time published little of note.
Building on her extensive research, Karen Green will reveal how, while Mary Wortley Montagu, Mary Delariviere Manley, Sarah Fielding, and Sarah Scott, published anonymously, fearing social censure, a later generation published under their own names, and were celebrated as literary geniuses, paving the way for the women writers we remember.
State Library Victoria Cultural, Family & Student members get early access to our upcoming events. To get your tickets ahead of the crowd, become a member today.
About Karen Green
Karen Green is a Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne and author of A history of women’s political thought in Europe, 1700-1800, A history of women’s political thought in Europe, 1400-1700, with Jacqueline Broad, Catharine Macaulay’s republican enlightenment and Joan of Arc and Christine de Pizan’s Ditié.
About the Foxcroft Lecture
The annual Foxcroft Lecture honours the pioneering bibliographer Albert Broadbent Foxcroft, who began working at State Library Victoria in 1902 at the age of 17 until his untimely death in 1938. He left an enduring legacy of scholarship and was highly regarded and influential in developing the Library's rare books collection.
About the Women Writers Fund
The Women Writers Fund is a pioneering new fund that seeks to redress the historical gender bias in State Library Victoria’s collection by acquiring works by under-represented 19th and 20th century women writers.
If you require a descriptive transcript for this video, please email us at websupport@slv.vic.gov.au.
