Authorship in the eighteenth century

Rounce, Adam

Abstract

This essay looks at different questions facing authorship in the eighteenth century, from the widespread use of anonymity, and its consequences; the perception of an over-abundance of authors, and the related fear of a massive cultural decline; the ways in which an authorial canon could have been more arbitrary and less comprehensive than a modern day equivalent; the manner in which poetic representations of authorship sought to compete with, and pre-empt other criticisms and versions of the self; the extensive use of self-reflexivity in fiction, intended to guide and misguide the reader; and the consequences of the growing interest in authorship as a reflection of personality and celebrity.

Citation

Rounce, A. (2015). Authorship in the eighteenth century. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935338.013.38

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Mar 1, 2015
• Deposit Date: Mar 30, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 30, 2016
• Journal: Oxford Handbooks Online
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Book Title: Oxford handbooks online
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935338.013.38
• Keywords: Authorship; fiction; poetry; satire; biography; literary history; anonymity; Jonathan Swift; Samuel Johnson; Alexander Pope
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/984822
• Publisher URL: http://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935338.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199935338-e-38
• Related Public URLs: http://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/
• Additional Information: Oxford Handbooks Online / edited by Julia Kostova, 2015, reproduced by permission of Oxford University Press http://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/