The sentimental novels of the early national period were considered a danger to society and were criticized for the corrupting influence they had on the minds of their mostly young and female audience. They told tales of vice and intrigue that purported to be "based on fact" and also advocated the need for better female education that would prepare young women against sweet-talking seducers. Extremely popular in America after the Revolution and throughout the nineteenth century, Charlotte Temple and The Coquette were two of the most successful novels of the period. Reprinted here in their entirety, with Introductions by the literary scholar Cathy N. Davidson, they offer the modern student a glimpse at the earliest American popular fiction. Charlotte Temple, the most popular novel in America until Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, went through over 200 editions. It tells of a beautiful English girl who at the age of 15 is courted by and runs away with a British lieutenant named Montraville. Susanna Rowson, the daughter of a British naval officer, was one of the most accomplished women of the early national period. Actress, song-writer, novelist, poet, dramatist, and essayist, she was also the founder of one of the most progressive academies for young women of her day. She remained best-known, however, for Charlotte Temple, a novel that promised to be "of service to [the]...young and unprotected woman in her first entrance into life." In her Introduction, Cathy Davidson discusses the enormous popularity of the book and the life of Susanna Rowson, which was even more sensational than those of the characters depicted in the novel.

Charlotte Temple (Early American Women Writers)

Literature & Fiction

Rowson, Susanna

United States

Oxford University Press

As the first bestseller in America, Charlotte Temple assured her place in literary history. This edition features editorial matter that engages key questions to help you respond to the novel.

Charlotte Temple (Bedford College Editions)

Literary

Bedford/St.Martin's

The best-selling Early American novel is now available in a Norton Critical Edition. An instant bestseller when it was published in America, the sentimental novel Charlotte Temple speaks to the popularity of the genre―and the public thirst for fiction―from the early national period and beyond. This Norton Critical Edition is based on the first American edition of 1794; the author’s original spellings have been maintained. It is accompanied by a detailed introduction, explanatory annotations, and A Note on the Text. An unusually rich “Contexts” section is thematically organized into four parts―“Women in Early America: Intellect, Education, Sexuality,” “Reading in Early America,” “The American Sentimental,” and “Selections from Rowson’s Writings”―and includes works from Rowson’s time to our own. Ten illustrations from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are reproduced to further enrich the reading experience. “Criticism” collects thirteen insightful assessments of Charlotte Temple spanning four centuries and addressing its central issues. Contributors include Matthew Carey, Samuel L. Knapp, Larzer Ziff, Jane P. Tompkins, Gareth Evans, Julia A. Stern, and Marion Rust, among others. A Chronology of Susanna Rowson’s life and works and a Selected Bibliography are also included.

Charlotte Temple (Norton Critical Editions)

W.W.Norton&Company

This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.

Miscellaneous Poems By Susanna Rowson (1804)

History & Criticism

Kessinger Publishing

Kessinger Publishing, LLC

Charlotte Temple

Kirk, Clara M. [Editor]

Kirk, Rudolf [Editor]

Classics

New College & University Press

To find more information about Rowman and Littlefield titles, please visit www.rowmanlittlefield.com.

Charlotte Temple: A Tale of Truth (Masterworks of Literature)

Reference

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Lucy Temple: Charlotte's Daughter (Masterworks of Literature)

With an Introduction by Jane Smiley First published in America in 1794, Charlotte Temple took the country by storm—in fact, it was this nation’s first bona fide “bestseller.” Susanna Rowson’s most famous work is the story of an innocent British schoolgirl who takes the advice of her depraved French teacher— with tragic consequences. Seduced by the dashing Lieutenant Montraville, who persuades her to move to America with him, the fifteen-year-old Charlotte leaves her adoring parents and makes the treacherous sea voyage to New York. In the land of opportunity, Charlotte is callously abandoned by Montraville. Alone and pregnant with an illegitimate child, she valiantly fights to stave off poverty and ruin. This Modern Library Paperback Classic is set from the text of the first American edition.

Charlotte Temple (Modern Library Classics)

Arts & Photography

Modern Library

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