Performing Authorship in Eighteenth-Century English Periodicals

Performing Authorship in Eighteenth-Century English Periodicals: Where Writers Found Their Voice

Performing Authorship in Eighteenth-Century English Periodicals by Manushag Powell offers a unique and captivating exploration of the evolving concept of authorship during the eighteenth century, focusing on the role of the English periodical. This fascinating period saw a significant shift in the literary landscape, as the rise of periodicals provided a platform for writers to engage with a wider audience, creating a new dialogue between authors and readers. Powell delves into the very heart of this transformative era, analyzing how the periodical became a crucible where writers not only shaped their craft but also navigated the complex dynamics of identity and authorship. The periodical, she argues, provided a space for authors to forge a new type of literary persona, the "eidolon," a crafted self that resonated with the burgeoning mass media audience. This constructed identity was not only performative but also commercially viable, marking the birth of a distinct "cult of authorial personality." Through close readings of periodicals like The Female Spectator, The Drury-Lane Journal, The Midwife, The World, and The Covent-Garden Journal, Powell meticulously unveils the "paper wars" that erupted between authors, revealing the intense debates surrounding authorship and the professionalization of writing. These periodicals became battlegrounds where writers grappled with defining the very essence of authorship: its qualifications, its relationship with the newly emerging public, and its ethical responsibilities.
Powell's compelling thesis posits that the symbiotic relationship between persona and genre dictated the lifespan of the periodical itself, highlighting how these publications not only rose and fell but also experienced a distinct birth and death cycle. This insightful analysis demonstrates the profound impact of the periodical on shaping not only the literary world but also the very perception of authorship in the eighteenth century.
Manushag Powell, a prominent scholar of eighteenth-century literature, has earned recognition for her insightful research on the intersection of authorship, gender, and performance in the British periodical tradition.