Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (nonfiction)

From Gnomon Chronicles
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (née Pierrepont; 15 May 1689 – 21 21 August 1762) was an English aristocrat, letter writer, and poet.

Biography

Lady Mary is today chiefly remembered for her letters, particularly her letters from travels to the Ottoman Empire, as wife to the British ambassador to Turkey, which have been described by Billie Melman as "the very first example of a secular work by a woman about the Muslim Orient". Aside from her writing, Lady Mary is also known for introducing and advocating for smallpox inoculation to Britain after her return from Turkey. Her writings address and challenge the hindering contemporary social attitudes towards women and their intellectual and social growth.

In the News

Fiction cross-reference

Nonfiction cross-reference

External links