Old Dominion University ODU Digital Commons English Faculty Publications English 2008 Sati in Philadelphia: The idoW w(s) of Malabar Jeffrey H. Richards Old Dominion University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/english_fac_pubs Part of the American Literature Commons, Dramatic Literature, Criticism and Theory Commons, and the Theatre History Commons Repository Citation Richards, Jeffrey H., "Sati in Philadelphia: The idoW w(s) of Malabar" (2008). English Faculty Publications. 61. https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/english_fac_pubs/61 Original Publication Citation Richards, J. H. (2008). Sati in Philadelphia: The idoW w(s) of Malabar. American Literature, 80(4), 647-675. doi:10.1215/ 00029831-2008-034 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the English at ODU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in English Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of ODU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Jeffrey H. Sati in Philadelphia: Richards The Widow(s) of Malabar In post-Revolutionary Philadelphia, as in many U.S. cities, vigorous debates about the morality and efficacy of theater engaged segments of the population. Although the city had been the site of some of the British colonies’ earliest professional playacting and housed the Southwark, a stage built in 1766, the association of theater with British culture, among other concerns, made the reestab- lishment of dramatic activities a hard sell. With the support of impor- tant Federalists