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An Analysis of the Ideas of Frances Wright

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An Analysis of the Ideas of Frances Wright REFLECTIONS ON A FREE ENQUIRER: AN ANALYSIS OF THE IDEAS OF FRANCES WRIGHT Mabry Miller O'Donnell A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY August 1977 Approved by Doctoral Committee Si © 1977 Mabry Miller O'Donnell All Rights Reserved Ill ABSTRACT This study carried out an idea-centered analysis of the rhetorical activities of Frances Wright, the first fe­ male public speaker in the United States. A methodology was used wherein Wright’s speeches and pertinent writings during the period 1818-1830 were examined, the ideas in them iso­ lated and analyzed, their sources identified, and their impact noted. The basic approaches and historical strategies applied were modeled after those advocated by Ernest J. Wrage, Louis Gottschalk, and Bernard Bailyn. By following this procedure, it was discovered that most of what Frances Wright believed about America came from Carlo Botta’s His­ tory of The War of The Independence of The United States of America and David Ramsay's History of the United States. Wright was imbibing a double dose of Ramsay, since Botta had used Ramsay's earlier History of the American Revolution (1789). Her preconceived notions about America were ex­ tremely significant, since they shaped her assumptions not only about what the country was like, but also what changes were possible there. The specific background of Frances Wright's intel­ lectual framework as reflected in her early writings was discussed as well as her beliefs about such matters as IV slavery and anti-clericalism. Wright’s opposition to slav­ ery was not itself singular, but her recognition of the consequences of emancipation was unique, as was the communi­ tarian experiment whereby she tried to establish a model for eliminating slavery. Her epistemology was essentially Epi­ curean in character, giving her a sensationalist approach to knowledge which precluded religious belief and formed the basis for her anti-clericalism. Although somewhat influenced in her thinking by Jeremy Bentham, the corpus of her ideas remained essentially her own. Since the topic of this dissertation was a person, particular attention was given to appropriate biographical details. This was especially important in Wright's case, since her actions reflected the intentions of her thoughts. Of concern, too, was the reaction against Frances Wright when she mounted the lecture platform in her quest for establishing free enquiry and better education for all persons. The evolution of her actions and her ideas in re­ sponse to criticism against her are also themes which were developed. Frances Wright's lack of success in creating a posi­ tive public image or a popular following may be attributed to her own doing. She advocated radical causes, opposed that bastion of the status quo, the church, and spoke out of conviction and conscience, never from convenience or compromise. V ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The completion of this dissertation would have never been accomplished without the assistance of several individ­ uals. To them I owe a large debt. First I would like to acknowledge the unfailing support of my advisor, Dr. John T. Rickey. Without his patient guidance and inspiration, my tenure in graduate school would have been far more painful. Each member of my committee has assisted me in some unique way and I cannot adequately thank them. It is because of Dr. Raymond Yeager’s interest that I entered Bowling Green State University, and he has continued to be supportive in every way. Dr. Donald Enholm has challenged me with the intricacies of rhetorical criticism and broadened my understanding of rhetorical theory. The rigors of organi­ zational communication were introduced to me by Dr. James R. Wilcox. The fifth member of my committee, Dr. Robert W. Twyman of the department of history, has been extremely helpful in broadening my understanding of historical literature. The research materials necessary for this work would have been far more difficult to obtain, had it not been for the untiring efforts of the Interlibrary Loan office at the Bowling Green State University Library. My thanks are ex­ tended also to the library's Administrative Services VI department and especially to Gloria Gregor and Mary Lou Willmarth, for their senses of humor and expert copying assistance. For keeping me in touch with the realities of the world while I was immersed in the unreal environment of graduate study, I thank my three extracurricular activities: John, Anne, and Susan. The overall travail of graduate school has been lightened considerably and the challenge of the entire project made possible by my chief supporter and sympathetic listener, my husband, Jim; to him I offer my unending thanks. VT1 To Jim with ail my love viii CONTENTS CHAPTER Page I. INTRODUCTION ................................... 1 Previous Research .......................... 3 Purpose, Methodology, andL imits ............ 6 Sources and Materials ...................... 9 Questions To Be Asked...................... 11 Organization of the Study................. 12 II. "STRANGE IS THE COURSE I RUN"............... 14 III. THE PROMISED LAND............................ 26 IV. THE SINGLE EVIL.............................. 53 V. "A KINDLING OF WRATH"........................ 75 VI. THE JOURNEY OF A FREE ENQUIRER............... 98 VII. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS..................... 129 BIBLIOGRAPHY................... ....................... 152 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION One of the most active public speakers in the United States during the period from 1828 to 1831 was a Scotswoman named Frances Wright.1 Called by one source the first female public speaker in the United States, Wright visited North America in 1818-1820, wrote a book about her travels which drew the praise of liberals like Jeremy Bentham and the Marquis de Lafayette, and then returned to the United States in 1825.2 No longer merely a curious traveler, she plunged headlong into the currents of American reform. In the course of her brief public life, she espoused such varied causes as the equalitarianism of the Declaration of Independence, anti-clericalism, antislavery (to the extent of establishing a community dedicated to gradual emancipa­ tion) , freedom of thought, women’s rights, public education, the working man’s movement, and the end of the banking 1-For the purposes of this dissertation, the subject will be referred to by her maiden name, Frances Wright, for this is how the public knew her. All quotations in this dissertation will retain the original orthography, syntax, and punctuation. 2Doris G. Yoakum, "Women's Introduction to the American Platform," A History and Criticism of American Public Address, ed. William Norwood Brigance, 1st ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1943), I, 157. 1 2 system. Within three short years she lectured publicly from New Orleans to Boston, outraged the clergy and newspaper editors almost everywhere, purchased an old church in the Bowery which she changed into a Hall of Science, and drew upon herself the title, "priestess of Beelzebub." Despite her meteoric career, Wright's name is not well-known today, nor does she capture much of a place in historical accounts, save for an occasional reference in an obscure footnote or as illustrative material when a lecturer wishes to document the extremists of American reform.3 Given her notoriety and the fact that she was the first female public speaker in the United States, why is there no better understanding or appreciation of her life and work? Why hasn't more research been done on her? Un­ fortunately, one reason may be simply that she was a woman. Yet another reason why Frances Wright has been ignored results from researchers being influenced by contemporary biases against her which may have carried over into later decades. To be accounted for also is her relatively short time on the scene and what may be termed her relative lack of success. Add to these reasons the fact that her written 3The major details of Frances Wright's life may be found in A. J. G. Perkins and Theresa Wolfson, Frances Wright, Free Enquirer. The Study of a Temperament (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1939), and William Randall Waterman, Frances Wright (1924; rpt. New York: AMS Press, 1967). 3 and spoken works were highly philosophical rather than scandalous, and one may see several reasons why she has remained relatively elusive and somewhat obscure through all these years. Previous Research In the twentieth century, three biographies of Frances Wright have been published. The first was by William R. Waterman, an essay originally prepared as a dissertation in history at Columbia University. Waterman’s approach in the book later published by Columbia University Press was a standard narrative one in which he recounted the documented events of Wright’s life. He did not venture into speculation about motivation, nor did he direct any significant attention to Wright’s rhetorical activity. Waterman was content to relate the story of Frances Wright's actions without engaging in speculation on controversial matters or analysis of the intellectual forces reflected in her writings. The second biography of Frances Wright published in this century was by A. J. G. Perkins and Theresa Wolfson. These two popular writers attempted to explore not only the actions of Wright but also her psychological motivations. Where Waterman had avoided the controversial, Perkins and Wolfson did not hesitate to offer their interpretations of why Wright had functioned or responded as she did. Their 4 biography is the more interesting of the two published before 1940, but it is certainly the more frustrating since the authors often quoted extensively from letters and other documents without identifying their provenance.4 What is more agonizing about this book is that the authors used a collection of papers known as the Wright manuscripts which they had borrowed from the Reverend Mr. William Guthrie, Frances Wright’s grandson.5 Apparently these papers, which had also been used by Waterman, were not returned to the family and now unfortunately appear to be lost.
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