Eliza Lynn Linton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eliza Lynn Linton
Portrait of Eliza Lynn Linton, by W. & D. Downey, 1890
Born	Eliza Lynn (1822-02-10)10 February 1822 Keswick, Cumbria, England
Died	14 July 1898(1898-07-14) (aged 76) Westminster, London
Occupation	Novelist,
Period	Victorian
Spouse	William James Linton
Relatives	James Lynn (father), Charlotte Alicia Lynn (mother)

Eliza Lynn Linton (born February 10, 1822 – died July 14, 1898) was a very important writer and journalist in Britain. She was the first woman to be paid a regular salary for her work as a journalist. She also wrote more than 20 novels. Even though she was a pioneering woman who broke new ground, some of her essays had strong views against the early women's rights movement.

Her Life Story

Eliza Lynn Linton was born in Keswick, Cumbria, England. She was the youngest of twelve children. Her father, Rev. James Lynn, was a vicar, which is a type of priest. Her mother died when Eliza was only five months old. This meant she had a difficult childhood and mostly taught herself.

In 1845, when she was 23, Eliza left home and moved to London to become a writer. She wanted to earn her own living.

Marriage and Homes

In 1858, Eliza moved to Paris and married William James Linton. He was a famous artist who carved designs into wood for printing. He was also a poet and a writer. He was involved in a movement called Chartism, which was a group of working-class people in Britain who wanted more rights, like the right to vote for all men.

Eliza moved into his home, called Brantwood, in the beautiful Lake District. He had seven children from a previous marriage. While living there, she wrote a novel called Lizzie Lorton of Greyrigg, which was set in the local area. The couple also lived near Hampstead Heath in London for several years.

In 1867, Eliza and William decided to separate in a friendly way. He moved to America, and Eliza returned to London to continue her writing career.

Later Years and Passing

In 1889, Eliza visited her childhood home in Cumbria again. She felt like she was "half in a dream" because it was both familiar and different. She lived in London for most of her later life. About three years before she died, she moved to Malvern.

Eliza Lynn Linton passed away in London on July 14, 1898. Her ashes were scattered in the churchyard at Crosthwaite, where her father had been a vicar.

Her Writing Career

Eliza arrived in London in 1845 and quickly connected with other famous writers like William Harrison Ainsworth. She started writing novels, but her first few, like Azeth, the Egyptian (1847) and Amymone (1848), were not very successful.

Becoming a Journalist

However, Eliza soon began working as a journalist. In 1849, she joined the staff of the Morning Chronicle newspaper. This was a big deal because it made her the first woman in Britain to receive a regular salary as a journalist! She left the paper in 1851 after a disagreement.

While living in Paris, she wrote for The Leader newspaper. She also wrote regularly for many other important newspapers and magazines, including Charles Dickens's Household Words and Daily News. Eliza became one of the most well-known female writers of her time. Her 1864 guide to The Lake Country is still interesting to read today for its funny comments about how Victorian tourists behaved.

In the 1880s, she traveled to Palermo, Italy, and encouraged another woman, Tina Whitaker, to become a writer.

Successful Novels

After separating from her husband, Eliza focused more on writing novels again. This time, her books became very popular. Some of her most successful novels were The True History of Joshua Davidson (1872), Patricia Kemball (1874), and The Autobiography of Christopher Kirkland (1885). The last one was actually a story about her own life, but with different names.

In 1896, Eliza made history again by becoming one of the first women to be chosen for the Society of Authors, a group for writers. She was also the first woman to serve on the society's main committee.

Her Opinions

Eliza Lynn Linton was known for her strong opinions, especially about the early women's rights movement. She was a big critic of it.

"The Girl of the Period"

One of her most famous essays was called "The Girl of the Period," published in the Saturday Review in 1868. In this essay, she strongly criticized young women who were becoming more independent and challenging traditional roles.

In 1891, she wrote "Wild Women as Politicians." In this piece, she explained her belief that politics was naturally a man's job. She thought that women should not seek fame or public roles. She wrote that many famous women would rather have been a great man's wife or a hero's mother than famous themselves. Eliza's views show that not only men were against women getting the right to vote. Many women also held these traditional beliefs.

Changing Views?

However, some people who have studied her work more recently have noticed something interesting. They say that in her stories, she sometimes showed a hidden understanding for the "modern women" she criticized. She also supported the right for married women to own their own property. This was a big step towards women having more independence. Laws like the Married Women's Property Act 1870 and Married Women's Property Act 1882 helped make this possible.

Her Published Works

• Azeth, The Egyptian, 1847
• Amymone: A Romance in the Days of Pericles, 1848
• Realities: A Tale, 1851
• Witch Stories, 1861
• The Lake Country, 1864
• Grasp Your Nettle, 1865
• Lizzie Lorton of Greyrigg: A Novel, 1866
• Sowing the Wind, 1867
• The True History of Joshua Davidson, Christian and Communist, 1872
• Patricia Kemball, 1875
• The Mad Willoughbys and other Tales, 1875
• The Atonement of Leam Dundas, 1876
• From Dreams to Waking, 1877
• The World Well Lost, 1877
• Under which Lord?, 1879
• The Rebel of the Family, 1880
• With a Silken Thread and other Stories, 1880
• My Love!, 1881
• Ione, 1883
• The Girl of the Period and Other Social Essays, 1883
• Ourselves: Essays on Women, 1884
• The Autobiography of Christopher Kirkland, 1885
• Stabbed in the Dark, 1885
• Rift in the Lute, 1885
• Paston Carew, Millionaire and Miser: A Novel, 1886
• Through the Long Night, 1889
• About Ireland, 1890
• An Octave of Friends, with other Silhouettes and Stories, 1891
• About Ulster, 1892
• The One too Many, 1894
• In Haste and at Leisure, 1895
• Dulcie Everton, 1896
• 'Twixt Cup & Lip. Etc, 1896
• My Literary Life, 1899
• The Second Youth of Theodora Desanges, 1900

Some of Her Articles

• "The Modern Revolt," Macmillan's Magazine, 1870
• "An Old English Home," The Atlantic Monthly, 1873
• "Some Sicilian Customs," The Eclectic Magazine, 1885
• "A Protest and a Plea," The Gentleman's Magazine, 1886
• "The Future Supremacy of Women," The National Review, 1886
• "The Higher Education of Women", Popular Science Monthly, 1886
• "Womanhood in Old Greece," The Library Magazine, 1886/1887
• "The Tyranny of Fashion," The Forum, 1887
• “The Roman Matron,” The Library Magazine, 1887
• “The Pains of Fear,” The Forum, 1888
• “Are Good Women Characterless?,” The Forum, 1889
• “Democracy in the Household,” The Forum, 1889
• "Our Illusions," Fortnightly Review, 1891
• "The Revolt Against Matrimony," The Forum, 1891
• "The Judicial Shock to Marriage," Nineteenth Century, 1891
• "The Wild Women: as Politicians," Nineteenth Century, 1891
• "The Wild Women As Social Insurgents," The Nineteenth Century, 1891
• "The Partisans of the Wild Women," Nineteenth Century, 1892
• "The New Woman," St. James's Budget, 1894
• "The Rex Nemorum," St. James's Budget, 1894
• "The Philistine's Coming Triumph," National Review, 1895
• "Cranks and Crazes," The North American Review, 1895
• "George Eliot." In Women Novelists of Queen Victoria's Reign, 1897

Images for kids

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  Portrait of Eliza Lynn Linton, by W. & D. Downey, 1890