Harriet Shaw Weaver facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Harriet Shaw Weaver
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Harriet Shaw Weaver in 1907
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| Born | 1 September 1876 Frodsham, Cheshire, England, UK
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| Died | 14 October 1961 (aged 85) Saffron Walden, Essex, England, UK
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| Nationality | British |
| Education | Private |
| Occupation | Political activist, journal editor |
| Parent(s) | Dr Frederic Poynton Weaver Mary (née Wright) Weaver |
Harriet Shaw Weaver (born September 1, 1876 – died October 14, 1961) was an English activist and a magazine editor. She is best known for being a very important supporter of the famous Irish writer James Joyce.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Harriet Shaw Weaver was born in Frodsham, Cheshire. She was one of eight children. Her father, Frederic Poynton Weaver, was a doctor. Her mother, Mary Weaver, came from a wealthy family. Harriet was taught at home by a special teacher called a governess until 1894. She wanted to go to university, but her parents did not allow it.
Instead, Harriet decided to become a social worker. She took a course at the London School of Economics. This experience made her interested in helping society.
Fighting for Women's Rights
Harriet became very involved in women's suffrage. This was a movement to get women the right to vote. She joined the Women's Social and Political Union. This group worked hard to achieve voting rights for women in Britain.
Supporting Radical Magazines
In 1911, Harriet started reading The Freewoman: A Weekly Feminist Review. This was a new and bold magazine. It was edited by Dora Marsden and Mary Gawthorpe. The magazine's owners stopped supporting it in 1912. Harriet stepped in to save it from closing down.
In 1913, the magazine changed its name to The New Freewoman. Later that year, it changed again to The Egoist. This change happened because of a suggestion from Ezra Pound, who was the magazine's literary editor. Harriet gave more money to the magazine over the years. She also became more involved in running it and eventually became its editor.
Harriet Weaver and James Joyce
Ezra Pound helped find new writers for The Egoist. One of these writers was James Joyce. Harriet was very impressed by his writing. She believed he was a genius. She began to support him financially.
Publishing Joyce's Work
In 1914, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce was published in parts in The Egoist. When Joyce could not find a publisher for the book, Harriet created her own publishing company. She called it the Egoist Press. She paid for it herself to publish his book.
Joyce's famous novel Ulysses was also published in parts in The Egoist. However, the book had some parts that were considered controversial. This made it hard to find a printer in England. Harriet arranged for it to be printed in another country.
Continued Support and Later Strain
Harriet continued to give a lot of money to Joyce and his family. She supported them for many years. However, their relationship became difficult later on. Harriet had some doubts about Joyce's next big work, which would become Finnegans Wake. This caused a strain between them.
Despite their differences, Harriet remained loyal to Joyce. When he died, she paid for his funeral. She also became his literary executor. This meant she was in charge of his writings after his death.
Political Involvement and Legacy
In 1931, Harriet joined the Labour Party. This is a major political party in the United Kingdom. Later, she read a famous book called Das Kapital by Karl Marx. This book influenced her greatly.
In 1938, she joined the Communist Party. She was very active in this group. She took part in protests and sold copies of the Daily Worker newspaper.
Harriet also continued to honor James Joyce's memory. As his literary executor, she helped put together The Letters of James Joyce. She died in 1961 at her home near Saffron Walden. She was 85 years old. She left her important collection of literary materials to the British Library and the National Book League.
See also
In Spanish: Harriet Shaw Weaver para niños
