Mary Hays facts for kids

Mary Hays (1759–1843) was an English writer and thinker. She taught herself a lot and wrote essays, poems, and novels. She also wrote several books about famous women. People remember her for being an early supporter of women's rights. She was also friends with important thinkers of her time, like Mary Wollstonecraft and William Godwin.

Mary Hays was born in 1759 into a family of Protestant Dissenters. These were people who did not follow the rules of the Church of England. People who didn't like Hays sometimes called her names because of her rebellious writings.

When Mary's fiancé, John Eccles, died just before they were going to get married, she was heartbroken. But this sad event also meant she didn't follow the usual path of becoming a wife and mother. Instead, she chose to become a writer and make a career for herself.

Mary Hays was greatly inspired by Mary Wollstonecraft's book, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. After writing to Wollstonecraft, the two women became friends. Later, after Wollstonecraft died, public opinion turned against her. This affected Hays's work, which some experts say became more careful. One of Hays's big projects was a six-volume book called Female Biography: or Memoirs of Illustrious and Celebrated Women of All Ages and Countries. This book didn't mention Wollstonecraft, even though Hays had written a long tribute to her earlier. For a long time, Hays and her writings didn't get much attention until the feminist movement grew in the 1900s.

Mary Hays's Early Life

Mary Hays was born in Southwark, London, on May 4, 1759. Her parents, John and Elizabeth Hays, were Rational Dissenters. They lived in Southwark, London. Her father died when she was young. He left her a yearly income of £70, as long as she didn't marry without her mother's permission. Mary's early learning came from reading poetry and novels. She also learned from religious and political discussions at her family's Dissenting meeting house.

In 1777, she met and fell in love with John Eccles. Their parents didn't want them to marry. But they met in secret and wrote many letters to each other between 1779 and 1780. In August 1780, John Eccles got a job that would allow them to marry. However, he suddenly died of a fever. He left Mary all his papers, including the letters she had sent him. Mary's first book was based on these letters. It was a novel made up of letters, and it was partly about her own life. She wrote, "All my pleasures – and every opening prospect are buried with him."

After a year of sadness, Mary Hays decided to focus on writing. Her first published poem, "Invocation to a Nightingale," appeared in the Lady's Poetical Magazine in 1781. She published more poems in 1785 and a short story in 1786. The story, "Hermit: an Oriental Tale," warned against being too emotional.

From 1782 to 1790, Hays met and wrote letters to Robert Robinson. He was a minister who worked to end the slave trade. She also attended a Dissenting school in Hackney in the late 1780s.

Becoming a Successful Writer

In 1791, Mary Hays wrote a pamphlet called Cursory Remarks on An Enquiry into the Expediency and Propriety of Public or Social Worship. She used the pen name Eusebia. In this pamphlet, she responded to Gilbert Wakefield's ideas about group worship. William Frend, a mathematician, wrote to her about how much he liked it. This led to a brief romantic friendship between them.

In 1792, Hays read Mary Wollstonecraft's book A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. It made a strong impression on her. Hays contacted the book's publisher, Joseph Johnson. This led to her friendship with Wollstonecraft and her involvement with a group of thinkers in London who had new ideas about society.

Hays then wrote a book called Letters and Essays (1793). She asked Mary Wollstonecraft to give her comments before it was published. Even though the reviews were mixed, Hays decided to leave home and try to support herself by writing. She moved to Hatton Garden in London. She didn't have enough money to buy Enquiry Concerning Political Justice by William Godwin. So, she bravely wrote to the author and asked to borrow it. This started a friendship, and Godwin became a guide and teacher to her.

Mary Hays followed Wollstonecraft's idea that women should take charge of their own lives. She moved out of her mother's home to live as an independent woman in London. This was a very unusual thing for a single woman to do at that time. Her mother was very upset, and her friends didn't approve. Even though Hays's family was somewhat outside of mainstream British culture, her mother still disapproved of her daughter's social rebellion.

Emma Courtney

Her next book, Memoirs of Emma Courtney (1796), is probably her most famous. It explored her ideas about freedom and her sadness after a difficult relationship with William Frend.

The novel used parts of the letters she had exchanged with William Frend, who didn't feel the same way about her. It also included ideas from her more philosophical letters with William Godwin. The main character, Emma, falls in love with Augustus Harley. He is the son of a dear friend but doesn't have much money. Knowing he couldn't afford to marry, she offered to live with him as if they were married, without actually getting married. Emma tells the character based on Frend that her desire for him is more important than her reputation or social standing. In a famous line from the book, Emma says, "My friend, I would give myself to you – the gift is not worthless." In both real life and the novel, Frend rejected Hays.

Readers were shocked that she included real letters she had exchanged with Godwin and Frend. Hays's actions became a big topic of gossip among London's publishing community.

Later Years and Legacy

Title page of Female Biography, or, Memoirs of Illustrious and Celebrated Women (first American edition, 1807)

Hays and Godwin eventually had a disagreement. She then focused on other writers, including Robert Southey. There are no known pictures of her from her later life. Her next novel, The Victim of Prejudice (1799), strongly focused on women's lower status and criticized social classes. Hays was seen as too radical, and her book did not sell well.

In 1803, Hays showed her continued interest in women's lives and work by publishing Female Biography. This book had six volumes and told the stories of 294 women, from ancient times to her own era. Some experts believe that by this time, Hays realized it was risky to praise Mary Wollstonecraft. So, she left Wollstonecraft out of the book. Others argue that Hays had little to lose and had other reasons for not including her. Hays herself said Wollstonecraft had died too recently. Also, Hays had already written and published a full tribute to Wollstonecraft, which some think should be considered part of Female Biography.

In 1804, Hays moved to Camberwell thanks to the money she earned from Female Biography. There, she met more famous writers, including Charles and Mary Lamb and William Blake. The last 20 years of her life were hard. She had little money and only moderate praise for her work. During this time, she published Memoirs of Queens, Illustrious and Celebrated (1821). In 1824, Hays returned to London, where she died on February 20, 1843. She is buried at Abney Park Cemetery in Stoke Newington, London.

Mary Hays is remembered in the Heritage Floor of Judy Chicago's artwork The Dinner Party. Her place is near the setting for Mary Wollstonecraft. Her letters are kept at the New York Public Library.

List of Mary Hays's Works

All these books were written by Mary Hays. The dates are for when they were first published.

• Cursory remarks on an enquiry into the expediency and propriety of public or social worship: inscribed to Gilbert Wakefield (as Eusebia). London: Knott, 1791.
• Letters and essays, moral, and miscellaneous. London: Knott, 1793.
• Memoirs of Emma Courtney (2 volumes). London: G.G. & J. Robinson, 1796.
• Appeal to the men of Great Britain in behalf of women (as Anonymous). London: J. Johnson and J. Bell, 1798.
• The victim of prejudice: In two volumes. London: J. Johnson, 1799.
• Female Biography, or Memoirs of Illustrious and Celebrated Women of All Ages and Countries (6 volumes). London: R. Phillips, 1803.
• Harry Clinton: a tale for youth. London: J. Johnson, 1804.
• Family annals, or, The sisters. London: W. Simpkin & R. Marshall, 1817.
• Memoirs of Queens, illustrious and celebrated. London: T. & J. Allman, 1821.
• The Love-Letters of Mary Hays (1779–1780). Ed. A.F. Wedd. London: Methuen, 1925. (Published after her death).