The Witlings

by Frances Burney

Frances Burney was born on June 13th, 1752 in Lynn Regis (now King’s Lynn). By the age of 8 Frances had still not learned the alphabet and couldn’t read. She now began a period of self-education, which included devouring the family library and to begin her own ‘scribblings’, these journal writings would document her life and cover the next 72 years. Her journal writing was accepted but writing novels was frowned upon by her family and friends. Feeling that she had been improper, she burnt her first manuscript, The History of Caroline Evelyn, which she had written in secret. It was only in 1778 with the anonymous publication of Evelina that her talents were available to the wider world. She was now a published and admired author. Despite this success and that of her second novel, Cecilia, in 1785, Frances travelled to the court of King George III and Queen Charlotte and was offered the post of "Keeper of the Robes". Frances hesitated. She had no wish to be separated from her family, nor to anything that would restrict her time in writing. But, unmarried at 34, she felt obliged to accept and thought that improved social status and income might allow her greater freedom to write. The years at Court were fruitful but took a toll on her health, writing and relationships and in 1790 she prevailed upon her father to request her release from service. He was successful. The ideals of the French Revolution had brought support from many English literates for the ideals of equality and social justice. Frances quickly became attached to General Alexandre D'Arblay, an artillery officer who had fled to England. In spite of the objections of her father they were married on July 28th, 1793. On December 18th, 1794, Frances gave birth to their only child, a son, Alexander. Frances’s third novel, Camilla, in 1796 earned her £2000 and was enough for them to build a house in Westhumble; Camilla Cottage. In 1801 D'Arblay was offered service with the government of Napoleon in France, and in 1802 Frances and her son followed him to Paris, where they expected to remain for a year. The outbreak of the war between France and England meant their stay extended for ten years. In August 1810 Frances developed breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy performed by "7 men in black”. Frances was later able to write about the operation in detail, being conscious through most of it, anesthetics not yet being in use. With the death of D'Arblay, in 1818, of cancer, Frances moved to London to be near her son. Tragically he died in 1837. Frances, in her last years, was by now retired but entertained many visits from younger members of the Burney family, who gathered to listen to her fascinating accounts and her talents for imitating the people she described. Frances Burney died on January 6th, 1840.

Genres: Classics, Plays, Drama

165 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2015

About the author

Also known as Fanny Burney and, after her marriage, as Madame d’Arblay. Frances Burney was a novelist, diarist and playwright. In total, she wrote four novels, eight plays, one biography and twenty volumes of journals and letters.

Reviews

[Elís · Rating 1 out of 5]

leiðinlegasti texti sem ég hef lesið

[Delaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

probably would've been 2 stars, but the final act gave me more appreciation for it, that shit was funny.

additionally, Censor is gay and in love with Beaufort argue with the wall.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

laugh out loud kind of funny

[Jack Sisson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Kendra Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a humorous and delightful book. its hard for me to describe what the book is about, but I'll quote this Wikipedia piece on it: "The play showcased societal views through comedy and satire, exposing false characters as well as the painful truth about a society devoted to superficial means." yeah, that.

I'd say the play is also aquite prequel to Cecilia, since she's part of the story AND considering how The Witlings came out in 1779, and "Cecilia" didn't release until 1782.

Overall, I definitely enjoyed this satirical play from Frances Burney, and can't wait to read her other works.

[Andrea Cruz · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the final read for my English class, so now I can officially read for my own leisure once again!

This drama was comedic & very satirical as this was it’s written purpose. It was relatively interesting, but 18th century literature isn’t my forte typically. I found it intriguing that a female writer would be able to write a satire as well as having another piece of work titled “The Woman Hater”.

I think the gender confinements that have been implemented into our society for millennia are so interesting in the ways we can challenge & eradicate these barriers. So many outspoken individuals have paved the way through their craft & vocalizing important issues. It is because of their bravery that we have became seemingly more progressive over time, although we still have a long way to go.

2/5 ⭐️

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you really love Burney and want to study her as a writer, then I would recommend this play. If not, this is one you can skip. It had some comical parts with good sarcasm, but rather boring overall. It is the least strong regarding story. The heroine is very different from Burney’s other heroines, as she is more superficial and proud. It is an unmemorable play and I only remember it when I look at my list of books I have read.