Elizabeth Isabella Spence

Life

Spence was born in Dunkeld in 1768 and after being orphaned she went to live with an aunt and uncle in London, but they also died and she had to quickly turn her hobby of writing into a means of income. Her uncle was James Fordyce, who was the author of Sermons to Young Women, and her work was said to reflect this moral approach. She initially wrote sentimental fiction but then turned her attention to travel writing.

Her approach was to travel during summer composing letters and anecdotes about her travels which she then later edited into a book. She is sometimes noted because she sent notes to other women writers of the time. Spence's travel writing attracted some criticism in her lifetime, but Pam Perkins has commented that Spence emphasised that inspirational effect that the Scottish landscape could have on women in the time. Spence witnessed the countryside being opened up and she made literary references where the scenery was mentioned in contemporary culture like the novels of Sir Walter Scott.

Spence died in Chelsea in 1832 of a stroke.

Works

1. The Nobility of the Heart, 1804
2. The Wedding Day 1807
3. Summer Excursions through part of England and Wales 1809
4. Sketches of the Present Manners, Custom, and Scenery of Scotland 1811
5. Commemorative Feelings 1812
6. The Curate and his Daughter: a Cornish Tale 1813
7. The Spanish Guitar 1815
8. A Traveller's Tale of the Last Century 1819
9. Old Stories 1822
10. How to be rid of a Wife 1823
11. Dame Rebecca Berry 1827
12. Tales of Welsh Society and Scenery