49. Aphra Behn — The History of a Nun with Dr. Sarah Raff
Illustration of Aphra Behn by Ann Shen, from her wonderful book Bad Girls Throughout History (Chronicle Books). Used with permission.
Virginia Woolf wrote that “All women together ought to let flowers fall on the tomb of Aphra Behn… for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds.” We’ll be letting our metaphorical flowers fall for England’s first professional female writer, Behn, in this episode with guest Dr. Sarah Raff, an associate professor of English at California’s Pomona College. Learn more about the Restoration era author’s progressive views on motherhood, marriage, and sexual politics as well as her intriguing personal history as we discuss her Tarantino-esque novel The History of a Nun or The Fair Vow Breaker.
Discussed in this episode:
Jane Austen’s Erotic Advice by Sarah Raff
Janet Todd, biographer of Aphra Behn
Love Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister by Aphra Behn
The History of a Nun or The Fair Vow-Breaker by Aphra Behn
Lost Ladies of Lit episode on A Real-Life Lady Whistledown
Lost Ladies of Lit episode on Mary Astell
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare
Homer's Penelope, the wife of Odysseus in The Odyssey
“The Disappointment” by Aphra Behn
“The Imperfect Enjoyment” by John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester
“Love’s Opportunity Neglected” by Nathaniel Lee
William Wycherley’s play “The Country Wife”
Vita Sackville-West’s biography of Behn, The Incomparable Astrea
A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
To the Fair Clorinda: Who Made Love to Me, Imagin’d More Than Woman” by Aphra Behn