You are here

Mary Leapor

Please help us improve with this one minute survey (opens in a new tab)
A servant maid who died in relative obscurity at the age of just twenty-four, Mary Leapor (1722-1746) is now considered to be one of the most interesting poets of the eighteenth century. In moments that she snatched from her busy working day, she composed a considerable body of work, both poetry and drama, sufficient to fill two posthumously published volumes (Poems on Several Occasions, 1748-51). In her vibrant and witty verse, Leapor offers a vivid - and often comic - portrait of the world in which she lived, of her family and friendships and of her thoughts on literature, society and religion. Central to her work is the challenge of combining writing with her daily labours and her literary ambitions with society's expectations of someone from her class. Appearing in her own verse as 'Mira', Leapor documents her struggles to find acceptance as a poet within her local community, until the friendship and patronage of Artemisia (a local woman named Bridget Freemantle) provides her with the support she needs to grow and develop as a poet. For other female writers of the time, take a look at Poems by eminent ladies, available as a free eBook.
Read the essay: Mary Leapor by Jennifer Batt
# Title Description Contributor
1 Mary Leapor

Dr Jennifer Batt talks about Mary Leapor, an 18th Century kitchen maid who wrote accomplished...

Jennifer Batt
# Title Description Contributor
1 Mary Leapor

Dr Jennifer Batt talks about Mary Leapor, an 18th Century kitchen maid who wrote accomplished...

Jennifer Batt
# Essay Title Description Contributor
1 Mary Leapor

A servant maid who died in relative obscurity at the age of just twenty-four, Mary Leapor (1722-...

Jennifer Batt
2 Eighteenth century labouring-class writing

By Jennifer Batt

Jennifer Batt
# Title Description Author
1 Poems upon several occasions: By Mrs. Leapor ...

ebook version of Poems upon several occasions: By Mrs. Leapor ...

Leapor, Mrs. (Mary), 1722-1746.
2 Poems by the Most Eminent Ladies of Great Britain and Ireland. Vol I

Originally published as: Poems by Eminent Ladies.
On title page:
"Re-...

3 Poems by Eminent Ladies. Vol II

Poems by eminent ladies : particularly: Mrs. Barber, Mrs. Behn, Miss Carter, Lady Chudleigh, Mrs...