Radcliffe, Ann

Radcliffe, Ann

 orig. Ann Ward

(born July 9, 1764, London, Eng.—died Feb. 7, 1823, London) English gothic novelist. Brought up in a well-to-do family, in 1787 she married a journalist who encouraged her literary pursuits. Her first two novels were published anonymously. She achieved fame with her third novel, The Romance of the Forest (1791). With her fourth, The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794), she became the most popular novelist in England. The Italian (1797), which displays rare psychological insight, reveals her full powers. In her tales, scenes of terror and suspense are infused with an aura of romantic sensibility. See also gothic novel.

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Radcliffe, Ann 

(née Ann Ward). Born July 9, 1764, in London; died there Feb. 7, 1823. English writer.

Radcliffe was educated at home. She won broad popularity for A Sicilian Romance (1790) and The Romance of the Forest (1791) and especially for The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) and The Italian (1797). In her Gothic novels Radcliffe masterfully created an atmosphere of terror and mystery, but the element of rationality is also strong in her novels. Everything mysterious is fully explained by real phenomena. The romantics adopted the strong-willed, unrestrainedly passionate “hero-villain,” definitively portrayed in Radcliffe’s works.

REFERENCES

Istoriia angliiskoi literatury, vol. 1, fasc. 2. Moscow-Leningrad, 1945.
MacIntyre, C. Ann Radcliffe in Relation to Her Times. New Haven-London, 1920.
Varma, D. P. The Gothic Flame. [London, 1957].
Birkhead, E. The Tale of Terror. New York, 1963.