Aphra+Behn



**Aphra Behn** **(1640? - 1689)** ====Aphra Behn is known as the first female writer, producing a vast quantity of writing including poems, fiction, and plays. She is known for her scandalous and sexual works performed in the theatre, creating a mixed reputation for herself among critics. However, many acknowledge her for breaking the ground for all female writers to come. Virginia Woolf wrote in //A Room of One's Own//, "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds." ====

=**Early Life**= ====We know very little about Behn’s personal life at all. We know that she //may// have been born Aphra Johnson in Kent in 1640, and her parentage was claimed to be traced back to Wye. From 1666 to 1667, Behn called herself Astrea when she worked as a spy, gathering information from William Scot. Yet, when she asked for money to fund her trips, the King denied it, and she was in prison for some time due to her debt. With her alleged husband, Mr. Behn, dead, she had no money to survive. She began her literary career, and made her living this way. The cost of living, though, was high, and Behn often struggled to fend for herself. When her health started to deteriorate, Behn ignored the ailments, and continued to write up until the day she died: the 16th of April in 1689, making her less than 50 years-old. The lack of information about her past leads biographers to analyze her work in order to establish her character. What we cannot guess, we fill in with what she puts on the paper and the stage. ====

=**Career**= ====Behn edited and wrote poems as well as produced many plays. She worked alongside many playwrights, was active in the theatre, and wrote many poems for James II himself from the early 1670s to the mid-1680’s. Her first play was //The Forc'd Marriage// in 1670, and had much success. She continued to write and produce, gaining momentum and popularity. In 1677, Behn produced //The Rover,// her most well-known play. The famous and talented Nell Gwyn performed in it, and the play was admired by many, including James II. ====

====Many of her plays are littered with contradictions; this paradoxical writing is why Behn’s writing is so significant, but also confusing to new readers. It reflects the political ideologies of the time, as confusing as they may have been, and the socio-economic dynamics. Her works highlight questions about desire, gender, and power. The theatre was her way of bringing new opinions and ideas to the people, circulating them in the hope that the audience will start to ask questions. She had a place in the social sphere, but also used her language in innovative ways, influencing the literary world. ====

====//The Rover //, for example, raises the all too familiar issues of economic, sexual, and political change. The theme of disguise showcases masking one's identity as a positive and negative idea. While Carnival allows the three main female characters to decide their own future, it also conceals their status in society. Men unknowing of the identity of these women do take opportunities to use them, believing they are prostitutes. The ambivalence is so central to the play and can be interpreted however the audience decides, exhibiting the brilliance of Behn’s writing. ====

After the decline of theatre in the last 1680s, Behn turned to fiction. She played with history and romance, walking the line between fact and fiction. Her plots have multiple layers and complex characters. They are simultaneously relatable and also not trustworthy, misleading the reader. Behn always wanted people questioning the ideologies of that time.

=**Theatrical Reception**= ====Angelina Goreau said, “Aphra had to invent herself,” and that’s exactly what she did. During her prime, Behn was mistreated and attacked for her success. She was often criticized for speaking for women, as the first female writer of that time, and as their representative. She also had a large reputation for sexual freedom, writing often, without fear, about sexual issues. In her plays specifically, she showed the current issues in society, undermining the male dominance surrounding her. She was criticized for these scandalous plays, though claimed that they would not be considered so if written by a man. She was condemned, but Behn was referenced multiple times later in newspaper articles and other critiques for her “infamous obscenity.” It’s what makes her memorable. Even when the opinions of the critics were expressed, there was no effect in her literary popularity; the audiences kept coming back to see her plays. She did not have people watch her plays, but involved them. They were an active part of the theatre. ====

====Many female playwrights have come after Behn and impressed crowds. Critics today, especially with such little knowledge of her personal life, base their opinions on her work alone. Even though her writing might seem outdated, now almost four centuries later, the idea of sparking controversy and conversation still remains. Behn's plays are still comical to us now, vulgar as they may be. Her reputation, and the groundwork she laid for all women to precede her, speaks alone to her success. Then people may have criticized her for her gender, but she is now rewarded for it. ====

=Bibliography=

Stiebel, Arlene. "Aphra Behn (1640?-16 April 1689)." //Seventeenth-Century British// //Nondramatic Poets //: //Third Series//, edited by M. Thomas Hester, vol. 131, Gale, 1993, pp. 7-16. Dictionary of Literary Biography Vol. 131. //Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online//, Web.

//A Biographical Dictionary of Actors, Actresses, Musicians, Dancers, Managers & Othe ////Stage Personnel in London, 1660-1800. Volume 9: Kickill to Machin //.: Available through: Adam Matthew, Marlborough, Eighteenth Century Drama, Web.

“The Moralist.” //Morning Chronicle and London Advertiser,// 9 Dec. 1786, p. 2.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">“Aphra Behn.” //Poetry Foundation.// Poetry Foundation, Web.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Pohl, Nicole. "Utopian Studies." //Utipian Studies,// vol. 8, no.1, 1997, pp.250-255. //JSTOR,// JSTOR, [|Web.]

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Todd, Janet. //<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Aphra Behn //<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">. St. Martin's Press, 1999.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Wiseman, Susan. //Aphra Behn//. Northcote House in Association with the British Council, 1996.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Woolf, Virginia. //A Room of One's Own.// Penguin Books, 1965.