Lily Dougall
Lily Dougall was a Canadian novelist and theologian, born in Montreal, Quebec, in 1858 to Scottish immigrants. She received her education in Montreal and later in New York, before studying at the University of Edinburgh and the University of St. Andrews, where she earned a degree in 1887. Dougall's literary debut came with her novel "Beggars All" (1892), which focused on a woman's struggles with relationships and familial responsibilities, highlighting themes of support and resilience through the character of an older woman. Throughout her career, she wrote several novels set in Canada that often explored spiritual rebirth and reformation, reflecting her deep religious convictions. By the year 1900, her focus shifted more towards theology, producing spiritual novels alongside her writings on church doctrine. After moving to Cumnor, England, around 1911, Dougall engaged in religious debates, some of which influenced her writing. Despite her declining popularity due to her refusal to conform to mainstream topics, she was respected as a thoughtful and innovative writer. Lily Dougall passed away in Cumnor in 1923 at the age of 65.
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Lily Dougall
Writer
- Born: April 16, 1858
- Birthplace: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Died: October 9, 1923
- Place of death: Cunmor, England
Biography
Lily Dougall was born in Montreal, Quebec, in 1858 to Scottish immigrants, one of them the publisher of the Montreal Witness, a religious periodical. Dougall grew up in Montreal but moved to New York for some of her education. She later went to Edinburgh, Scotland, to live with an aunt while she studied at the University of Edinburgh and the University of St. Andrews, receiving a degree in 1887.
Her first novel, Beggars All (1892), was about a troubled woman dealing with relationship struggles and the onus of having to care for her family; her protagonist coped with her problems with the aid of an older woman. Many of Dougall’s other more secular novels were set in her native Canada and explored the common theme of spiritual rebirth and reformation. By 1900, Dougall focused her writing more towards the science of theology and wrote spiritual novels in addition to her thoughts on church doctrine.
Dougall moved to Cumnor, England, around 1911 and debated religion there, sometimes transferring her debates to her writing. Because of her deep convictions and refusal to write on more mainstream topics, her literature became less popular, but she was always regarded as a fresh and sensible writer. A philosopher and theologian for more than thirty years, Dougall died in Cumnor in 1923, at the age of sixty-five.