Lucy Clifford
Sophia Lucy Lane Clifford, born around 1853 in Barbados, was an influential writer and literary figure known for her connections to prominent cultural and intellectual leaders of her time. After marrying professor William Kingdon Clifford in 1875 and raising two daughters, she became known for hosting gatherings that included notable figures such as George Eliot and Charles Darwin. Following her husband's death in 1879, she received financial support from her literary friends, which allowed her to further pursue her writing career. Initially, she published works for children, but she later shifted to adult novels that often tackled challenging themes related to women’s experiences and societal issues. Clifford's writing, sometimes controversial, highlighted female strength and critiqued male dominance, yet it received mixed reviews from critics. Despite some obscurity today, her works and her influence on young writers are acknowledged in the correspondence of many cultural figures of her era. Notably, she used the pseudonym Mrs. W. K. Clifford for specific writings, reflecting the values endorsed by her husband. Her legacy also includes the impact of her plays and the challenges she faced with unauthorized publications during her travels in the United States.
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Subject Terms
Lucy Clifford
Novelist and dramatist
- Born: c. 1853
- Birthplace: Barbados, West Indies
- Died: April 21, 1929
Biography
Sophia Lucy Lane Clifford was born some time around 1853 in Barbados, British West Indies, where her father, John Lane, was a prominent planter. Her ties to that island were reinforced by her paternal grandfather, Brandford Lane, having served as House of Assembly’s speaker. Information concerning her childhood and mother is scarce. Clifford lived for several years with her maternal grandmother in England. In 1875 she married professor William Kingdon Clifford, with whom she had two daughters.
At her Saint John’s Wood house in London, Clifford hosted her husband’s friends from the Metaphysical Society. She interacted with such significant artistic, literary, scientific, and political leaders as Mary Ann Evans (George Eliot), Rudyard Kipling, Charles Darwin, and Robert Browning. Although those relationships were initially based on her husband’s professional status and esteem, Clifford developed friendships as she supported and encouraged their artistic endeavors.
Widowed in March 1879, Clifford enjoyed financial support from her literary friends. Evans and her partner George Henry Lewes invited Clifford to their salons because they had admired her husband. Clifford nurtured young talents, including Henry James, by advising which publishers to approach and convincing editors to print specific works. She exchanged letters frequently with ambassador James Russell Lowell. Clifford died on April 21, 1929, meriting a London Times obituary which emphasized her husband and associates instead of her writing.
Having published her work in an 1877 issue of Quiver, Clifford intensified her writing after her husband’s death. Evans recommended Clifford to editors at the Standard and other publications. Although her first books, Children Busy, Children Glad, Children Naughty, Children Sad (1881) and Anyhow Stories (1882) were for young readers, Clifford later wrote novels for adults, usually focusing on provocative issues concerning female protagonists and emphasizing women’s strengths. Clifford used the pseudonym Mrs. W. K. Clifford for works emphasizing values her husband endorsed for children.
Sometimes controversial, Clifford’s novels both pleased and shocked readers because of their content. She remained anonymous when Mrs. Keith’s Crime: A Record appeared in 1885, discussing a woman’s decision to euthanize her child. Clifford wrote short stories which often depicted men critically, emphasizing flaws, cruelties, misogyny, and unfaithfulness. Some female characters had moral faults and deceived or manipulated others.
Although much of her literary work has become obscure, Clifford is mentioned in the correspondence, diaries, and autobiographies of cultural and political figures, sources that scholars have used to learn more about her life. Reviewers gave her work mixed reviews; some found her subjects offensive, while her peers praised it. Anyhow Stories, Moral and Otherwise enhanced her literary popularity and earned her bonuses from publishers. Area theatres performed her plays. During her travels in the United States, she discovered that some American publishers had printed her books without her permission and without reimbursement.