Mary Collier
Mary Collier was an English poet born around 1690 who emerged from humble beginnings. After losing her mother at a young age, she became self-educated and worked as a domestic laborer. Despite her challenging circumstances, Collier developed a passion for writing poetry, encouraged by her employers who appreciated her talent. Her most notable work, "The Woman's Labour," published in 1739, was a direct response to Stephen Duck’s "The Thresher's Labour," addressing criticisms of women's capabilities and work ethics. Although popular and going through three editions, Collier did not profit significantly from her literary endeavors. Throughout her life, she faced challenges related to her class and gender, including accusations of plagiarism, which were countered by male supporters who vouched for her talent. Collier remained dedicated to her creative pursuits while continuing to work in various labor-intensive jobs until her later years. Her legacy is particularly significant as she is recognized as the first known peasant woman to publish poetry and to articulate the struggles of balancing literary ambitions with traditional women's work.
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Subject Terms
Mary Collier
Poet
- Born: c. 1690
- Died: After 1759
Biography
Mary Collier was born some time around the year 1690 in England. Because her mother died early, Collier was essentially self-educated and had no formal schooling. Following her mother’s death, she went to work as a domestic laborer and lived with her father until he passed away. She did a great deal of reading and writing, the only childhood recreations she recalled in the little spare time that she had.
Blessed with a prodigious memory, Collier began to write poetry, transcribing on Sunday evenings what she had recited to herself during the week. Her employers, who heard her recitations, encouraged her efforts. Her best-known work was The Woman’s Labour (1739), a response to Stephen Duck’s The Thresher’s Labour, which criticized women’s so-called slovenliness. Her book, published at her own expense, was popular, and within two years had gone through three editions, but she made little money from the book. Her employer patrons were not as generous as Stephen Duck’s patron, Queen Caroline.
Collier became a well-known poet who was often asked to write verse for special occasions. She wrote poetry about George III’s marriage, the need to educate women, and even eulogies for Stephen Duck. On one occassion, she turned down a request for a poem about lamenting, unmarried women, saying that she knew none. She never married.
Because of her class, sex, and the substantial quality of her poetry, Collier was accused of plagiarism. In the third edition of The Woman’s Labour, nine male supporters signed a petition attesting to her education and skill, affirming that she indeed had written the poetry. Despite her skills and the published poetry, she reaped little financial benefit and remained a washerwoman, brewer, and farm laborer in West Sussex and Hampshire until she was sixty-three. She managed a farmhouse near Alton until she was seventy and incapacitated. In her time, Collier was regarded as a “natural genius,” a peasant woman who, despite the lack of formal training, could write publishable poetry. She was the first known peasant woman who published her poetry and the first to write about the struggle to write and do “women’s work.”