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Latest revision as of 14:16, 12 November 2008
William Godwin (3 March 1756 – 7 April 1836) was an English journalist,
political philosopher and
novelist. He is considered one of the first exponents of
utilitarianism, and one of the first modern proponents of
philosophical anarchism.
[1] Godwin is most famous for two books that he published within the space of a year:
An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice, an attack on
political institutions, and
Things as They Are or The Adventures of Caleb Williams, which attacks
aristocratic privilege, but also is virtually the first
mystery novel. Based on the success of both, Godwin featured prominently in the radical circles of London in the 1790s. In the ensuing
conservative reaction to
British radicalism, Godwin was attacked, in part because of his marriage to the pioneering feminist writer
Mary Wollstonecraft in 1797 and his candid biography of her after her death; their child,
Mary Godwin (later Mary Shelley) would go on to author
Frankenstein and marry the poet
Percy Bysshe Shelley. Godwin wrote prolifically in the genres of novels,
history and
demography throughout his lifetime. With his second wife, Mary Jane Clairmont, he wrote
children's primers on Biblical and classical history, which he published along with such works as
Charles and
Mary Lamb's
Tales from Shakespeare. He also has had considerable influence on British literature and literary culture.
- ↑ Template:sep entry
