The Virgin UnmaskÕd: or, Female Dialogues Betwixt an Elderly Maiden Lady and her Niece on several Diverting Discourses on love, marriage, memoirs, and morals, &c. of the Times.

Descripción

Bernard Mandeville (1670 Ð 1733) was born in Dordrecht, Holland. After attending the University of Leiden and earning a medical degree, he came to England to learn the language, but ended up staying. He is best known for The Fable of the Bees, which was first published as a 433-line poem The Grumbling Hive, or Knaves TurnÕd Honest in 1705 and was expanded into a prose work in 1714. The work was controversial upon its publication, being criticized as cynical and degrading, but it was popular for years and has since been praised by critics for the cuteness of MandevilleÕs perceptions and the strength of his style. It influenced George Berkeley, who responded to it in the Alciphron, as well as Samuel Johnson, Adam Smith, and the Utilitarians. Octavo. [24], 200 pp. Late nineteenth century half calf over brown pebbled cloth. Black leather spine label titled in gilt. Slight edgewear. Marbled endpapers. Two contemporary ink ownership signatures to title-page. Toning and some staining and foxing. A good copy. Second edition of MandevilleÕs first prose work in English and his first foray into social commentary. Originally published in 1709. The second edition was the last published during MandevilleÕs lifetime. All editions are scarce in commerce. The Virgin UnmaskÕd is a dialogue between an elderly spinster, Glen Ñ who may have been modelled after English feminist and philosopher Mary Astell (1666 - 1731) Ñ and her niece, in which Glen advises her niece to remain unmarried. Glen argues that marriage is an oppressive and abusive trap for women, and that women should prioritize education and independence over reliance on a husband. In the Oxford DNB, M.M. Goldsmith notes that the work begins with Òan initial suggestion of pornographic contentÓ before Òthe discussion turned to the undesirability of marriage and the harmful effects of childbearing on women, two proto-novels, and a discussion of the dangers posed byÊLouis XIVÊto EuropeÕs peace and security.Ó. N° de ref. del artículo 17434

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