Aphra Behn, Anne Wharton, and the Remaking of Rochester’s Reputation

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Abstract

Restoration scholarship has often assumed both that Aphra Behn and the Earl of Rochester were personally acquainted and that Rochester was an important influence on Behn’s writing. This article reassesses the evidence for a literary relationship between Behn and Rochester, most of which postdates Rochester’s death in 1680. Focusing in particular on two poems by Behn – ‘To Mrs. W.’, addressed to Rochester’s niece, Anne Wharton, and her elegy ‘On the Death of the late Earl of Rochester’ – it argues that what may look like a literary relationship between Behn and Rochester is often and more importantly a connection between Behn and Wharton. Positing a late (1685) date for ‘On the Death of the late Earl of Rochester’, it reframes its likely role within Behn’s career, and links it with wider efforts led by Wharton to refashion Rochester’s reputation after his death. It also explores the implications of the Behn-Wharton-Rochester relationship for Behn’s self-curation as a poet in the mid-1680s, as well as for Wharton’s own poetic development and literary ambitions.

Original languageEnglish
JournalThe Review of English Studies
Publication statusAccepted/In press - 23 Dec 2024

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