A selective bibliography of open access articles on eighteenth century British literature, favoring signed articles by recognized scholars, articles published in reviewed sources, and web sites that adhere to the Modern Language Association Guidelines for Authors of Web Pages
Batchelor, Jennie. A substantial introduction to Samuel Richardson from the Literary Encyclopedia, 11/24/01. On Pamela: or, Virtue Rewarded (1740); Clarissa (1747); Sir Charles Grandison (1753)
Blewett, David, ed. A review of Passion and Virtue: Essays on the Novels of Samuel Richardson (Univ. of Toronto Press). "This collection, culled from articles that have appeared in the journal Eighteenth-Century Fiction since 1989, sets out to offer testimony 'to the vitality of Richardson studies today.'" University of Toronto Quarterly, 72,1 (Winter 2002/3) reviewed by Devoney Looser
Dachez, Hélène. "Crossing Borders in Samuel Richardson's Clarissa; Or, The 'Ladder Of Dependance' Revisited." On marrying out of one's social class in Richardson's novels. Studies in the Literary Imagination, Fall 2003
Eagleton, Terry. "What's a Girl to Do?" A review of The Rape of Clarissa: Writing, Sexuality and Class Struggle in Samuel Richardson and two other studies: The Rapes of Lucretia: A Myth and Its Transformations, by Ian Donaldson; Becoming a Heroine: Reading About Women in Novels, by Rachel M. Brownstein. Review by By Anne Barton in NY Review of Books, July 21, 1983
Hunt, Russell A. "Johnson on Fielding and Richardson: A Problem in Literary Moralism." An essay on Samuel Johnson's detestation of the novels of Henry Fielding and liking for the novels of Samuel Richardson. The Humanities Association Review, 27:4 (Fall 1976), [412]-420
Keymer, Thomas and Peter Sabor, eds. The Pamela Controversy: Criticisms and Adaptations of Samuel Richardson's Pamela, 1740-1750, 6 Volume Set. Publisher's blurb, provides some context for Pamela
McGirr, Elaine. "Why Lovelace Must Die." Contends that in Clarissa "Richardson pits the theater against the novel, Lovelace versus Clarissa... Clarissa's crisis can be best expressed in terms of genre, as the mid-eighteenth century found the Georgian novel struggling for legitimacy, demanding the cultural respect and ideological power the Restoration had accorded to the theater." Novel: A Forum on Fiction, Fall 2003
Price, Leah. A review of The Anthology and the Rise of the Novel: From Richardson to George Eliot (Cambridge UP, 2000), Novel: A Forum on Fiction, Fall 2003. Review by Reitz, Caroline
Rivero, Albert J. Review of New Essays on Samuel Richardson. (St. Martin's Press, 1996). Review by Margaret Anne Doody in SAMLA, n.d (removed from http://www.samla.org/sar/doody.htm)
Temple, Kathryn. Printing like a post-colonialist: The Irish piracy of Sir Charles Grandison. A post-colonial interpretation of the 1753 Irish piracy of Richardson's novel, focusing on the political nature of the piracy dispute. Novel: A Forum on Fiction, Spring 2000
Temple, Kathryn. "The Angry Owner: Samuel Richardson, Modern Authorship and the Ancient Romance," on the Irish piracy dispute in Sir Charles Grandison. Romanticism and the Law Introduction, Romantic Circles Praxis Series
Vermillion, Mary. "Clarrissa and the Marriage Act," Eighteenth-Century Fiction,Volume 9, Number 4 (July 1997). Special issue on Fiction and the Law (removed from http://www.humanities.mcmaster.ca/~ecf/BackIssuesOnline/Vermillion395-412.pdf)
Commentary on Clarissa. The novel is discussed chapter by chapter by scholars engaged in a discussion-group reading, at a site from professor Ellen Moody, George Mason Univ.
Pascoe, Judith. "'Before I read Clarissa I was nobody: Aspirational reading and Samuel Richardson's great novel." A humorous first-person essay about reading Clarissa in graduate school. Hudson Review, Summer 2003
Reputation of Clarissa, by professor Lilia Melani, CUNY. Also Summary of questions about the ending of Clarissa, and Summary of political readings of Clarissa
Older criticism on Richardson from The Cambridge History of English and American Literature (1907-1921) covers briefly: Antecedents of the change introduced by Richardson into the history of the English Novel; Richardson's life before 1741; Pamela: its qualities and extraordinary success; Continuation, Stage adaptation and Parody; Fielding and Richardson; Clarissa: its unique place among its author's works; its Sentimentalism; Sir Charles Grandison: its shortcomings and its psychological value; Richardson's later years and death; Decline of his popularity; Limitations of his art; His momentous influence upon English and European Literature; His literary descendants; His influence upon French Literature and national sentiment: Prévost, Voltaire, Diderot; Richardson and Rousseau;His influence in Germany: Gellert, Wieland, Klopstock and Goethe; Dutch and Italian reproductions (removed from http://bartleby.school.aol.com/220/index.html)
For a list of works by this author available on the internet as etexts, see the On-Line Books Page, a search engine for finding internet full texts
An academic list of Eighteenth-Century Resources, from Jack Lynch, Rutgers
Selected Bibliography: Samuel Richardson. A primary and secondary bibliography, organized by category, with some annotations. By John A. Dussinger, Univ. of Illinois, 2 April 2000, from c18 Bibliographies Online (removed from http://www.c18.rutgers.edu/biblio/richardson.html)
1998-2007 by Donna J. Pridmore
Updated 5/18/05