“A fuller knowledge of themselves”: personal autonomy and the fictional female reader in the writing of May Laffan, Katharine Tynan, and George Egerton, 1880-1900

This thesis analyses how personal autonomy is facilitated or enabled through reading and using books. It focuses on the fictional female reader in the writings of May Laffan, Katharine Tynan, and George Egerton. I explore the capacity for individual choice for girls and women despite societally constructed expectations. I acknowledge women’s public activism, but this is not my focus. I argue that small behaviours enacted by the individual girl or woman in the private space have validity and value; ultimately, they can achieve a sense of selfhood. This thesis concentrates on the act of reading, the impact of religion on reading practice, and the role of the book. I identify specific behaviours which indicate autonomy; small behaviours are demonstrated in how, when, why, what, and even where reading was practised. My analysis encompasses how the fictional female reader chooses to respond to what they are reading, and if and how they assimilate what they are reading. These behaviours are examined in conversation with cultural commentary disseminated via periodicals and advice manuals. Commentators sent clear messages regarding reading and books, and I am interested in how these directions were received and how this is represented through the experiences of the fictional female reader. Spanning the decades 1880-1900, the context of my analysis enters the Victorian fin de siècle, a time of transition and change. I explore if and how this climate is evident in fictional portrayals and how it informed the choices, however small, characters were making. My examination is centred within the private space of girls and women; the domestic home and the religious convent. It is noteworthy that autonomous acts are written into the reading lives of fictional characters which indicates author awareness of choice, its potential, and the consequences for the individual. This research is an important contribution to the revival of authors and offers fresh perspectives within the field of Irish Studies; it also expands on research on reading and books in the Victorian era.