Louise Ruby MA

PhD candidate

Area(s) of interest: Colonialism & Postcolonialism, History of Books, Languages & Literature

Cohort/Start PhD: 2024-2025

Reshaping the Debate on Slavery in Revolutionary Europe: Editorial Strategies and Reader Sensibilities (1787–1830)

Radboud University
Overarching project: Civic fictions. Modelling book-reader interactions in the Age of Revolution, c. 1760-1830.
Supervisors: Alicia Montoya, Helwi Blom, Rindert Jagersma
Duration: September 2024 – September 2028

How did European readers gain access to information on transatlantic slavery? Since the beginning of the triangular trade, the legitimacy of slavery was discussed in theological, juridical, and philosophical printed sources. As the debate intensified at the end of the 18th century, literary production was also evolving, facilitating wider access to information. Genres like travel accounts gained great popularity and crossed borders with ease. John Gabriel Stedman’s Narrative for example, which depicted the brutal treatment of the enslaved in Suriname, was published in no fewer than six languages. Meanwhile, the development of the novel participated in shaping the image of the enslaved in fiction, whereas the press reprinted extracts, offered reviews, or encouraged the purchase of the books. This diversity of sources flourished alongside the rise of abolitionist political ideas by authors such as Frossard and Clarkson, whose works were also translated into multiple languages.

Even though the characteristics of the book market seem to have been favorable to the spread of texts touching on slavery, the scope and the effects of their circulation across Europe is still poorly understood. Therefore, this project aims to clarify both the itineraries of the books – from the process of their publication until they reached the hands of individual readers – and the role these objects played in shaping public opinion about slavery. Such works often succeed in generating empathy for the enslaved among today’s readers, but by whom and how were they read when they were first issued? To answer these questions, this study draws on an arsenal of methodological tools available to book historians, ranging from material bibliography to the statistical analysis of the data available on the production and reception of the corpus.