Sara Coleridge (23 December 1802 – 3 May 1852) was an English author and translator. She was the third child out of four and the only daughter of the poet

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poe ...

and his wife Sara Fricker. She gained further popularity with instructive verses for children.

Early life

Coleridge was born at

Greta Hall Greta Hall is a house in Keswick in the Lake District of England. It is best known as the home of the poets Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Robert Southey. Overview The official address of Greta Hall is Main Street, Keswick, but it is located some ...

, Keswick. Here, after 1803, the Coleridges,

Robert Southey Robert Southey ( or ; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic school, and Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey began as a ra ...

and his wife (Mrs. Coleridge's sister), and Mrs. Lovell (another sister), widow of

Robert Lovell Robert Lovell (1771–1796) was an English poet who was known for his poem, ''Bristol: A Satire'', which criticised the many merchants of Bristol and their involvement in "mortal corruption" which involved the slave trade. Life He was born in B ...

, the Quaker poet, all lived together; but Coleridge was often away from home; and Uncle Southey was a

paterfamilias The ''pater familias'', also written as ''paterfamilias'' (plural ''patres familias''), was the head of a Roman family. The ''pater familias'' was the oldest living male in a household, and could legally exercise autocratic authority over his ext ...

. The Wordsworths at Grasmere were their neighbours.

Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Ballads'' (1798). Wordsworth's ' ...

, in his poem, "The Triad", has left us a description, or poetical glorification, as Sara Coleridge calls it, of the three girls: his own daughter Dora, Edith Southey and Sara Coleridge, the last of the three, though eldest born. Greta Hall was Sara Coleridge's home until her marriage; and the little

Lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

colony seems to have been her only school. Guided by Southey, and with his ample library at her command, she read by herself the chief Greek and Latin classics, and before she was twenty-five had learnt in addition French, German, Italian and Spanish.

Career

In 1822, Sara Coleridge published ''Account of the Abipones'', a translation in three large volumes of

Martin Dobrizhoffer Martin Dobrizhoffer (7 September 1717 – 17 July 1791) was an Austrian Roman Catholic missionary and writer. Biography Dobrizhoffer was born in Frymburk (Friedberg), Bohemia. He joined the Society of Jesus in 1736, and in 1749 proceeded to Pa ...

, undertaken in connection with Southey's ''Tale of Paraguay'', which had been suggested to him by Dobrizhoffer's volumes; and Southey alludes to his niece, the translator (canto, iii, stanza 16), where he speaks of the pleasure the old missionary would have felt if In less grandiloquent terms,

Charles Lamb Charles Lamb (10 February 1775 – 27 December 1834) was an English essayist, poet, and antiquarian, best known for his ''Essays of Elia'' and for the children's book ''Tales from Shakespeare'', co-authored with his sister, Mary Lamb (1764–18 ...

, writing about the ''Tale of Paraguay'' to Southey in 1825, says, "How she Dobrizhoffered it all out, puzzles my slender Latinity to conjecture." In 1825, her second work appeared, a translation from the medieval French of the ''Loyal Serviteur, The Right Joyous and Pleasant History of the Feats, Jests, and Prowesses of the Chevalier Bayard, the Good Knight without Fear and without Reproach: By the Loyal Servant''. In September 1829, at

Crosthwaite Parish Church Crosthwaite Parish Church is a church at Great Crosthwaite on the outskirts of Keswick, Cumbria, Keswick in Cumbria, England. It is dedicated to St Kentigern and is the Anglican church of the parish of Crosthwaite. Since 1951 it has been a Grade ...

, Keswick, after an engagement of seven years duration, Sara Coleridge was married to her cousin,

Henry Nelson Coleridge Henry Nelson Coleridge (25 October 1798 – 26 January 1843) was an editor of the works of his uncle Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Life His father was Colonel James Coleridge, of Ottery St. Mary. He was born on 25 October 1798. He was educated at ...

(1798–1843), younger son of

Captain James Coleridge James Coleridge (3 December 1759 – 1836) was the older brother of the philosopher-poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge and father of John Taylor Coleridge, Sir John Taylor Coleridge, future Judge of the Court of King's Bench (England), King's Bench, and ...

. He was then a chancery

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

in London. The first eight years of her married life were spent in a little cottage in

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

. There four of her children were born, of whom two survived. In 1834, Mrs Coleridge published her ''Pretty Lessons in Verse for Good Children; with some Lessons in Latin in Easy Rhyme''. These were originally written for the instruction of her own children, and became very popular. In 1837, the Coleridges moved to Chester Place,

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...

; and in the same year appeared ''Phantasmion, a Fairy Tale'', Sara Coleridge's longest original work, described by critic Mike Ashley as "the first

fairytale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful beings. In most cul ...

novel written in English". The literary historian

Dennis Butts Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Saint Dionysius (disambiguation), Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Classical mythology, Greek god of ecstatic states, ...

describes ''Phantasmion'' as a "remarkable pioneering fantasy" and "an extraordinary monument to her talent".Dennis Butts, "The Beginnings of Victorianism", in ''Children's Literature: An Illustrated History'', ed. Peter Hunt. Oxford University Press, 1995 The songs in ''Phantasmion'' were much admired in their time by

Leigh Hunt James Henry Leigh Hunt (19 October 178428 August 1859), best known as Leigh Hunt, was an English critic, essayist and poet. Hunt co-founded '' The Examiner'', a leading intellectual journal expounding radical principles. He was the centr ...

and other critics. Some, such as "Sylvan Stag" and "One Face Alone", are notably graceful and musical and the whole fairy tale has beauty of story and richness of language. Some scholars of the

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

genre call ''Phantasmion'' a possible influence on

George MacDonald George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. I ...

Later life

In 1843, Henry Coleridge died, leaving to his widow the unfinished task of editing her father's works. To these she added some compositions of her own, among which are the essay "On Rationalism, with a special application to the Doctrine of Baptismal Regeneration" appended to Coleridge's ''Aids to Reflection'', the preface added to ''Essays on his Own Times, by S. T. Coleridge'', and the introduction to ''Biographia Literaria''. In 1850, Coleridge discovered a lump in her breast. Her physician decided not to operate, prescribing cod liver oil and opium. Knowing there was no cure, she waited for the disease to take its course. "I live in constant fear", Coleridge wrote, "like the Ancient Mariner with the Albatross hung about his neck, I have a weight always upon me." Shortly before she died she amused herself by writing a little autobiography for her daughter. This, which reaches only to her ninth year, was completed by her daughter, and published in 1873, together with some of her letters, under the title ''Memoirs and Letters of Sara Coleridge''. The letters show a cultured and highly speculative mind. They contain many apt criticisms of known people and books, and are specially interesting for their allusions to Wordsworth and the Lake Poets. Sara Coleridge died of breast cancer in London on 3 May 1852.

Family

Coleridge suffered a number of miscarriages and only two of her children, Herbert and

Edith Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and vari ...

, survived to adulthood. Two of Coleridge's children died in infancy. Her son,

Herbert Coleridge Herbert "Herbie" Coleridge (7 October 1830 – 23 April 1861) was an English philologist, technically the first editor of what ultimately became the ''Oxford English Dictionary''. He was a grandson of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Biography ...

(1830–1861), won a double first class in

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

and mathematics at Oxford in 1852. He was secretary to a committee appointed by the

Philological Society The Philological Society, or London Philological Society, is the oldest learned society in Great Britain dedicated to the study of language as well as a registered Charitable organization, charity. The current Society was established in 1842 to ...

to consider the project of a standard English dictionary, a scheme of which the ''

New English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a com ...

'', published by the

Clarendon Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, was the ultimate outcome. His personal researches into the subject were contained in his ''Glossarial Index to the Printed English Literature of the Thirteenth Century'' (1859). Her daughter,

Edith Coleridge Edith Coleridge (1832 24 January 1911) was a British author. She edited ''The Memoir and Letters of Sara Coleridge'' (1873), a popular biography of her mother. An archive of her collected works is held at the Henry Ransom Center at the Universi ...

, edited a biography of Sara, ''The Memoir and Letters of Sara Coleridge'' (1873), which helped to preserve her mother's legacy. File:Herbert Coleridge.jpg, Sara's son Herbert Coleridge File:Edith Coleridge.jpg, Sara's daughter Edith Coleridge

References

;Attribution * *

External links

Works of Sara Coleridge
at Internet Archive (Archive.org) *
''Memoir and Letters of Sara Coleridge'', edited by Edith Coleridge
at Internet Archive
''A Poet's Children: Hartley and Sara Coleridge'', by Eleanor Towle
at Internet Archive * – "Sorry. This URL has been excluded from the Wayback Machine." (2019-12-05)
"Worlds Within Worlds: The First Heroic Fantasy (Part IV)"
by Matthew David Surridge at ''Black Gate: Adventures in Fantasy Literature'' – argues that ''Phantasmion'' is the first fantasy novel set entirely in a

Secondary World A fictional universe, or fictional world, is a self-consistent setting with events, and often other elements, that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed, or fictional realm (or world). Fictional universes may ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coleridge, Sara 1802 births 1852 deaths People from Keswick, Cumbria Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Sara Sara may refer to: Arts, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Sara'' (1992 film), 1992 Iranian film by Dariush Merhjui * ''Sara'' (1997 film), 1997 Polish film starring Bogusław Linda * ''Sara'' (2010 film), 2010 Sri Lankan Sinhal ...