"I humbly beg your speedy answer" : letters on love & marriage from the world's first personal advice column / selected, edited, & introduced by Mary Beth Norton.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Norton, Mary Beth, editor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Athenian mercury.

Advice columns--Great Britain.

Advice columns.

Interpersonal relations.

Physical Description:

ix, 203 pages : illustrations, map ; 23 cm

Other Title:

Letters on love and marriage from the world's first personal advice column

Place of Publication:

Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2025]

Summary:

"In the late seventeenth century, the bookseller John Dunton began soliciting anonymous questions for a new broadsheet periodical, The Athenian Mercury, that he hoped would provide entertainment and discussion fodder for patrons of London's many coffeehouses. These questions, dutifully answered by Dunton and his two collaborators, covered a wide range of topics, from the Bible to medicine and law. But shortly after the periodical launched, Dunton began to receive many questions about personal relationships, particularly about courtship, marriage, and sex. In this book, Mary Beth Norton presents a broad selection of these personal inquiries from The Athenian Mercury, a group of questions and answers that constitute the first known personal advice column. Through these entertaining exchanges, organized by theme, contemporary readers gain a unique glimpse into some of the social and romantic conventions and personal preoccupations of the day. The book includes an introduction that provides historical context about the Mercury, as well as about legal and social conventions of the time, and a list of further reading"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

John Dunton’s "question project"

"Kissing is a luscious diet" : Courtship

"Much love and moderate conveniency" : Choosing a spouse

"Read history (nothing amorous)" : Parental consent

"A contract solemnly made" : Promises and vows

"Both sides must make allowances" : Matrimony

"A very amorous disposition" : Dangerous liaisons.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Livezey Fund bookplate.

Other Format:

Online version: "I humbly beg your speedy answer"

ISBN:

9780691253992

0691253994

9780691254005

0691254001

OCLC:

1458290214