ABSTRACT
This essay looks at Joanna Baillie's (1762–1851) “To the Reader,” 1812, published as a preface to the third volume of her Series of Plays. After briefly noting Baillie's image for engaging readers and audiences with character passions from her 1798 “Introductory Discourse” to the first volume of the Series of Plays and her project's connection to the proto-psychological writing of her brother Matthew, this discussion shows how Baillie's critique of the characteristics of London's large theatres reveals the contours of her plays’ dramaturgy of the passions. By examining the flawed theatrical features Baillie describes, this piece illuminates her concern with structuring simulations that draw her reader-audiences into imaginative engagement.
