ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on the relationship between Hannah More and David Garrick, and explores the permeable boundaries between patronage and friendship which both enhanced More’s experience as a protegee, and limited her success as a dramatist. It offers a more detailed exploration of Ann Yearsley’s preferred patronage model. The book considers the ways in which Yearsley, following the breach with More, adapted existing patronage models to create a hybrid form that blended elements of patronage with aspects of a literary network. It argues that the creative success of literary networks depended not only on the abilities of group members, but was subject to widely held social and political attitudes, especially during the turbulent Revolutionary decade. The book also offers several new interpretations of the literary relationships in which both Yearsley and More were involved.
