Megan Marshall’s book is a wonderfully readable account of the life of Boston-born Margaret Fuller (1810-1850), an early feminist. Her father was her primary educator, “designing” her course of study at home. A tough taskmaster he was, which turned out to be of great value to her, for he died young. She needed then to provide for her mother and her siblings. After a short teaching gig, she realized that, although she was successful, it was not her passion - she desperately wanted to write. Another passion was engaging women in developing their intellect. To this end, she led a series of Conversations, to which the women of Boston subscribed, meeting weekly to discuss literary topics. These two passions served to support her family.

Though not born of wealth, she was a friend of the Transcendalists in New England, in particular of Ralph Waldo Emerson whom she held in thrall. She wrote constantly, letters and essays, always looking to Emerson for intellectual commentary and discussion. In fact, she probably would have liked a closer union, but he couldn’t be moved in that direction, and sometimes treated her harshly.

The book traces the life of a woman ahead of her time. In her early years, she envied her friends who married and had children. Though that would come later for her, she was content to be a woman of intellect and action. A trip to the Midwest that opened her eyes to a world away from Boston, the publishing of two well-received books and numerous articles, the “plum” job as literary editor of Horace Greeley’s New York Tribune where she finally gained confidence and received the accolades that she deserved, and the trip as foreign correspondent in Europe that was to prove so momentous for her and bring her fulfillment of the wish for a child – all these events unfold beautifully with Marshall’s prose to guide the reader and with Fuller’s words that are liberally quoted throughout.

Not only did Fuller’s writing display her wide range of literary knowledge, but it is styled so beautifully with just the right turn of phrase. In the 1970’s, during the heat of the women’s liberation movement, T-shirts were printed with a quote from her famous book, Woman of the Nineteenth Century. Taken out of context from her belief that women should be able to be what they want to be, the quote was “Let Them Be Sea-Captains.” But it’s probably not one she would have picked. Instead, believing as she did that women should be taught and held to high standards, she might have preferred this one:

"Who would be a goody that could be a genius"
( )

was looking forward to this so much. Margaret Fuller was Louisa May Alcott's role model, she was deep into Transcendalism, a subject I love, she did things that were out of the norm for that time period. But this Pultizer Prize winning book was a big let down for me.

The author does excell in storytelling. she clutters up her book with numerous details and quotes. When I got interested part of Margaret Fuller's life, the author left me hanging and then changed the subject. I trudged through the entire book because I thought might get better. It did not. I think something that would have really improved the book would have been if the author had tried to read it out load, even once.

The back of the book in Notes indicates that a tremendous amount of research had been down. Usually I love a book that is very well researched but I daresay that Margaret Filler would have been disappointed with how her life had been put together in a dreary slog of detaills. I would not recommend this book for letting yourself go into the life of a vibtant, and very intelligent woman. ( )

I do so love reading about exceptional and unconventional women, especially one from the early 1800s, and doubly especially one who is disagreeable by contemporary accounts (triply so if they were not from the usual privileged background which is not the case here).

Educated beyond society standards for a woman at the time (a combination of her father's strict homeschooling fueled by his own failed ambitions, not by any proto-feminist beliefs, and mostly her own uncompromising discipline), Fuller acutely felt the disadvantages of her sex and immense intellect (the necessity/expectation of marriage, the tertiary education denied to women, y'know, the usual patriarchy nonsense). The life of Margaret Fuller is remarkable not just for her role as one of the few women in history whom we can point to as having achieved success in a public domain and herald as an inspiration to future women, but also for her extraordinary intellect matched only by her intense discipline.

The scene where Margaret welcomed her male contemporaries (friends, even) to join her Conversations (weekly-themed discussion group intended to inspire like-minded women to question, to define, to state and examine their opinions, to learn to art of intellectual debates and discussions, and most of all, to question their own positions in society) only for it to be dominated by the men deriding the theme of Greek mythos, claiming it lacking and requiring the completeness of Christian revelations, and eventually bringing it around to contemporary church matters, that is, avenues from which women were/are excluded, that scene, it made my blood boil. Another blood-boiling instance was when her father, failing another ambition and now secretly of meagre income, moved the entire family to a farm and assumed her to be a spinster for the foreseeable future, promising her a Europe trip if she tutors all her younger brothers into Harvard (youngest is seven now). Frustrations all round for Fuller and all women denied their full potentials!

Marshall is as detailed as it is possible for a biography to be, quoting from period documents and making it clear when she's extrapolating. Recommended for feminism studies or general interest.

Aside: incredible seduction line that I was not expecting from Fuller: some day when you are not bound to buying and selling, and I, too, am free... you will perhaps... show me some one of those beautiful places which I do not yet know. ( )

And now I know her

I've never been one to read the same book twice. And so it was with joy that I discovered years ago a book titled "Dimmesdale" that retold from a new perspective my favorite Nathaniel Hawthorne novel. The book was not favorably reviewed. But I loved it and the opportunity it afforded me to re-experience "The Scarlet Letter."
Megan Marshall's "Margaret Fuller" was all of that for me and more. As a student of Hawthorne, I had read books such as Thomas Mitchell's "Hawthorne's Fuller Mystery." I knew how Hawthorne must have felt about her from his accounts of Zenobia, so obviously based on Fuller, in "The Blithedale Romance." And I knew from many other sources a lot of facts about Fuller's life.
Now , thanks to Mitchell's incredibly researched and finely written biography, I feel like I truly know Margaret Fuller. She has told us her story and let us into her heart, dreams and doubts in her own words. And along the way, I got to read about Hawthorne and many of Fuller's other literary friends who are also, though in a more removed fashion, mine. I do regret that there wasn't a bit more of Hawthorne in this account as I believe he is one of the many men she yearned close connection with. But I still cherished this book and the opportunity it afforded to return to hallowed literary ground, to Brook Farm and other Transcendentalist haunts and re-experience them through Fuller's eyes. ( )

An admiring and fascinating biography of a nineteenth century woman too brilliant and too progressive to be fully understood or appreciated in her time. ( )