Fierce Convictions: The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More—Poet, Reformer, Abolitionist

295 Pages·2014·3.2 MB·English

by  Karen Swallow Prior

PRAISE FOR Fierce Convictions
A book everyone should read, a life everyone should know, and one that many
should emulate.
—ERIC METAXAS, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF
BONHOEFFER AND SEVEN MEN
I’m so glad I read this book. I knew nothing about Hannah More before being
introduced to her by Karen Swallow Prior’s wonderful biography. Hannah More
—a marvelous writer and a courageous opponent of the slave trade—is now one
of my special saints!
—DR. RICHARD MOUW, FORMER PRESIDENT OF FULLER
THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
Karen Swallow Prior isn’t satisfied with arresting the intellect. She goes after the
imagination and the affections as well with truth, beauty, and wisdom. This book
will grip you to the point that you will turn the last page asking, “How does this
change the way I live from now on?
—RUSSELL D. MOORE, PRESIDENT - SOUTHERN BAPTIST
ETHICS & RELIGIOUS LIBERTY COMMISSION
Hannah More was an educational pioneer and a best-selling evangelical author
of “cheap tracts” for England’s poor in the tumultuous years of the American
and French Revolutions. As educator, writer, reformer, and public Christian she
was much lauded, but also much lampooned, during her own lifetime. With
careful research, balanced judgments, accessible prose, and unusual insight,
Karen Swallow Prior’s biography shows clearly why Hannah More made such
an important impact in her own age, and also why her life can speak in
significant ways to readers today.
—MARK A. NOLL, AUTHOR OF THE RISE OF
EVANGELICALISM: THE AGE OF EDWARDS, WHITEFIELD,
AND THE WESLEYS AND FRANCIS A. MCANANEY
PROFESSOR OF HISTORY, UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME
Karen Swallow Prior is an extraordinary thinker, writer, voice in the church
today. Simply—I cannot miss anything she writes. This generation is in
desperate need of lives like Hannah More’s. I can’t wait to see how her story
changes the current landscape of the church and raises up many with fierce
convictions in this generation
—ANN VOSKAMP, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF ONE
THOUSAND GIFTS
Here is that rarity of a book: scholarship of impeccable rigor that’s also a
compulsive page-turner. Reading Karen Swallow Prior feels like a privilege.
—LEONARD SWEET, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR,
PROFESSOR, DREW UNIVERSITY AND GEORGE FOX
UNIVERSITY, AND CHIEF CONTRIBUTOR TO
SERMONS.COM
Hannah More was an extraordinary woman with extraordinary convictions . . .
much like Karen Swallow Prior. This book is a feat in and of itself and I’m
excited that lives of brave women can be told by the next generation of brave,
young women. As an abolitionist, I find strength in knowing there are many that
have gone before and many who will come after.
—CHRISTINE CAINE, FOUNDER, THE A21 CAMPAIGN AND
BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF UNDAUNTED
Professor Prior’s perspective, which combines literary and historical insights,
gives a valuable window into the character of Hannah More, who is interesting,
not just because she is so sparky but also because More’s interests were so many
and she is so full of contradictions. It does us local history people good to have
the biographical links with More’s writings pointed out and explained. I believe
Professor Prior has made a valuable addition to the literature about More, and
hope the book gets the success it deserves.
—WILLIAM EVANS, TREASURER AND TRUSTEE OF
BRISTOL & GLOUCESTERSHIRE ARCHAEOLOGICAL
SOCIETY, FORMER SOLICITOR TO THE UNIVERSITY OF
THE WEST OF ENGLAND
Whether confronting the evils of slavery, pressing for change in the treatment of
animals, urging prison reform, or championing a broader literacy, Hannah More
was a clear and steady champion of a moral philanthropy grounded in faith.
More deserves to be much better known, and Prior’s fine treatment of her life
ensures that she will be.
—WAYNE PACELLE, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE
HUMANE SOCIETY OF THE UNITED STATES
Hannah More, famed as a gifted playwright, was a witty ornament of London
parties in the later eighteenth century. Yet she was also a defender of the British
constitution, an architect of Victorian family life and a resolute opponent of the
slave trade. Karen Swallow Prior has given a rounded portrait of a woman who
combined literary ability with Evangelical piety in a most attractive way.
—DAVID BEBBINGTON, PROFESSOR OF HISTORY,
UNIVERSITY OF STIRLING, SCOTLAND
Prior has crafted an absolutely absorbing and rigorously researched biography.
The interweaving of Hannah More’s own voice via letters and conversation
reveals a witty, determined, and socially conscious woman bolstered by her
radical faith. The result is a vibrant tale of perseverance under trial and enduring
female fortitude in the face of societal challenges.
—NATASHA ALEKSIUK DUQUETTE, ASSOCIATE DEAN,
TYNDALE UNIVERSITY, TORONTO, CANADA, EDITOR OF
JANE AUSTEN AND THE ARTS: ELEGANCE, PROPRIETY,
HARMONY AND SUBLIMER ASPECTS, AND AUTHOR OF
VEILED INTENT: DISSENTING WOMEN’S THEOLOGICAL
AESTHETICS
As the “heart and hands” behind Britain’s movement to abolish slavery, Hannah
More deserves long-overdue recognition as one of the great moral reformers of
her time. Karen Swallow Prior’s fascinating biography Fierce Convictions
restores her to just that place, alongside John Newton and William Wilberforce.
This compelling book is a must-read for anyone interested in how people of faith
can make a real difference in their world.
—THOMAS S. KIDD, PROFESSOR OF HISTORY, BAYLOR
UNIVERSITY
Hannah More was not without faults, or failings. These underscore her
humanity, as author Karen Swallow Prior so rightly discerns in this finely
balanced book. But then, there are also the seasons of life when we see someone
like Hannah More come into her own, or sacrifice much to make a better world.
For her abolitionist labors alone, she deserves a place alongside her great friend,
William Wilberforce. But then, there are so many other fascinating aspects of
Hannah More’s life. Such the reader will find in the pages of this book. Fierce
Convictions is narrative biography at its best: restoring a great soul to her
rightful place in our living cultural memory.
—KEVIN BELMONTE, BIOGRAPHER, HISTORIAN, AND
AUTHOR OF WILLIAM WILBERFORCE: A HERO FOR
HUMANITY
Many believe in the power of faith to effect social, as well as personal,
transformation; but few of us have actually seen it in practice. To us, Karen
Swallow Prior offers the life and legacy of Hannah More, a woman of piety and
grace, intelligence and passion—a woman whose evangelical convictions and
literary wit turned her world upside down. As we fight for justice, pursue peace,
and work toward a better future, Fierce Convictions reminds us that the way
forward also includes learning from the past.
—HANNAH ANDERSON, AUTHOR OF MADE FOR MORE: AN
INVITATION TO LIVE IN GOD’S IMAGE
Karen Swallow Prior introduces us to a woman we should have met long before
now. In this inspiring new biography, Prior captures the remarkable life of one
of the most influential women of her day. Prior’s portrait of Hannah More is an
engaging and fascinating read that shows the power of words to change the
world.
—JOHN RINEHART, AUTHOR OF GOSPEL PATRONS
In the pages of this vibrant biography, Karen Swallow Prior paints a living
picture of Hannah More: a modest and imaginative woman with the courage to
cultivate biblical femininity and the wisdom to avoid the snares of early
feminism. Her story must be retold in every generation. Ours is now covered.
–TONY REINKE, AUTHOR OF NEWTON ON THE CHRISTIAN
LIFE: TO LIVE IS CHRIST
Karen Swallow Prior’s research and ability to capture the narrative of More’s
life will keep you turning the pages.
—TRILLIA NEWBELL, AUTHOR OF UNITED: CAPTURED BY
GOD’S VISION FOR DIVERSITY AND FEAR AND FAITH
When faced with the overwhelming needs of our world today, I now find myself
asking, “What would Hannah More do?” And the answer is simple . . . More
would do something. It was that resilient willingness to use her words for good
when others were comfortable keeping quiet that allowed her to literally move
the world.
—NOEL BREWER YEATTS, AUTHOR OF AWAKE: DOING A
WORLD OF GOOD ONE PERSON AT A TIME AND VICE
PRESIDENT OF WORLD HELP

© 2014 by Karen Swallow Prior All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief
quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Nelson Books, an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Nelson Books and Thomas Nelson are registered
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Published in association with the literary agency of MacGregor Literary, Inc., P.O. Box 1316, Manzanita, Oregon 97130.
Interior designed by James A. Phinney.
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Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984,
2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com.
978-0-7180-2191-7 (IE)
ISBN 978-1-4002-0626-1 (eBook)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Prior, Karen Swallow.
Fierce convictions : the extraordinary life of Hannah More : poet, reformer, abolitionist / Karen Swallow Prior.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-1-4002-0625-4 (hardback) 1. More, Hannah, 1745-1833. 2. Authors, English--18th century--Biography. 3. Authors,
English--19th century--Biography. 4. Educators--Great Britain--Biography. I. Title.
PR3605.M6Z83 2014
828’.609--dc23
[B]
2014010985
14 15 16 17 RRD 6 5 4 3 2 1
In memory of
Peter H. Hare, PhD,
who first imagined this book, and Belle, who was
my constant companion until she was no more