Fanny E. Lacy | |
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_-_Fanny_E._Lacy.png) First page of "The Vegetarian; or, a Visit to Aunt Primitive" | |
| Born | Fanny Elizabeth Lacy c. 1786 |
| Died | 1869 (aged 83) Fulham, London, England |
| Resting place | Brompton Cemetery |
| Pen name | Fanny Eliza Lacy |
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| Language | English |
| Genre |
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| Years active | 1832–1859 |
| Notable works | "The Vegetarian; or, a Visit to Aunt Primitive" (1847) |
Fanny Elizabeth Lacy (c. 1786–1869), who wrote under the namesFanny E. Lacy andFanny Eliza Lacy, was a British writer, poet, composer, and advocate ofvegetarianism andwomen's rights. Active during the mid-19th century, she contributed to the early vegetarian movement in London and was associated with reformist circles linked to theConcordium at Alcott House. Lacy published poetry, short stories, and novels in a range of periodicals and volumes, often addressing themes ofsocial reform,moral education, exotic orhistorical fiction, and occasionally reworking traditionalfairy tales. Her 1847 short story "The Vegetarian; or, a Visit to Aunt Primitive" has been cited in scholarship as an early example of feminist-vegetarian literature envisioning utopian transformation. In addition to her literary work, she wrote and composed songs, including settings of nursery rhymes such as "Jack and Jill" and "Little Jack Horner", and original pieces such as "The World of Flowers". Lacy's contributions have been noted in historical studies of vegetarianism, Victorian women's writing, and 19th-century cultural reform.
Fanny Elizabeth Lacy was born around 1786.[1] She was a member of the aristocracy.[2]: 31 From an early age, she expressed discomfort with eating meat.[3]
Lacy has been described as an early vegetarian feminist.[4] She became avegetarian from 1832.[3] Active in the early London vegetarian movement, she is recorded as having attended some of its meetings.[2]: 47
In a letter to Joshua Jacob and Abigail Beale of the White Quakers, reformerGoodwyn Barmby wrote that he had stayed with Lacy at Garden Cottage inWalham Green after distributing tracts and books. He quoted her as describing herself as "a friend to progress, and one much desirous of understanding your work."[3]
In 1847, Lacy was recorded as living inHounslow in a list of correspondents mentioned in the published report of theVegetarian Society's adjourned conference atRamsgate. Her name appeared among individuals who had sent letters expressing support for the society's aims but were unable to attend in person.[5]
Lacy contributed poetry to publications associated with theConcordium, a social reform community based at Alcott House, which was known for its interest in vegetarianism and utopian ideals. One of her poems, titled "The Star and the Spring Flower", appeared in the January 1844 issue of theNew Age. In correspondence withWilliam Horsell, editor of theTruth-Tester, she mentioned a vegetarian acquaintance named Marshall, who adopted the diet after visiting Alcott House.[3] Her work also appeared in theTruth-Tester, including an 1848 poem titled "Invitation to the Physiological Festival",[6] referencing the "Physiological Conference" held at Alcott House.[3] This was a significant event in the founding of theVegetarian Society.[6]
In April 1847, Lacy published a short story titled "The Vegetarian; or, a Visit to Aunt Primitive" in theMetropolitan Magazine,[2]: 277 intended as a companion piece to "A Sketch of Character", which had appeared the previous year.[7] The story may have been published through the influence of editorEdward Bulwer-Lytton, who was known to support vegetarianism.[3] It includes a quotation fromDr. Reece's Medical Guide stating that "a vegetable diet affords the same support as animal food, with the important advantage of preventingplethora."[8]: 151
Although written by a woman, the narrative focuses on male characters who adopt vegetarianism and experience improved health. Suzanne Samples observes that, in the Victorian period, dietary restraint was often associated with women, and male vegetarians could be seen as deviating from prevailing gender norms. The story has been interpreted as engaging with these views by portraying vegetarianism as consistent with male vitality and well-being.[8]: 151
The narrative also presents vegetarianism as an alternative to urban and industrial life. The protagonist's aunt, depicted as a committed vegetarian, lives in a rural setting and describes "flesh-foods" as "strange unnatural compounds". She envisions a future in which vegetarianism underpins a pastoral and morally renewed society.[9] She argues that if a vegetarian diet were universally adopted, it would bring about a complete reconstitution of society, delivering both moral and physical benefits. Such change, she emphasises, must be gradual and nonviolent, describing it as a "progressive" reform rather than a revolutionary upheaval.[10]
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Lacy wrote and composed several songs. Her published workJuvenile Songs: Jack and Jill, issued byOliver Ditson in Boston, features the nursery rhyme "Jack and Jill" set to music for piano and voice.[11] She also composed a separate setting of "Little Jack Horner", likewise published by Ditson.[12] Another original composition, "The World of Flowers", is also attributed to her.[13]
In addition to composing music, Lacy's texts were set by other composers in works such as "Come Friends and Neighbours", "Lillian", "The Fruit Gatherers' Song", "The World of Flowers", and "The Sylph of the Forest: The Song of the Fairy Butterfly".[14][15]
Lacy was a prolific contributor to 19th-century periodicals, especiallyThe Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction and theMirror Monthly Magazine. Her fiction included stories such as "The True History of the Celebrated Blue Beard", "The Story of Little Red Riding-Hood", "Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper", "The Disagreeable Lodger", "Jeremy Jollyboy's Pantomime; or, An Old Bachelor's Garret-Window", and "The Vision of the Snow-Storm; A Tale for a Winter Night". She also published historical and exotic tales like "Judith and Holofernes", "The Nabob's Arrival", and "The Serpent-Charmer of Cashmere: A Tale of Hindoostan". Her poetry appeared in both general and themed formats, including one-off poems such as "The Fruit Gatherers", "Let Us Pray", and "A Wish for the New Year", as well as recurring series titled "Pencillings of Poesy" and "Lays from Shakespeare".[16]
In the 1850s, Lacy published several works of fiction and poetry. Her novelThe Visitor in Grey, and Other Tales was dedicated, with permission, toLord Shaftesbury, a prominent philanthropist. One of her poems was also published in theRagged School Magazine, a periodical associated witheducational reform. Another novel,Merry Sparks for a Winter Hearth, was dedicated to her literary mentor Albert Smith and received attention in newspaper advertisements. Her bookLabyrinth and the Path was dedicated to the ReverendJohn Cumming and included Hindu themes as well as a poem about a character named Basa, who is socially ostracised for converting to Christianity.[3]
Lacy died in 1869 at 12 Lansdowne Villas,Fulham, London, aged 83. She was buried inBrompton Cemetery on 11 December.[17]
Lacy is listed inJohn Foster Kirk's comprehensive bibliographical reference,A Supplement to Allibone's Critical Dictionary of English Literature and British and American Authors.[18] She also appears inDavid James O'Donoghue's 1912 reference work,The Poets of Ireland: A Biographical Dictionary of Irish Writers of English Verse.[19]
Lacy has been identified among several 19th-century British authors, includingJames Duncan and Sarah Clubb, who incorporated vegetarian themes into their fiction during the 1840s to 1870s. Although such works were limited in number and received little attention, they formed part of the broader literary output associated with the vegetarian movement. This body of fiction has been described as a counterpart to biographical narratives commonly used in life-reform advocacy.[2]: 47
She has also been noted in scholarship examining the historical connections between vegetarianism,animal welfare, andwomen's rights. Her short story "The Vegetarian; or, a Visit to Aunt Primitive" is recognised as an early example of literature reflecting emerging feminist-vegetarian ideas, preceding the wider acknowledgment of such connections later in the 19th century.[4] It has also been discussed alongside the work ofMary Shelley,Martha Brotherton, andBeatrice Webb as part of a tradition of Victorian women writers who used vegetarianism to imagine utopian social change.[10]
In later assessments of the movement's literary and cultural reach, Lacy has been cited alongsidePunch magazine,Charles Walter Forward,Edward Carpenter, andHenry S. Salt as one of several figures who produced representations of vegetarianism intended to encourage Victorian readers to appreciate, if not adopt, a diet free from meat.[8]: 16 However, scholars today know relatively little about her work, and she remains an obscure figure within literary and reformist history.[8]: 151
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