The Rod and the Canon.

The readership for early modern women writers needs to be expanded and we need to consider the most effective ways to make this happen, whether it is to tempt the book-buying public or to induce university departments to include early modern women in undergraduate survey courses. Either way, it is important to remember the connection between commercial success and academic acceptance. One way forward is to consider where and how women's writing engages with the established literary canon. A formalist critical approach to poems by Katherine Philips and Hester Pulter positions their work within a tradition of Royalist writing and suggests an influence on Marvell's poetry; an appreciation of Lucy Hutchinson's translation of Lucretius elucidates links with Marvell and Milton. These interactions make it possible to begin to construct a history of women's writing and its interface with literary traditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]