Maria Susanna Cummins

Texts by Maria Susanna Cummins

• "The Lamplighter"

Resources about Maria Susanna Cummins

1. "Maria Cummins, 1827-1866." Authors 1822-1897. 4 June 2007. Dorchester Atheneum. 9 June 2007 < http://www.dorchesteratheneum.org/page.php?id=77 >.

Maria Susanna Cummins was born in Salem in 1827 to a big family of high social class. She was a sister to seven other children, daughter of a judge and a mother who came from a family of physicians (Inrtroduction in "The Lamplighter" written by Nina Baym).  Cummins was also well-educated, attended Mrs. Charles Sedgwick's Yound Ladies' School. Little is really known of her life, but critics believe that some of the events in "The Lamplighter" were based on Cummins' actual experiences. Cummins' "The Lamplighter" sold more copies in a year than the "Scarlet Letter" in Hawthorne's lifetime.  Cummins depicts in her novel a sort of heroism within the lamplighter named Trueman, within Gerty, the main character, and other significant characters that built the story about a miserable orphaned girl. Cummins is remembered as an important figure during the Romantic period for her noted talent in creating rich characters  and the realism in her writing. In addition, "The Lamplighter" depicts a story of love, heroism, growth, individualism to redefine or contribute to the movement of Romanticism. The site is devoted to the history of Dorchester, Massachusetts and is updated. -Dolmii Remeliik