Sarah Trimmer (1741–1810)
Author of Fabulous Histories: Designed for the Instruction of Children, Respecting Their Treatment of Animals
About the Author
Works by Sarah Trimmer
Fabulous Histories: Designed for the Instruction of Children, Respecting Their Treatment of Animals (1786) 7 copies
An Easy Introduction to the Knowledge of Nature, and Reading the Holy Scriptures: Adapted to the Capacities of Children… (2017) 2 copies
The History of the Robins. for the Instruction of Children on Their Treatment of Animals (2012) 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Trimmer, Sarah
- Legal name
- Trimmer, Sarah
- Other names
- Kirby, Sarah (birth name)
- Birthdate
- 1741-01-06
- Date of death
- 1810-12-15
- Burial location
- St. Mary's Church, Ealing, London, England, UK
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- UK
- Birthplace
- Ipswich, England, UK
- Place of death
- Brentford, Greater London, England, UK
- Places of residence
- London, England, UK
Kew, London, England, UK
Brentford, Greater London, England, UK - Occupations
- children's book author
educational reformer
magazine editor
reviewer - Relationships
- West, Jane (letters)
- Short biography
- Sarah Kirby was born at Ipswich in Suffolk, the daughter of the painter John Joshua Kirby, who served as president of the Society of Artists, and his wife Sarah. Young Sarah attended boarding school in Ipswich. In 1755, the family moved to London, where her father became a tutor to the Prince of Wales. Sarah made the acquaintance of painters such as William Hogarth and Thomas Gainsborough, as well as that of Samuel Johnson. In 1762, Sarah married John Trimmer of Old Brentford, and the couple had 12 children. Sarah Trimmer drew on her experience educating her own children when she become active in the Sunday School movement, which taught adults as well as children to read. She was consulted by Queen Charlotte, who founded a Sunday School at Windsor. Books written specifically for children were only just becoming popular, and Mrs. Trimmer helped to define the genre through the reviews published in her periodical The Guardian of Education, founded in 1802. Mrs. Trimmer also wrote numerous children’s picture books and educational manuals.
Members
Reviews
This edition looks vastly different from mine-- mine was published in 1875 by "Mrs. Trimmer". I love my cover; it has always been one of my favorite old book covers. It is a brownish-red, and has artistically rendered robins on front with a nest accented with gold.
The story, aimed at children, is a chapter book and alternates between a family of robins in a tree outside a house owned by a family. The robins teach and instruct their children that not all humans are bad or abusive to animals (in particular birds), and the parents of the children are teaching their little ones the virtues of being humane to animals (especially birds, since that is the focus of the story). What struck me was how modern (except for how the characters talk) the viewpoint was. I had always wrongly assumed (from other books and old movies) that the main viewpoint that long ago was that animals were expendable (take the buffalo massacre, for example) and without feeling. I had thought that the shift had come with the creation of the Humane Society and, later, activist groups like PETA.... I did realize that there were people way ahead of their time, advocating for sensitive and proper treatment of animals and their protection. That was an eye-opener! Now I will view the past a bit differently!… (more)
The story, aimed at children, is a chapter book and alternates between a family of robins in a tree outside a house owned by a family. The robins teach and instruct their children that not all humans are bad or abusive to animals (in particular birds), and the parents of the children are teaching their little ones the virtues of being humane to animals (especially birds, since that is the focus of the story). What struck me was how modern (except for how the characters talk) the viewpoint was. I had always wrongly assumed (from other books and old movies) that the main viewpoint that long ago was that animals were expendable (take the buffalo massacre, for example) and without feeling. I had thought that the shift had come with the creation of the Humane Society and, later, activist groups like PETA.... I did realize that there were people way ahead of their time, advocating for sensitive and proper treatment of animals and their protection. That was an eye-opener! Now I will view the past a bit differently!… (more)
Statistics
- Works
- 23
- Members
- 36
- Popularity
- #397,831
- Rating
- 3.5
- Reviews
- 2
- ISBNs
- 6
- Languages
- 1
Originally published in 1786 as Fabulous Histories. Designed for the Instruction of Children, Respecting Their Treatment of Animals, this interesting tale has also been published as The History of the Robins. It is fascinating to see how many ideas still with us today, regarding the relationship of humans and animals, are explored here. I don't think the vision of benevolence promoted by Mrs. Trimmer would find favor with some of today's animal rights activists, as her narrative explicitly preferences humans over animals, in terms of one's duty, but I would imagine that for many others, this still rings true. I love animals, but if I had to choose between saving a human infant and a puppy, I would have to choose the infant. The discussion of the treatment of farm animals will also ring a bell with many people today, as the argument is put forward that although some animals are used by people for food, their treatment prior to death should always be humane. One wonders what horror Mrs. Trimmer would have experienced, if she knew of factory farming! I appreciated the ideas put forward about the cruelty and stupidity of disturbing or harming animals, particularly birds, and that this was extended even to insects, whom Mrs. Benson argues should be left alone, unless they pose some danger to humans. As someone who has always felt that there is a particular cruelty in keeping birds as pets, I also liked that this was addressed. Mrs. Trimmer was one of that "cursed Barbauld crew" of women Rationalists that Romantic essayist Charles Lamb condemned as promoting trivial knowledge in their books - see my review of Barbauld's Early Lessons for Children, from Two to Three Years Old for a fuller exploration of this - but although her tone might not agree with the contemporary reader, there is nothing trivial in the knowledge presented here. Rather, there is something strikingly modern in the concerns expressed, and in the ideas presented. We are, after all, still discussing and debating these issues today. Recommended to anyone interested in 18th-century English children's literature, or in the evolution of humane education in the Anglophone world.
**It is fascinating to note that some scholars believe that Mrs. Trimmer's work, popular well into the late 19th century, may have been an influence on Beatrix Potter, and that her robin names may have been the inspiration for Flopsy, Mopsy, Cottontail and Peter.… (more)