Francesca Gardner

PhD thesis: Pastoral Contests in the Eighteenth Century

Although English literary histories have examined the pastoral love complaint and the pastoral elegy, the pastoral singing contest – a competition in which shepherds exchange verses before a judge – remains largely neglected. My thesis addresses that gap by exploring the contest’s varied forms in eighteenth-century literature. Situated within a culture of coffee-house conversation, literary rivalry, and generic experimentation, the pastoral contest illuminates the period’s cultural and critical tensions, including class and gender relations, legal disputes, and distinctions between high and low culture. Through conventional rural pastorals and urban eclogues, featuring characters from shepherds to chimney sweeps and pantomime harlequins, my thesis examines works by writers including Pope, Gay, Lady Mary, Goldsmith, and Crabbe. Ultimately, it argues that the eighteenth-century pastoral singing contest, including its satirical inversions, offers a revealing perspective on the period’s values: ideals of innocence and politeness, attitudes towards labour and leisure, and visions of social progress.

After the PhD
Post-PhD, I have taken up the role of External Affairs and Policy Specialist at the Homecare Association. This position involves applying the research skills and media experience developed over the course of the past four years at Cambridge to social care policy: engaging Parliament, journalists, and stakeholders, supporting providers in the sector, and ensuring that homecare is valued so that everyone can live well at home and flourish within their communities.