Happy Birthday, Agnes Repplier

Born April 1, 1855, Philadelphia, PA | Died December 15, 1950, Philadelphia, PA

Today, the Best American Essays newsletter celebrates essayist Agnes Repplier on the 170th anniversary of her birth. A frequent contributor to Catholic World and The Atlantic Monthly, Repplier’s honors included honorary degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, Notre Dame, Yale University, and Columbia University.

Subscribe to our newsletter for news about upcoming online conversations with Best American Essays contributors about essayists.

Agnes Repplier, ca. 1910, photographer unknown.

“For every sentence that may be penned or spoken the right words exist. They lie concealed in the inexhaustible wealth of a vocabulary enriched by centuries of noble thought and delicate manipulation.”

Agnes Repplier, no date, photographer unknown.

“Musicians know the value of chords; painters know the value of colors; writers are often so blind to the value of words that they are content with a bare expression of their thoughts, disdaining the ‘labor of the file,’ and confident that the phrase first seized is for them the phrase of inspiration.”

Among Repplier’s many published books are Books and Men (1888; reprinted in 1899), a contemplation of literature and children; Essays in Miniature (1892), reflections on reading habits and the diverse roles of characters in fiction; and Varia (1897), an examination of gender roles, literature, and the nuances of human behavior, often with a focus on the conditions of women.

First published essay:

• “In Arcady,” Catholic World, 1881.

Select nonfiction bibliography:

• American Austen: The Forgotten Writings of Agnes Repplier, edited by John Lukacs (Intercollegiate Studies Institute, 2009).

See also:

Visit the Agnes Repplier papers at University of Pennsylvania

Read books by Agnes Repplier available on Project Gutenberg

Read essays available as PDFs at Quotidiana’s Agnes Repplier page