Cope 1992

Cope, Esther S. Handmaid of the Holy Spirit: Dame Eleanor Davies, Never Soe Mad a Ladie. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1992.

"A prophet ordinarily gave up her or his own identity to be a vessel for another, greater power; Lady Eleanor did not." (2); "she never attracted followers" (3)

"Rather than providing a clear narrative of her life, Lady Eleanor's tracts created a multidimensional world of truth and time that seemed to defy my efforts to impose an analytical framework upon it." (5)

The Lady Eleanor

"For the innumerable biblical citations that she only sometimes identified by book, chapter, and verse, she relied heavily upon the preference of puritans, the Geneva Bible and its commentary as well as the Authorized Version of 1611." (13)

"Although her rigorous defiance of episcopal authority and her familiarity with the Bible make it tempting to call her a puritan during the 1630s and a sectarian in the following decade, she was generally orthodox in doctrine. Her rhetoric has more in common with that of Lancelot Andrewes than that of John Cotton and, like Andrewes, she focused upon the feasts of the liturgical calendar. She did not conform to or fit within the patterns fo community that emphasized the godly household and the congregation. She could accept neither the notion of a gathered church nor radical redefinitions of the sacraments. If she indulged in the kind of spiritual self-examination, fasting, or devotional practices that we have come to associate with puritans and sectarians, or if she enjoyed a close relationship with one or more members of the clergy, she does not say so. Although she denoucned abuse of the sabbath, drinking, gaming, and idolatry, she had little to say about sermons. The form and language of her tracts owed more to the prophetic models in the Bible and the liturgy than it did to sermons, though she was certainly exhorting and instructing her readers." (13)

after her father died, she fought "to acquire some of her family's furniture, tapestries, and linens"

George Carr, acted for Eleanor as Daniel acted for Nebuchadnezzar (30)

Singing a New Song

"Lady Eleanor compounded the offense she caused by her scholarship an by her prophecies by criticizing, as no subject should, the actions of king, bishops, Parliament, and local officials. She also prophesied in defiance of her husband. By doing so and by publishing her pronouncements on matters of religion and government, she challenged early Stuart patriarchy both within her own family and within the kingdom." (34)

"Women who were prophets could venture into such realms as preaching, writing, and discussing public affairs that otherwise belonged exclusively to men. Proof of the authenticity of their inspiration was essential. The very characteristics that made women susceptible to powers beyond themselves also made them likely targets for evil." (38)

later tracts, describes herself as "secretary," and shows an image of her hand holding a pen o nthe tile page of 1648 Given to the Elector (39)