Category:The Amulet: or Christian Literacy Remembrancer

Title: The Amulet: or Christian Literacy Remembrancer

Editor: Samuel Carter Hall

Publisher: Frederick Westley and A.H. Davis and Wightman and Co

The Amulet, edited and founded by Samuel Carter Hall (S. C. Hall), aimed to “blend religious instruction with literary amusement.”^[1] The periodical was printed annually between 1826 and 1836. Although originally oriented for a Christian audience, it was versatile within this hemisphere. Its unique blend of morally based poetry, short fiction, and other art pieces made it acceptable in many environments. One reviewer from Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine praised The Amulet, stating that it “may lie on the couch of the room where friends meet in health and cheerfulness, below the pillow of the room where sickness lies afar from sorrow, and the patient feels that no medicine is better for the weakness of the body than that which soothes and tranquilizes the soul.”^[2] However, because each volume was printed annually, high costs excluded the lower classes and made it most accessible to the wealthy. Samuel Coleridge and Sir Thomas Lawrence were some of the well known contributors, as well as the pious S.C. Hall and his wife. The works published were esteemed artistic pieces that incorporated ethical topics like slavery, infanticide, death and foreign affairs, while emphasizing common Victorian standards. Samuel Hall wanted subjects of permanence that would continually captivate an audience. The Amulet was discontinued in 1837 because “the 'fashion' for annuals had ceased,” or, in other words, less expensive magazines printed in smaller issues became more popular and accessible.^[3]

Notes

1. ↑ WD.
2. ↑ WD.
3. ↑ WD.

Submitted by: Price, Brittney: section 1, Winter 2009