Aphra Behn

Born around 1640, Aphra Behn became one of the most distinctive literary figures of the Restoration. She is widely noted as one of the first women in English literature known to have supported herself by writing, and she worked across several forms, including drama, poetry, and prose.

Her plays helped make her famous in London, where she wrote for the stage with energy, humor, and a bold interest in power, love, and hypocrisy. She is also remembered for Oroonoko (1688), a short prose work that remains one of her best-known texts.

Behn died in 1689, but her reputation kept growing long after her lifetime. Readers and scholars return to her not only for her historical importance, but because her writing still feels lively, fearless, and unexpectedly modern.