Ellen Francis Mason (June 24, 1846 – 1930) was a

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

author, civic leader, trustee, and philanthropist. She is known today for her translations of

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

Translations of Plato

Mason's annotated translations of Plato's dialogues in everyday English were published anonymously by

Charles Scribner's Sons Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner's or Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City that has published several notable American authors, including Henry James, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Marjori ...

beginning in 1879, with a book titled ''Socrates'' that included translations of the

Apology Apology, The Apology, apologize/apologise, apologist, apologetics, or apologetic may refer to: Common uses * Apology (act), an expression of remorse or regret * Apologia, a formal defense of an opinion, position, or action Arts, entertainment ...

Crito ''Crito'' ( or ; ) is a dialogue written by the ancient Greece, ancient Greek philosopher Plato. It depicts a conversation between Socrates and his wealthy friend Crito of Alopece regarding justice (''δικαιοσύνη''), injustice (''ἀ ...

, and parts of

Phaedo ''Phaedo'' (; , ''Phaidōn'') is a dialogue written by Plato, in which Socrates discusses the immortality of the soul and the nature of the afterlife with his friends in the hours leading up to his death. Socrates explores various arguments fo ...

. The book also included an introduction by

William Watson Goodwin William Watson Goodwin (May 9, 1831June 15, 1912) was an American classical scholar. For many years he had been a professor of Greek at Harvard University. Biography He was born in Concord, Massachusetts, the son of Hersey Bradford Goodwin and ...

, professor of Greek at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. This book was followed by ''A Day in Athens With Socrates'' (1883; includes translations from

Protagoras Protagoras ( ; ; )Guthrie, p. 262–263. was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher and rhetorical theorist. He is numbered as one of the sophists by Plato. In his dialogue '' Protagoras'', Plato credits him with inventing the role of the professional ...

and The Republic), ''Talks with Socrates About Life'' (1886;

Gorgias Gorgias ( ; ; – ) was an ancient Greek sophist, pre-Socratic philosopher, and rhetorician who was a native of Leontinoi in Sicily. Several doxographers report that he was a pupil of Empedocles, although he would only have been a few years ...

and The Republic), and ''Talks with Athenian Youths'' (1891;

Charmides Charmides (; ), son of Glaucon (who was the grandfather of Plato, and not to be confused with his brother of the same name), born circa 446 BC, was an Athenian statesman. Debra Nails''The People of Plato''(Indianapolis: Hackett, 2002), 90– ...

Lysis Lysis ( ; from Greek 'loosening') is the breaking down of the membrane of a cell, often by viral, enzymic, or osmotic (that is, "lytic" ) mechanisms that compromise its integrity. A fluid containing the contents of lysed cells is called a ...

, Laches, Euthydemus, and Theaetetus). Although her name did not appear on the title pages of any of these books, her identity as the translator was known to librarians by 1880. Her translations of Plato inspired

Jo Walton Jo Walton (born 1964) is a Welsh-Canadian fantasy and science fiction writer and poet. She is best known for the fantasy novel '' Among Others'', which won the Hugo and Nebula Awards in 2012, and '' Tooth and Claw'', a Victorian-era novel w ...

to include her as a character renamed Aristomache in her novel '' The Just City'', where she has been transported to an experimental community based on Plato's Republic. Walton writes in an author's note that Mason's life "is like a type-example of how difficult it was for women to lead a life of the mind" in her day.

Personal life and organizational work

Mason was the daughter of Robert Means Mason (son of U.S. Senator Jeremiah Mason), and Sarah Ellen Francis. She lived in Beacon Hill in Boston, where she was a patron of the arts, an Associate (trustee) of

Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...

., and a friend to authors like

Sarah Orne Jewett Theodora Sarah Orne Jewett (September 3, 1849 – June 24, 1909) was an American novelist, short story writer and poet, best known for her local color works set along or near the southern coast of Maine. Jewett is recognized as an important ...

. She spent summers in

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

, where she lived in a mansion with her sister Ida Means Mason, and served as president of the Newport Civic League for many years. Her death was reported by the Newport Mercury on May 2, 1930. She and her sister (who died two years earlier) left estates of nearly $5 million to charity.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mason, Ellen Francis 1846 births 1930 deaths 19th-century American translators 19th-century American women writers Writers from Boston