| This dissertation considers, through a cognitivist lens and Suzanne Keen’s 2007 theory of narrative empathy, the English Civil War of the 1640s and its ramifications for the prolific English writers Lucy Hutchinson (1620-1681) and Margaret Cavendish (1623-1673). Voicing the concerns of Puritans and Royalists during the Civil War, these two authors were forced to reckon with conflicts that divided their own communities and in some cases their own families. Hutchinson’s and Cavendish’s writings demonstrate an unmistakable attitude of empathy with their political foes for the goal of abating the violence that took place during the span of the Civil War and through the Restoration period. These demonstrations of empathy in the works of Hutchinson and Cavendish provide illustrations of Norbert Elias’s Civilizing Process, which traces the deployment of empathic constructions from the beginning of the early modern period, especially through the expansion of printing culture. The dissertation also addresses how Hutchinson and Cavendish were ahead of their time in employing empathy in comparison with other contemporary early modern women writers of the period, empathizing in unique ways with their perceived enemies. The dissertation ends with recommendations of how instructors might highlight empathy in the modern-day literature and composition classroom. Key Words: Cognitive empathy, Lucy Hutchinson, Margaret Cavendish, English Civil War, Civilizing Process. |