Behn, Aphra 1640-1689. English novelist and
playwright, the first woman in England to
earn her living as a writer. Her writings
were criticized for their explicitness; they
frequently present events from a woman's
point of view. Her novel Oronooko 1688 is an
attack on slavery. Between 1670 and 1687
fifteen of her plays were produced, including
The Rover, which attacked forced and
mercenary marriages. She had the patronage of
James I and was employed as a government spy
in Holland in 1666.