Literary Feminisms

RUTH ROBBINS is Lecturer in English Studies at Leeds Metropolitan University, UK

'This is a lively, straightforward, and highly accessible introduction to the varieties of feminist criticism which are found today. Robbins gives a brief, and very useful overview of the history of recent feminist thought...Particularly useful are the feminist readings she offers: practical exemplar of how to turn theory into practice...I would have no hesitation in recommending this book to my own students. Robbins writes with confidence and clarity. She explains critical concepts lucidly: her aim is to enable, not to overawe her audience. Even a student sceptical about feminist theory would gain greatly from this work, and those who already believe themselves familiar with the field will be led to see familiar texts - both theoretical and literary - in fresh ways. Literary Feminisms provides an invaluable introduction to its field.' - Kate Flint, Linacre College, Oxford 'I thought at first - not another book on feminist literary theory. But in fact it is not just another book - it is a very good book - very readable and clear, well thought out, with original things to say. I like it very much indeed.' - Dr C. Tylee, Brunel University 'Ruth Robbins surveys and interprets feminisms for the benefit of those who find the variety and obscurity of feminist inquiry daunting or off-putting. Proceeding both chronologically and categorically, the author presents the arguments of a wide variety of theorists who draw from a common background of Western literary tradition. She does not shrink from addressing contentious views; her tone and her language are precise and insightful, so she illuminates theory even as she offers critical assessment of its borders and absences...An excellent resource for undergraduates, graduate students and teachers.' - R. Nadelhaft, Choice

• General Editor's PrefaceAcknowledgementsIntroduction: Gestures Towards DefinitionsSECTION ONE: HISTORIESLiberal, Materialist and Socialist Literary FeminismsImages of Women CriticismThe Woman as Writer: Forging Female TraditionsSECTION TWO: (PSYCHO)ANALYSESPsychoanalysis and/or Feminism?Julia Kristeva: Rewriting the Subject'Mirror, Mirror...': Luce Irigaray and Reflections of and on the FeminineHelene Cixous: Laughing at the OppositionsSECTION THREE: DIFFERENCESDifferences of View and Viewing the Differences: Challenging Female TraditionsSECTION FOUR: READINGSReading the Boys' Own StoriesReading the Writing on the Wall: Charlotte Perkins Gilman's 'The Yellow Wallpaper'The Mark on the Wall: Marking Differences, Marking TimeAnnotated BibliographyBibliographyIndex.