Elaine Showalter

Durante el siglo XIX, las mujeres se convirtieron en uno de los principales objetos de estudio psiquiátrico y, como consecuencia, en símbolo cultural de la locura, reflejada en la creencia generalizada de que existia una supuesta histeria femenina vinculada no solo a la enfermedad mental, sino a todas aquellas mujeres que no se ajustaran al rol de feminidad o que, como acuñara Virginia Woolf, no representaran al quimerico angel del hogar, siendo por ello estigmatizadas y relegadas a la marginalidad. En El mal de las mujeres, Elaine Showalter, una de las pensadoras feministas mas aclamadas del ultimo siglo, revela como este imaginario abusivo, construido y potenciado por los hombres que dominaron la Psiquiatria desde el siglo XIX y hasta buena parte del XX, influyo de forma directa en los diagnosticos y tratamientos de las mujeres, asi como en la construccion del significado de la feminidad en el imaginario cultural. Para ello, explora diarios, novelas, y la escritura intima de autoras y artistas tan importantes como Charlotte Bronte, Florence Nightingale, Doris Lessing o Sylvia Plath, todos ellos testimonios de aquellas que resistieron para documentar esta opresion. Escrito en un tono original que no olvida la lirica, nos encontramos frente a un texto fundamental del feminismo, que hasta ahora no se habia traducido al castellano. Una reinterpretacion esencial de la locura femenina, no como rasgo inherente, sino como resultado de siglos de dominacion y control ejercidos por estructuras patriarcales de poder.

Sure to take its place alongside the literary landmarks of modern feminism, Elaine Showalters brilliant, provocative work chronicles the roles of feminist intellectuals from the eighteenth century to the present. With sources as diverse as A Vindication of the Rights of Woman and Scream 2, Inventing Herself is an expansive and timely exploration of women who possess a boundless determination to alter the world by boldly experiencing love, achievement, and fame on a grand scale. These women tried to work, travel, think, love, and even die in ways that were ahead of their time. In doing so, they forged an epic history that each generation of adventurous women has rediscovered. Focusing on paradigmatic figures ranging from Mary Wollstonecraft and Margaret Fuller to Germaine Greer and Susan Sontag, preeminent scholar Elaine Showalter uncovers common themes and patterns of these womens lives across the centuries and discovers the feminist intellectual tradition they embodied. The author brilliantly illuminates the contributions of Eleanor Marx, Zora Neale Hurston, Simone de Beauvoir, Margaret Mead, and many more. Showalter, a highly regarded critic known for her provocative and strongly held opinions, has here established a compelling new Whos Who of womens thought. Certain to spark controversy, the omission of such feminist perennials as Susan B. Anthony, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Virginia Woolf will surprise and shock the conventional wisdom. This is not a history of perfect women, but rather of real women, whose mistakes and even tragedies are instructive and inspiring for women today who are still trying to invent themselves.

When first published in 1977, A Literature of Their Own quickly set the stage for the creative explosion of feminist literary studies that transformed the field in the 1980s. Launching a major new area for literary investigation, the book uncovered the long but neglected tradition of women writers in England. A classic of feminist criticism, its impact continues to be felt today. This revised and expanded edition contains a new introductory chapter surveying the book''s reception and a new postscript chapter celebrating the legacy of feminism and feminist criticism in the efflorescence of contemporary British fiction by women.

Mujeres rebeldes es un recorrido, desde el siglo XVIII hasta nuestros días, por la vida de algunas mujeres que decidieron libremente no renunciar a su forma de trabajar, pensar, amar e incluso morir, que lucharon por ello y forjaron, asi, la tradicion intelectual feminista. En su obra, Elaine Showalter recoge las experiencias vitales, el pensamiento y los sentimientos de figuras tan relevantes como Mary Wollstonecraft, Margaret Fuller, Susan Sontag, Eleanor Marx, Simone de Beauvoir o Mary McCarthy, que han servido de inspiracion y referencia a sucesivas generaciones de mujeres. Desde Mary Wollstonecraft hasta Mary McCarthy, Zora Neale Hurston y Susan Sontag, las mujeres intelectuales han seguido sus propios dictados. A veces lo arriesgaban todo y tambien llegaban a perderlo todo. Pero el empeño era siempre vivir una vida que lograra hacer realidad una idea, como dijo Ruth Benedict. El libro de Elaine Showalter se lee de un tiron. Ofrece toda una memoria colectiva sin caer en sentimentalismos, pero con una prosa magnifica y emocionante.

A lively biography (The New Yorker) of Julia Ward Howe, the powerful feminist pioneer and author of the Civil War anthem, Battle Hymn of the Republic.Julia Ward (18191910) was an heiress who married a handsome accomplished doctor who worked with the blind and deaf. But Samuel Howe wasted her inheritance, mistreated and belittled her, and tried to stifle her intellect and freedom. Nevertheless Julia persisted and wrote poetry and a mildly shocking sexual novel that was published to good reviews. She also wrote the words to probably the most famous anthem in the countrys historythe Civil War anthem, Battle Hymn of the Republic.After Samuel died when she was fifty-one, Julia lived another forty years as a dynamic, tireless, and successful activist for womens rights, pacifism, and social reform. She became a groundbreaking figure in the abolitionist and suffrage movements, and a successful author and lecturer who fought her own battle for creative freedom and independence. In the riveting (The New York Times Book Review), unfailingly vivid (The Atlantic) and invigorating (O, The Oprah Magazine) The Civil Wars of Julia Ward Howe, esteemed author Elaine Showalter tells the story of Howes determined self-creation and brings to life the society she inhabited and the obstacles she overcame. The Civil War challenged nineteenth-century ideas of separate spheres for men and women. In Howes case, this transformation led to a rebellion against her marriage. She fought a second Civil War at home and discovered ways to combine domestic chores with creativity and politics, and she helped establish Mothers Day to honor women and to recruit them to her causes. A biography with the verve and pace of a delicious novelShowalter reveals the entwining of Howes public and private lives, as she righteously battled her husband and society, and finally saw the glory she always believed she deserved (The Boston Globe).

Ensayo feminista de Elaine Showalter que analiza la figura de Ofelia en Hamlet como símbolo de la locura femenina y su tratamiento crítico a lo largo del tiempo.

Fascinating, incisive, intelligent and never afraid of being controversial, Elaine Showalter introduces us to more than 250 writers. Here are the famous and expected names, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Willa Cather, Dorothy Parker, Flannery OConnor, Gwendolyn Brooks, Grace Paley, Toni Morrison, and Jodi Picoult. And also many successful and acclaimed yet little-known writers, from the early American bestselling novelist Catherine Sedgwick to the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Susan Glaspell.A JURY OF HER PEERS is an irresistible invitation to discover great authors never before encountered and to return to familiar books with a deeper appreciation. It is a monumental work that enriches our understanding of American literary history and culture.

An unprecedented literary landmark: the first comprehensive history of American women writers from 1650 to the present. In a narrative of immense scope and fascination, here are more than 250 female writers, including the famousHarriet Beecher Stowe, Dorothy Parker, Flannery OConnor, and Toni Morrison, among othersand the little known, from the early American bestselling novelist Catherine Sedgwick to the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Susan Glaspell. Showalter integrates womens contributions into our nations literary heritage with brilliance and flair, making the case for the unfairly overlooked and putting the overrated firmly in their place.

The letters between Vera Brittain, author of Testament of Youth, and Winifred Holtby, author of South Riding, tell the story of an extraordinary friendshipTouching and inspiringRACHEL COOKE, ObserverLively, perceptiveMIRANDA SEYMOUR, Literary ReviewA beautiful collectionDAISY DUNN, Sunday TimesA moving unvarnished chronicleSarah Watling, TelegraphFrom the time when they met at Somerville College, Oxford, until Winifreds early death at the age of thirty-seven, they wrote constantly, encouraging and advising each other, even through periods as literary rivals as they negotiated envy and self-doubt. Vera decisively influenced Winifreds passion for feminism and peace and Winifred gave Vera crucial support, fiercely believing in her literary gifts. Their letters, written from 1920 to 1935, kept them continuously together.