Changing Subjects

Over the last 30 years, feminist literary criticism has challenged and changed the study of literature. These 20 autobiographical essays by eminent feminist literary critics explore the process by which women scholars became feminists, and began to voice the connections between the personal and the political in their work and lives. They describe the experiences that radicalized women both inside academia and out. From these diverse stories a collective history emerges of the development of feminism as an intellectual and social movement, steadily redefining knowledge and power. Co-edited by the editors of "Making a Difference: Feminist Literary Criticism", itself a landmark in the development of the field, this book presents a history of feminist literary criticism through the eyes of women involved in creating and recreating it. It offers a spectrum of experiences and critical positions that engage with current debates in feminism from a perspective that aims to be engaging and illuminating. Among the contributors are, Elizabeth Ermarth, Jerry Flieger, Judith Kegan Gardiner, Gayle Greene, Carolyn Heilbrun, Margo Hendricks, Molly Hite, Gloria Hull and Ann Rosalind Jones.