Bøker av Holly Faith Nelson

This wide-ranging transnational collection theorizes how late medieval and early modern Western women critically and creatively negotiated their faith and feminism, taking into account intersecting factors such as class, culture, confessional stance, institutional affiliation, ethnicity, dis/ability, geography, and historical circumstance. It presents thirteen original case studies on the diversity, complexity, and subtlety of the intersection of faith and feminism in the lives and works of twenty-two women writers over a 350-year period in six nations. Along the way, it interrogates the accuracy of the view that monotheistic religions only constrict and oppress women, stifling their agency, autonomy, and authority.

French Women Authors examines the importance afforded the spiritual in the lives and works of French women authors over the centuries, thereby highlighting both the significance of spiritually informed writings in French literature in general, as well as the specific contribution made by women writers. Eleven different authors have been selected for this collection, representing major literary periods from the medieval to the (post)modern. Each author is examined in the light of a Christian worldview, creating an approach which both validates and interrogates the spiritual dimension of the works under consideration. At the same time, the book as a whole presents a broad perspective on French women writers, showing how they reflect or stand in opposition to their times. The chronological order of the chapters reveals an evolution in the modes of spirituality expressed by these authors and in the role of spiritual belief or religion in French society over time. From the overwhelmingly Christian culture of the Middle Ages and pre-Enlightenment France to the wide diversity prevalent in (post)modern times, including the rise of Islam within French borders, a radical shift has permeated French society, a shift that is reflected in the writers chosen for this book. Moreover, the sensitivity of women writers to the individual side of spiritual life, in contrast with the practices of organized religion, also emerges as a major trend in this book, with women often being seen as a voice for social and religious change, or for a more meaningful, personal faith. Lastly, despite a blatant rejection of God and religion, spiritual threads still run through the works of one of France's most celebrated contemporary writers (Marguerite Duras), whose cry for an absolute in the midst of a spiritual vacuum only reiterates the quest for transcendence or for some form of spiritual expression, as voiced in the works of her female predecessors and contemporaries in France, and as demonstrated in this book.

The publication of The Broadview Anthology of Seventeenth-Century Verse and Prose is a literary event; this comprehensive volume is the first anthology of the period to reflect the breadth of seventeenth-century studies in recent decades. Over one hundred writers are included, from John Chamberlain at the beginning of the century to Elisabeth Singer Rowe at its end. There are generous selections from the work of all major writers, and a representation of the work of virtually every writer of significance. The work of women writers figures prominently, with extensive selections not only from canonical writers such as Behn and Bradstreet, but also from other writers (such as Katherine Philips and Margaret Cavendish) who have been receiving considerable scholarly attention in recent years. The anthology is broadly inclusive, with writing from America as well as from the British Isles. Memoirs, letters, political texts, travel writing, prophetic literature, street ballads, and pamphlet literature are all here, as is a full representation of the literary poetry and prose of the period, including the poetry of Jonson; the prose of Bacon; the metaphysical poetry of Donne, Herbert, Marvell, and others; the lyric verse of Herrick; and substantial selections from the poetry and prose of Milton and Dryden. (While Samson Agonistes is included in its entirety, Milton's epic poems have been excluded, in order to allow space for other works not so readily accessible elsewhere.) The editors have included complete works wherever possible. A headnote by the editors introduces each author, and each selection has been newly annotated.

Responding to the resurgence of interest in the Scottish working-class writer James Hogg, this book presents an examination of the critical implications of his writings and their position in the Edinburgh and London literary marketplaces.