Coming to Writing" and Other Essays [Hardcover]

Helene Cixous (Author), Susan Rubin Suleiman (Author), Deborah Jenson (Translator), Sarah Cornell (Translator), Ann Liddle (Translator), Susan Sellers (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1991

Of Helene Cixous's many and diverse writings, few have been translated into English. This collection presents six essays by one of France's most remarkable contemporary authors. Cixous is known for her work on sexual difference and its relations to literary text. Here she explores the problematics of a "feminine" mode of writing, basing her method on the premise that differences between the sexes - viewed as a paragdigm for all difference, which is the organizing principle behind identity and meaning - manifest themselves, write themselves, in texts. "Tancredi Continues" and "The Last Painting or the Portrait of God" question the enigma of sexual difference and the origins of writing through artistic practices analogous to writing (music and painting). The title essay explores Cixous's decision to become an author and the problems raised by a woman's writing herself into history and into a particular literary and cultural tradition. The remaining essays examine another aspect of her work: her ongoing dialogue with the Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector. "By the light of an Apple" and "Clarice Lispector: The Approach" are celebrations of Cixous's Brazilian contemporary. In "The Author in Truth" Cixous quotes passages from Lispector and discusses them in detail, providing a sense of why Lispector has assumed such importance in her life. This volume aims to be of interest not only to scholars who are engaged in the task of understanding Cixous as writer and theorist but to all readers seeking a unique and exciting voice.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The tradition of Cixous's interest in feminine writing and talent at manipulating words continues in this collection. She describes vividly how she was overcome by the intoxication of writing: " 'Writing' seized me, gripped me, between the stomach and the chest, a blast dilated my lungs and I stopped breathing." Other essays explore the influence of music and gender on writing ("Tancredi Continues") and painting ("The Last Painting, or the Portrait of God"). In all cases the language is visual and jewel-like, sparkling with color. Three essays analyze the ongoing influence of the Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector on her work. Introductory and closing essays by Susan Suleiman and editor Jenson illuminate Cixous's accomplishments. For academic libraries. See also Cixous's Readings: The Poetics of Blanchot, Joyce, Kafka, Lispector, and Tsvetayeva , reviewed below.--Ed.
- Ann Sapp, Montgomery Cty. Dept. of Public Libs., Md.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

The tradition of Cixous's interest in feminine writing and talent at manipulating words continues in this collection. [In one essay] she describes vividly how she was overcome by the intoxication of writing...Other essays explore the influence of music and gender on writing...and painting. In all cases the language is visual and jewel-like, sparkling with color. (Library Journal )

Deborah Jenson judiciously selects from Cixous's output between 1976-89 'Coming to Writing,' 'Clarice Lispector: The Approach,' 'Tancredi continues,' 'The Last Painting or the Portrait of God,' 'By the Light of an Apple,' and 'The Author in Truth.' Her perceptive closing essay, together with Susan Suleiman's introduction...trace the umbilical links between Cixous's end-stopped poetic-philosophic prose and her roots which anchor her perilously between two holocausts, Jewish and colonial, and two tongues, German and the classical French...These essays highlight a wealth of disparate inspiration...[in] an ideal guide to Cixous.
--Elizabeth Moles (Times Higher Education Supplement [UK] )

Cixous, important as she is as a feminist theorist and activist, is equally important as an accurate emotional sounding board for women everywhere. As such, her articulation of powerful, if delicate, perceptions in lucid prose/poetry compels the attention of European and American readers...The power of her prose is philosophically sound. (Choice )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 214 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Press; 1St Edition edition (September 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674144368
• ISBN-13: 978-0674144361
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,977,479 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars feminist critical theory, June 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: "Coming to Writing" and Other Essays (Paperback)

_Coming to Writing & Other Essays_ is a collection of essays dealing with the relationship between a marginalized person and writing-- that is between a person whose voice has been silenced and her voice. Cixous' writing is frequently narrative, rather than expository, so the text reads like so many short stories. She is irreverent and refreshing in the world of drily written critical thought.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars again and again, November 24, 2001

By 

L. Somerstein (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Coming to Writing" and Other Essays (Hardcover)

When I see orange and russet leaves wet with the mist of a rainy day in Central Park I feel as happy to be alive as I do when I read Cixous' essay "The Last Painting," included in this book. I imagine the shimmering surface of the Cathedral at Rouen. I feel glad that a human can write and think with such clarity and beauty and that I can read her words.