A Voice from the South (Schomburg Library of 19th Century Black Women Writers) [Paperback]

Anna Julia Cooper (Author), Mary Helen Washington (Introduction)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0195063236 | ISBN-13: 978-0195063233 | Publication Date: July 12, 1990

Considered one of the original texts foretelling the black feminist movement, this collection of essays, first published in 1892, offers an unparalleled view into the thought of black women writers in nineteenth-century America. A leading black spokeswoman of her time, Anna Julia Cooper came of age during a conservative wave in the black community, a time when men completely dominated African-American intellectual and political ideas. In these essays, Cooper criticizes black men for securing higher education for themselves through the ministry, while erecting roadblocks to deny women access to those same opportunities, and denounces the elitism and provinciality of the white women's movement. Passionately committed to women's independence, Cooper espoused higher education as the essential key to ending women's physical, emotional, and economic dependence on men.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A first-class series of essays that cut to the heart of the issues as much today as when it was first published."--Robert Carr, George Mason University

"A very useful and thorough presentation of black woman's lives during the post-reconstruction era."--James N. Upton, Ohio State University

"So glad to have this important text available for my course."--Elizabeth Keyser, Hollins College

"A brilliant example of how to discuss together the issues of both gender and race, one of the first in US American discourse to so approach such matters."--Dr. Imafedia Okhamafe, University of Nebraska

About the Author

Mary Helen Washington is at University of Massachusetts, Boston.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (July 12, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195063236
• ISBN-13: 978-0195063233
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #259,898 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Role of Women in the Development of Society, June 15, 2000

By 

[e-mail] (United States: Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Voice from the South: by a Black Woman of the South (Hardcover)

Women are the important development of any society. Their position in society makes them important in development. She says "the position in society determines the vital elements of its regeneration and progress". she also say it is a woman "who must first form the man by directing the earliest impulse of his character. It is true that it is people with particular personality and character who achieve development and progress and that it is t he woman who generally socializes the individuals into appropriate behavior. So women are important as molders of people who in turn develop societies.