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Women, Revolution, and the Novels of the 1790s

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Lang-Peralta points out that novels of the 1790s have extravagant and marvelous shapes. Many of these novels are only now being treated to scholarly editions (and expanded readership). The contributors to this collection support the broad goal of understanding the political and polemical dimensions of the novels of the period by reading them as cultural documents and approaching them armed with the theories of Bakhtin, Althasser, Foucalt, Bourdieu, et al. Especially strong are Catherine Decker's treatment of women and public space--which decodes seven ideological positions to realign understanding of the legal, moral, and social contexts of women in fiction--and Barbara Benedict's "Radcliffe, Godwin, and Self-Possession in the 1790's"--a fascinating analysis of curiosity and identity in The Mysteries of Udolpho and Caleb Williams. Carl Fisher and Glynis Ridley also analyze Caleb Williams, focusing on power relations in the novel's justice/injustice drama. Katherine Binhammer shows how Charlotte Smith underscored the public and private divide of sexuality and politics in Desmond. Clara McLean provides an ingenious analysis of the act of reading as emblematic of the unknown. And Eleanor Ty (author of Unsex'd Revolutionaries, CH. Mar '94) provides a moving reading of Mary May's The Victim of Prejudice. A substantive, innovative collection for upper-division undergraduates and above. -- Virginia Commonwealth University

In Women, Revolution, And The Novels Of The 1790s, Linda Lang-Peralta draws upon the scholarly contributions of Barbara M. Benedict, Katherine Binhammer, Catherine H. Decker, Carl Fisher, Shawn Lisa Maurer, Clara D. McLean, Glynis Ridley, and Eleanor Ty in a collection of essays focusing on sub-genres of the novel form that evolved during the end of the 18th century. These were novels (frequently written by women) that reflected the intersections between literature and popular culture. Using representative readings of theses works and current academic thinking on gender and class, the contributors offer a new and challenging perspective on the novels of the 1790s. Women, Revolution, And The Novels Of The 1790s is highly recommended reading for students of women's literature, women's studies, and the influence of literature upon popular culture.