Women's America: Refocusing the Past [Paperback]

Linda K. Kerber (Author), Jane Sherron De Hart (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 20, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0195159829 | ISBN-13: 978-0195159820 | Edition: 6

Featuring a mix of primary source documents, articles, and illustrations, Women's America: Refocusing the Past has long been an invaluable resource. Now in its sixth edition, the book has been extensively revised and updated to cover recent events in American women's history. It provides many new selections from leading theorists and historians and restores several readings that were cut from the fifth edition. Successfully classroom-tested, these new essays offer more material on the impact of ethnicity in American culture, the roles that women have played in the creation of male-dominated structures, and the international dimensions of women's lives. The book covers such diverse groups as Christian Indian women in colonial America, African-American women in post-Civil War Atlanta, young Jewish labor organizers in turn-of-the-century New York, new arrivals to San Francisco's Chinatown, Japanese-American women during World War II, and Chicana feminists. The introductory essay has been revised and the bibliography has been updated to take into account the growing body of contemporary literature in the field. Women's America is an essential text for courses in women's history and an ideal supplement for more general survey courses on American history.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Yet another priceless contribution to our collective knowledge about women's past. The essays and documents in Women's America give a sweeping chronicle of women's lives in all their diversity and complexity. Brilliantly framed and carefully compiled, this text remains a classic for U.S. women's history."--Barbara Ransby, University of Illinois at Chicago

"The sixth edition is more indispensable than ever as a resource for teaching and learning. With new first-person accounts and interpretative essays on social networks and movements, cross-cultural experiences, the dilemmas of citizenship, and many other critical areas, this marvelous collection continues to shape our understanding of the complex dimensions of women's history."-Joyce Antler, Brandeis University

"This sixth edition of Women's America is the best yet. It is the most expansive and comprehensive text on women, their special roles in American history, the making of American culture, and the defining of American citizenship. Must reading for all those who seek to understand American society and history at the intersection of gender, race, and work."--James Oliver Horton, George Washington University

"The great virtue of this book is that it has enabled me to broach the most sophisticated themes of women's history and gender studies in my classroom in a way that is both accessible and challenging for my students. Deft editing of this 6th edition has created another diverse and engaging collection of scholarly articles and primary documents perfect for the discussion-centered classroom. My students appreciate the opportunity to weigh in on the most current debates in the field and are motivated by the editors' 'not the usual suspects' approach to women's history."--Colleen MegAnne Coffey, Moorpark Community College

"This anthology, now in its sixth edition, is the gold standard of U.S. women's history. Kerber and De Hart have retained the classic articles of the field while incorporating the latest and most innovative of the new research."--Elizabeth H. Pleck, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

About the Author

Linda K. Kerber is at University of Iowa. Jane Sherron DeHart is at University of California, Santa Barbara.

Product Details

• Paperback: 768 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 6 edition (November 20, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195159829
• ISBN-13: 978-0195159820
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > Nonfiction > Activism
  • #58 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > History

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Best Textbook I've Ever Read, April 30, 2006

By 

M. Rose - See all my reviews

This review is from: Women's America: Refocusing the Past (Paperback)

I originally purchased this book for a college course; now it sits on my bookshelf, never to be resold. I rarely have enjoyed reading for my classes, but this book not only captures the heart of the female struggles throughout history--it gives examples of the women who lived them.

This book presents the reader with an in-depth analysis of women's traditional roles and their active fight for change while explaining the conditions that determined the feminine experience in different historical periods. But the best benefit of the book was actually learning, and realizing, that the world that my generation (the 20 somethings) was born into is radically different from that of females 50, 40, 30, 20, and even 10 years before us. I realize now that many freedoms I take for granted should be cherished, and more freedoms should be fought for.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful introduction to U.S. Women's History, February 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Women's America: Refocusing the Past (Paperback)

I have used various editions of this book for the past four years in teaching a women's history course at a college-preparatory, single-sex independent high school. I have found this to be an incredibly complete anthology and the new edition is even better than the previous ones. My only complaint about the new edition is that the editors -- both renowned historians in the field -- on a few occasions shortened the articles to the point that the context needed to understand them was missing. However, because of the brevity of the articles, it is the perfect anthology for an introductory course.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Women's History, December 19, 2009

By 

Sol Y Luna "Viento Y Lluvia" (Somewhere rainy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Women's America: Refocusing the Past (Paperback)

I read about a quarter of this book for a Gender Studies and History class. This book comprises very little of the author's own interpretation of women in history and instead comprises more of many scholarly journals written by people who have studied women in American history. The book also has many interesting primary documents in its contexts like Anne Hutchinson's trial and documents for some of the first unions and societies for reform. Many of the journals were based on many interesting topics. I found that the journal about women and women relationships in the 1800s was very interesting and gave a clear insight into culture and acceptable behavior during the Victorian era. Though some of the journals were a bit dry, I am going to keep this book around for a good reference.