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How to Write a Feminist Criticism Essay

A feminist criticism essay is usually a careful analysis of the feminist issues, represented in the book, which are basically concerned with the images of the female characters and their role in the narration. There are a number of standard aspects you can focus on, while exploring the view of the author on women, expressed in his work.

First of all, prepare sketches of the female characters. For this you need to single out all the information the narrator gives us about them – their background, childhood, sexuality, work, and outlook on the world. The better you get to know the characters, the easier it will be to draw conclusions about them.

The second step would be to compare and contrast these female heroines to their male counterparts. Their opposition is of vital importance for feminist criticism. While contrasting them, it is recommended to take into account the historical period of time, depicted in the book, and decide whether the relationship, shown between the male and female characters, was typical for that time or not, and, probably, indicate the reasons for this. What is more, it can help you learn the views of the writer on the ideal situation with women, as it can give you a key to understanding the female characters . It is also advisable to analyse the conversations between men and women, their attitude to each other and their overall role in the book. Make sure you examine the views that men and women in the book express concerning females.

All in all, the more detailed and argumentative your essay is, the better impression it will produce on the readers. Therefore, examine various aspects and questions, since it will help you get a complete picture of the piece.

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Feminist literary criticism - Free Essay Samples And Topic Ideas

Feminist literary criticism is an approach to literature that seeks to explore and challenge the representation of gender and gendered relations in literary works. Essays on feminist literary criticism might delve into analyses of gender representation in specific texts, the history and evolution of feminist literary theory, or the impact of feminist criticism on literary studies and wider cultural discourses. They might also explore intersectional approaches within feminist literary criticism that consider race, class, sexuality, and other axes of identity. A substantial compilation of free essay instances related to Feminist Literary Criticism you can find in Papersowl database. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Feminist Criticism on Chopin’s the Story of an Hour

  Kate Chopin was a daring woman, who took her writing to a new level. Breaking many conventional social behaviors, she wrote openly about women’s emotions towards their relationships with men, children and sexuality. Kate has written several different pieces expressing her opinion. However, in one of her narratives, The Story of An Hour, she projects her feminist beliefs on marriage and the emotions it entails through the main character, Mrs. Mallard. In the beginning of the story, Mrs. Mallard […]

How Alice Walker Created Womanism

The Color Purple is a novel that traces the suffering of black women from gender, racial domination in patriarchy society. This novel demonstrates the universally prevalent multiple injustices towards women: sexual violence and violation, sexism, political, economic and social domination. Male keeps women oppressed denying equal power. So, females have been prevented from enjoying their basic rights and are totally excluded from the social, political and economic life. The present study attempts to investigate how the color purple of Alice […]

Memory and Past – the Giver

"Lois Lowry’s novel entitled The Giver, takes place against the background of very different times in which it alters from past, present, and future. Nonetheless, it speaks to the concern: the vital need of people to be aware of their interdependence, not only with each other but with the world and its environment where everything is the same – there is no music, no color, no pain. In the eye of a Marxist, The Giver explains the essential and true […]

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Feminism in the Scarlet Letter and Goblin Market: Exploring Female Sexuality

Contextual Background of Desire in 19th-Century Literature Both The Scarlett Letter (1850), a gothic romance by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Goblin Market (1862), a narrative poem by Christina Rossetti, explore the ideas of female desire and sexuality, which would have been a very controversial topic in the mid-19th century due to the religious nature of society at the time. Similarly, both texts feature the dangers of unbridled sexuality and desire through the temptation and consequence the female protagonists face in the […]

The Manic Pixie Dream Girl Trope: an Examination of its Impact and Critique

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Insights into Feminist Language Analysis

Language serves as more than just a medium of communication; it embodies power dynamics, cultural norms, and social hierarchies. Within feminist discourse, language is a central battleground where the struggle for gender equality is waged. Feminist approaches to textual analysis delve deep into the politics of language, aiming to uncover the subtle ways in which language shapes and perpetuates gender inequalities. At the heart of feminist textual analysis lies the recognition that language is not neutral. Rather, it is laden […]

Feminist Rewritings: Challenging Male-Centric Narratives in Literature

Literature has long been dominated by male perspectives, with female characters often relegated to secondary roles or portrayed through a narrow lens. However, in recent years, feminist writers have been reclaiming narratives, subverting traditional tropes, and offering fresh perspectives that challenge the patriarchal status quo. Through the lens of feminist theory, these writers interrogate and deconstruct male-centric narratives, highlighting the complexities of gender, power, and agency. One of the key strategies employed by feminist writers is the practice of rewriting […]

Feminist Mythology: Deconstructing and Reimagining Classic Myths through a Gendered Lens.

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Feminist Insights into Classic Literature: a Provocative Exploration

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How to Write an Essay About Feminist Literary Criticism

Understanding feminist literary criticism.

Before writing an essay about feminist literary criticism, it's essential to understand what this critical approach entails. Feminist literary criticism analyzes literature and literary criticism based on the feminist theory, focusing on how literature reflects or distorts the experiences, status, and roles of women. This approach also explores how literary works contribute to or challenge gender inequalities. Begin your essay by defining feminist literary criticism and its historical development. Discuss the variety of forms it has taken over time, from exploring women's writing as a separate literary tradition to examining gender politics and representation in literature. Understanding the key theorists in the field, such as Simone de Beauvoir, Virginia Woolf, and Elaine Showalter, can provide a solid foundation for your analysis.

Developing a Thesis Statement

A strong essay on feminist literary criticism should be centered around a clear, concise thesis statement. This statement should present a specific viewpoint or argument about feminist literary criticism. For instance, you might examine the role of feminist literary criticism in reshaping the literary canon, analyze how it has changed the interpretation of a particular text, or argue for its relevance in contemporary literary studies. Your thesis will guide the direction of your essay and provide a structured approach to your analysis.

Gathering Textual Evidence

To support your thesis, gather evidence from a range of sources, including feminist literary texts, critical essays, and theoretical works. This might include specific examples of feminist critiques of literary works, discussions of the portrayal of female characters in literature, or analyses of gender dynamics in different literary genres. Use this evidence to support your thesis and build a persuasive argument. Be sure to consider different feminist perspectives and methodologies in your analysis.

Analyzing Key Themes in Feminist Literary Criticism

Dedicate a section of your essay to analyzing key themes and concepts in feminist literary criticism. Discuss issues such as the representation of women in literature, the intersection of gender with other identities like race and class, and the role of language in perpetuating gender stereotypes. Explore how feminist critics have challenged traditional literary criticism and offered new insights and interpretations of texts.

Concluding the Essay

Conclude your essay by summarizing the main points of your discussion and restating your thesis in light of the evidence provided. Your conclusion should tie together your analysis and emphasize the significance of feminist literary criticism in understanding literature and its social implications. You might also want to suggest areas for future research or discuss the potential impact of feminist literary criticism on literary studies and broader cultural discourses.

Reviewing and Refining Your Essay

After completing your essay, review and refine it for clarity and coherence. Ensure that your arguments are well-structured and supported by evidence. Check for grammatical accuracy and ensure that your essay flows logically from one point to the next. Consider seeking feedback from peers, educators, or experts in feminist literary criticism to further improve your essay. A well-written essay on feminist literary criticism will not only demonstrate your understanding of the approach but also your ability to engage critically with literary theory and analysis.

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Feminist criticism essay writing instructions.

If you have been assigned to write a feminist criticism essay, it simply means that your tutor wants you to carefully analyze some of the feminist issues which are represented in a given book, with attention on the female characters and the roles they played in the book’s narration. As you get down to the task of finding out about the author’s view of women as exhibited by his or her work, there are certain aspects of the process that you should pay attention to as well. If it is your first time of writing this type of academic paper, here are some writing instructions to help you get started right away. They are as follows:

• Get To Know The Characters: In order for you to effectively write your feminist academic paper, it is important that you take your time to know all you should about the characters. This includes their background, work, sexuality, childhood, and outlook on life. When you know all these, drawing conclusions on them becomes an easier task for you to handle.
• Get To Know Their Roles In The Book: Now that you have found out their background and other important information, it is time to know about the roles they played in the book. You can focus on the lead character. Taking note of any anecdotal scenarios will provide more support for the thesis of your feminist essay.
• Determine Their Relationship With Each Other: As you take a look at the female characters in the book, take your time to explore the relationship between them. This way, you will be able to come up with contrasts. You can also examine how they relate with their male counterparts in the book.
• Evaluate Their Characters: Each of the characters of the book has their individual characters which cannot be ignored. Go ahead and assess each character’s attitude and take your time to evaluate same. This way, you will be able to determine how powerful or weak each character is.
• Time To Write: Having gathered all the information you need, the next step is to write your academic paper. Your findings will form the foundation of your writing as you set out to affirm or disapprove the author’s views or opinion.

Choosing and writing on feminist essay topics can be a little bit tricky but with the tips listed above, you will surely have an improved writing experience. Alternatively, consider asking " write my term paper " a good writing service.

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46 Practicing Gender Criticism

Now that you’ve learned about feminist, postfeminist and queer theory, practiced these methods of analysis with “January, 1795” and “The Eyepatch,” and reviewed some examples, you will complete a theoretical response to a text using one of these three gender criticisms as your approach. You will read three different texts below. Choose one text and respond to the questions in a short essay (500-750 words).

I have included questions to guide your reading. You may choose to respond to some or all of these questions; however, your response should be written as a short essay, and you will need to come up with a thesis statement about your chosen text. Post your short essay as a response to the Gender Criticism Theoretical Response discussion board. I have included the theoretical response assignment instructions at the end of this chapter.

Checklist for Practicing Feminist, Postfeminist, and Queer Theory Criticism

All three approaches are concerned with representations of gender and sexuality in texts. Here’s a checklist that may help you. You do not need to address every item on this list.

• Choose a Theoretical Approach: Identify whether you will use feminist, postfeminist, or queer theory in your analysis.
• Character Analysis: Examine the characters/speakers in the text, looking for stereotypes based on sex or gender and considering how these stereotypes interact with the discourse of the time when the texts were written. For postfeminist and queer theory, also consider binary oppositions and privileged meanings.
• Author’s Background:  Think about how the author’s sex or gender identity has influenced the work. Because these three critical approaches are intersectional, you may also want to consider race, socioeconomic status, or other identities.
• Symbolism and Imagery: Analyze symbols and imagery, exploring how they may represent gender or sexuality and reinforce or undercut stereotypes (e.g., phoenix, eagles, and doves in “The Canonization”).
• Themes and Motifs: Identify recurring themes and motifs in the text. Explore how these elements reflect the experiences of women or queer people.

1. Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day? by William Shakespeare

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer’s lease hath all too short a date; Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm’d; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d; But thy eternal summer shall not fade, Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st; Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

“Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” by William Shakespeare is in the public domain.

• What is the gender and sexuality of the speaker? What is gender and sexuality of the person being addressed in the poem? Can you find evidence to support your answer in the text itself?
• What cultural assumptions or constructions did you bring to your answer to question one? How does considering alternative possibilities open up our reading of the poem?
• If the beloved is a woman, what stereotypes does the poem’s symbolism reinforce about aging and beauty?
• What does the speaker value in a romantic partner? How do these values compare with your contemporary values?

2. Excerpt from Middlemarch by George Eliot

Dorothea’s native strength of will was no longer all converted into resolute submission. She had a great yearning to be at Lowick, and was simply determined to go, not feeling bound to tell all her reasons. But every one around her disapproved. Sir James was much pained, and offered that they should all migrate to Cheltenham for a few months with the sacred ark, otherwise called a cradle: at that period a man could hardly know what to propose if Cheltenham were rejected. The Dowager Lady Chettam, just returned from a visit to her daughter in town, wished, at least, that Mrs. Vigo should be written to, and invited to accept the office of companion to Mrs. Casaubon: it was not credible that Dorothea as a young widow would think of living alone in the house at Lowick. Mrs. Vigo had been reader and secretary to royal personages, and in point of knowledge and sentiments even Dorothea could have nothing to object to her. Mrs. Cadwallader said, privately, “You will certainly go mad in that house alone, my dear. You will see visions. We have all got to exert ourselves a little to keep sane, and call things by the same names as other people call them by. To be sure, for younger sons and women who have no money, it is a sort of provision to go mad: they are taken care of then. But you must not run into that. I dare say you are a little bored here with our good dowager; but think what a bore you might become yourself to your fellow-creatures if you were always playing tragedy queen and taking things sublimely. Sitting alone in that library at Lowick you may fancy yourself ruling the weather; you must get a few people round you who wouldn’t believe you if you told them. That is a good lowering medicine.” “I never called everything by the same name that all the people about me did,” said Dorothea, stoutly. “But I suppose you have found out your mistake, my dear,” said Mrs. Cadwallader, “and that is a proof of sanity.” Dorothea was aware of the sting, but it did not hurt her. “No,” she said, “I still think that the greater part of the world is mistaken about many things. Surely one may be sane and yet think so, since the greater part of the world has often had to come round from its opinion.” Mrs. Cadwallader said no more on that point to Dorothea, but to her husband she remarked, “It will be well for her to marry again as soon as it is proper, if one could get her among the right people. Of course the Chettams would not wish it. But I see clearly a husband is the best thing to keep her in order. If we were not so poor I would invite Lord Triton. He will be marquis some day, and there is no denying that she would make a good marchioness: she looks handsomer than ever in her mourning.” “My dear Elinor, do let the poor woman alone. Such contrivances are of no use,” said the easy Rector. “No use? How are matches made, except by bringing men and women together? And it is a shame that her uncle should have run away and shut up the Grange just now. There ought to be plenty of eligible matches invited to Freshitt and the Grange. Lord Triton is precisely the man: full of plans for making the people happy in a soft-headed sort of way. That would just suit Mrs. Casaubon.” “Let Mrs. Casaubon choose for herself, Elinor.” “That is the nonsense you wise men talk! How can she choose if she has no variety to choose from? A woman’s choice usually means taking the only man she can get. Mark my words, Humphrey. If her friends don’t exert themselves, there will be a worse business than the Casaubon business yet.” “For heaven’s sake don’t touch on that topic, Elinor! It is a very sore point with Sir James. He would be deeply offended if you entered on it to him unnecessarily.” “I have never entered on it,” said Mrs Cadwallader, opening her hands. “Celia told me all about the will at the beginning, without any asking of mine.” “Yes, yes; but they want the thing hushed up, and I understand that the young fellow is going out of the neighborhood.” Mrs. Cadwallader said nothing, but gave her husband three significant nods, with a very sarcastic expression in her dark eyes. Dorothea quietly persisted in spite of remonstrance and persuasion. So by the end of June the shutters were all opened at Lowick Manor, and the morning gazed calmly into the library, shining on the rows of note-books as it shines on the weary waste planted with huge stones, the mute memorial of a forgotten faith; and the evening laden with roses entered silently into the blue-green boudoir where Dorothea chose oftenest to sit. At first she walked into every room, questioning the eighteen months of her married life, and carrying on her thoughts as if they were a speech to be heard by her husband. Then, she lingered in the library and could not be at rest till she had carefully ranged all the note-books as she imagined that he would wish to see them, in orderly sequence. The pity which had been the restraining compelling motive in her life with him still clung about his image, even while she remonstrated with him in indignant thought and told him that he was unjust. One little act of hers may perhaps be smiled at as superstitious. The Synoptical Tabulation for the use of Mrs. Casaubon, she carefully enclosed and sealed, writing within the envelope, “I could not use it. Do you not see now that I could not submit my soul to yours, by working hopelessly at what I have no belief in—Dorothea?” Then she deposited the paper in her own desk. That silent colloquy was perhaps only the more earnest because underneath and through it all there was always the deep longing which had really determined her to come to Lowick. The longing was to see Will Ladislaw. She did not know any good that could come of their meeting: she was helpless; her hands had been tied from making up to him for any unfairness in his lot. But her soul thirsted to see him. How could it be otherwise? If a princess in the days of enchantment had seen a four-footed creature from among those which live in herds come to her once and again with a human gaze which rested upon her with choice and beseeching, what would she think of in her journeying, what would she look for when the herds passed her? Surely for the gaze which had found her, and which she would know again. Life would be no better than candle-light tinsel and daylight rubbish if our spirits were not touched by what has been, to issues of longing and constancy. It was true that Dorothea wanted to know the Farebrothers better, and especially to talk to the new rector, but also true that remembering what Lydgate had told her about Will Ladislaw and little Miss Noble, she counted on Will’s coming to Lowick to see the Farebrother family. The very first Sunday,  before  she entered the church, she saw him as she had seen him the last time she was there, alone in the clergyman’s pew; but  when  she entered his figure was gone.

Excerpt from Middlemarch by George Eliot is in the public domain.

You may need to do a little research to answer these questions.

• George Eliot is the pseudonym used by the English author Mary Anne Evans. Why do you think she wrote under a male pseudonym? Does knowing that the author is actually a woman change how you read or interpret the text?
• The dedication page to Middlemarch reads “To my dear Husband, George Henry Lewes, in this nineteenth year of our blessed union.” What does this dedication reveal about gender and sexuality in 19th century Victorian England? How does this text complement that information?
• What gender stereotypes do you see in the text? How are these gender stereotypes subverted?
• How does the role of gender and sexuality in this text compare with Mary Robinson’s poem “January, 1795”?

3. Insomnia and the Seven Steps to Grace

At dawn the panther of the heavens peers over the edge of the world. She hears the stars gossip with the sun, sees the moon washing her lean darkness with water electrified by prayers. All over the world there are those who can’t sleep, those who never awaken. My granddaughter sleeps on the breast of her mother with milk on her mouth. A fly contemplates the sweetness of lactose. Her father is wrapped in the blanket of nightmares. For safety he approaches the red hills near Thoreau. They recognize him and sing for him. Her mother has business in the house of chaos. She is a prophet dis- guised as a young mother who is looking for a job. She appears at the door of my dreams and we put the house back together. Panther watches as human and animal souls are lifted to the heavens by rain clouds to partake of songs of beautiful thunder. Others are led by deer and antelope in the wistful hours to the vil- lages of their ancestors. There they eat cornmeal cooked with berries that stain their lips with purple while the tree of life flickers in the sun. It’s October, though the season before dawn is always winter. On the city streets of this desert town lit by chemical yellow travelers search for home. Some have been drinking and intimate with strangers. Others are escapees from the night shift, sip lukewarm coffee, shift gears to the other side of darkness. One woman stops at a red light, turns over a worn tape to the last chorus of a whispery blues. She has decided to live another day. The stars take notice, as do the half-asleep flowers, prickly pear and chinaberry tree who drink exhaust into their roots, into the earth. She guns the light to home where her children are asleep and may never know she ever left. That their fate took a turn in the land of nightmares toward the sun may be untouchable knowledge. It is a sweet sound. The panther relative yawns and puts her head between her paws. She dreams of the house of panthers and the seven steps to grace.

• What are the roles of mothers and fathers in the poem? How do these roles conform to or disrupt stereotypes?
• The author of this poem, former U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. What intersections among gender and culture do you see in this poem?
• The panther is a a power mythological creature in Cree mythology. In this poem, what is the panther’s gender? Why is this significant to our understanding of the poem?

Theoretical Response Assignment Instructions

Instructions.

• 15 points: theoretical response
• 10 points: online discussion (5 points per response) OR class attendance.

Critical Worlds Copyright © 2024 by Liza Long is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Feminist approaches to literature.

This essay offers a very basic introduction to feminist literary theory, and a compendium of Great Writers Inspire resources that can be approached from a feminist perspective. It provides suggestions for how material on the Great Writers Inspire site can be used as a starting point for exploration of or classroom discussion about feminist approaches to literature. Questions for reflection or discussion are highlighted in the text. Links in the text point to resources in the Great Writers Inspire site. The resources can also be found via the ' Feminist Approaches to Literature' start page . Further material can be found via our library and via the various authors and theme pages.

The Traditions of Feminist Criticism

According to Yale Professor Paul Fry in his lecture The Classical Feminist Tradition from 25:07, there have been several prominent schools of thought in modern feminist literary criticism:

• First Wave Feminism: Men's Treatment of Women In this early stage of feminist criticism, critics consider male novelists' demeaning treatment or marginalisation of female characters. First wave feminist criticism includes books like Marry Ellman's Thinking About Women (1968) Kate Millet's Sexual Politics (1969), and Germaine Greer's The Female Eunuch (1970). An example of first wave feminist literary analysis would be a critique of William Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew for Petruchio's abuse of Katherina.
• The 'Feminine' Phase - in the feminine phase, female writers tried to adhere to male values, writing as men, and usually did not enter into debate regarding women's place in society. Female writers often employed male pseudonyms during this period.
• The 'Feminist' Phase - in the feminist phase, the central theme of works by female writers was the criticism of the role of women in society and the oppression of women.
• The 'Female' Phase - during the 'female' phase, women writers were no longer trying to prove the legitimacy of a woman's perspective. Rather, it was assumed that the works of a women writer were authentic and valid. The female phase lacked the anger and combative consciousness of the feminist phase.

Do you agree with Showalter's 'phases'? How does your favourite female writer fit into these phases?

Read Jane Eyre with the madwoman thesis in mind. Are there connections between Jane's subversive thoughts and Bertha's appearances in the text? How does it change your view of the novel to consider Bertha as an alter ego for Jane, unencumbered by societal norms? Look closely at Rochester's explanation of the early symptoms of Bertha's madness. How do they differ from his licentious behaviour?

How does Jane Austen fit into French Feminism? She uses very concise language, yet speaks from a woman's perspective with confidence. Can she be placed in Showalter's phases of women's writing?

Dr. Simon Swift of the University of Leeds gives a podcast titled 'How Words, Form, and Structure Create Meaning: Women and Writing' that uses the works of Virginia Woolf and Silvia Plath to analyse the form and structural aspects of texts to ask whether or not women writers have a voice inherently different from that of men (podcast part 1 and part 2 ).

In Professor Deborah Cameron's podcast English and Gender , Cameron discusses the differences and similarities in use of the English language between men and women.

In another of Professor Paul Fry's podcasts, Queer Theory and Gender Performativity , Fry discusses sexuality, the nature of performing gender (14:53), and gendered reading (46:20).

How do more modern A-level set texts, like those of Margaret Atwood, Zora Neale Hurston, or Maya Angelou, fit into any of these traditions of criticism?

Depictions of Women by Men

Students could begin approaching Great Writers Inspire by considering the range of women depicted in early English literature: from Chaucer's bawdy 'Wife of Bath' in The Canterbury Tales to Spenser's interminably pure Una in The Faerie Queene .

How might the reign of Queen Elizabeth I have dictated the way Elizabethan writers were permitted to present women? How did each male poet handle the challenge of depicting women?

By 1610 Thomas Middleton and Thomas Dekker's The Roaring Girl presented at The Fortune a play based on the life of Mary Firth. The heroine was a man playing a woman dressed as a man. In Dr. Emma Smith's podcast on The Roaring Girl , Smith breaks down both the gender issues of the play and of the real life accusations against Mary Frith.

In Dr. Emma Smith's podcast on John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi , a frequent A-level set text, Smith discusses Webster's treatment of female autonomy. Placing Middleton or Webster's female characters against those of Shakespeare could be brought to bear on A-level Paper 4 on Drama or Paper 5 on Shakespeare and other pre-20th Century Texts.

Smith's podcast on The Comedy of Errors from 11:21 alludes to the valuation of Elizabethan comedy as a commentary on gender and sexuality, and how The Comedy of Errors at first seems to defy this tradition.

What are the differences between depictions of women written by male and female novelists?

Students can compare the works of Charlotte and Emily Brontë or Jane Austen with, for example, Hardy's Tess of the d'Ubervilles or D. H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover or Women in Love .

How do Lawrence's sexually charged novels compare with what Emma Smith said about Webster's treatment of women's sexuality in The Duchess of Malfi ?

Dr. Abigail Williams' podcast on Jonathan Swift's The Lady's Dressing-Room discusses the ways in which Swift uses and complicates contemporary stereotypes about the vanity of women.

Rise of the Woman Writer

With the movement from Renaissance to Restoration theatre, the depiction of women on stage changed dramatically, in no small part because women could portray women for the first time. Dr. Abigail Williams' adapted lecture, Behn and the Restoration Theatre , discusses Behn's use and abuse of the woman on stage.

What were the feminist advantages and disadvantages to women's introduction to the stage?

The essay Who is Aphra Behn? addresses the transformation of Behn into a feminist icon by later writers, especially Bloomsbury Group member Virginia Woolf in her novella/essay A Room of One's Own .

How might Woolf's description and analysis of Behn indicate her own feminist agenda?

Behn created an obstacle for later women writers in that her scandalous life did little to undermine the perception that women writing for money were little better than whores.

In what position did that place chaste female novelists like Frances Burney or Jane Austen ?

To what extent was the perception of women and the literary vogue for female heroines impacted by Samuel Richardson's Pamela ? Students could examine a passage from Pamela and evaluate Richardson's success and failures, and look for his influence in novels with which they are more familiar, like those of Austen or the Brontë sisters.

In Dr. Catherine's Brown's podcast on Eliot's Reception History , Dr. Brown discusses feminist criticism of Eliot's novels. In the podcast Genre and Justice , she discusses Eliot's use of women as scapegoats to illustrate the injustice of the distribution of happiness in Victorian England.

Professor Sir Richard Evans' Gresham College lecture The Victorians: Gender and Sexuality can provide crucial background for any study of women in Victorian literature.

Women Writers and Class

Can women's financial and social plights be separated? How do Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë bring to bear financial concerns regarding literature depicting women in the 18th and 19th century?

How did class barriers affect the work of 18th century kitchen maid and poet Mary Leapor ?

Listen to the podcast by Yale's Professor Paul Fry titled "The Classical Feminist Tradition" . At 9:20, Fry questions whether or not any novel can be evaluated without consideration of financial and class concerns, and to what extent Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own suggests a female novelist can only create successful work if she is of independent means.

What are the different problems faced by a wealthy character like Austen's Emma , as opposed to a poor character like Brontë's Jane Eyre ?

Also see sections on the following writers:

• Jane Austen
• Charlotte Brontë
• George Eliot
• Thomas Hardy
• D.H. Lawrence
• Mary Leapor
• Thomas Middleton
• Katherine Mansfield
• Olive Schreiner
• William Shakespeare
• John Webster
• Virginina Woolf

If reusing this resource please attribute as follows: Feminist Approaches to Literature at http://writersinspire.org/content/feminist-approaches-literature by Kate O'Connor, licensed as Creative Commons BY-NC-SA (2.0 UK).