Reviews

New Feminist Criticism by Elaine Showalter

cvcvdvnn's review against another edition

4.0

like any collection of essays, there are some that are excellent, and some that don’t place as high. but conceptually, elaine showalter’s goal in their collection- to honor and examine the study of feminist criticism in literature, and to dismantle its historical devaluation- is noble and well done. the act of compilation, itself, is breathtaking here: there is well placed juxtaposition, supported claims by other essays, foundations set and paid off by future work, etc. its rhetorical goals are clear and established, and it- as a collection- accomplishes them well. i don’t recommend this, however, as a jumping off point to understanding feminist literary theory; begin with adrienne rich and maybe some gerda lerner, plus of course an established knowledge of female literary giants and their works.