Reviews

The Hermaphrodite by Gary Williams, Julia Ward Howe

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bsmorris's review against another edition

4.0

This unfinished novel by Julia Ward Howe presents the case of a person born intersex who is raised as a boy but eventually lives for some time as a woman. Editor Gary Williams does a good job of assembling the fragments of this novel and inserting explanatory notes to transition where there are large gaps in the storyline. The characters and story are interesting and unique, especially since it was written in the 1840s. This is a fascinating addition to my understanding of American literature.

language_loving_amateur's review

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challenging sad tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

5.0

So Good, So Sad. It is pieces of an unpublished manuscript from the 1840s so it starts and ends in the middle of sentences. A lot of the book interrogates the social rules and lack of options for women in the 19th century. With visions, a duel, deaths and ghosts, it definitely falls in the Gothic category. There is a lot of tragic content (being disowned, attempted rape, dysphoria, misgendering) and Laurence deserves better.
Textually, on a sentence and language level it is stunningly beautiful. I read a friend this passage, and they said it grabbed them by the throat, "Hast thou never borne injustice and contumely with a sorrow that becomes scorn, a scorn which becomes patients, until some unlooked for word of sympathy has suddenly overcome thee, wringing from thy stern eyes the tears which unkindness had but frozen there? If not, read on, and thank God that the world has not fed thee with poisons until the real food of human affections has grown deadly to thee" (Howe 119).
It is a hard book to read, but it is totally worth it.

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