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Rewriting the Women of Camelot Arthurian Popular Fiction and Feminism
(Click to Enlarge)
Ann F. Howey
Book Code: GM1604
ISBN: 0-313-31604-X
ISBN-13: 978-0-313-31604-3
160 pages
Greenwood Press
Publication: 2/28/2001
List Price: $110.95 (UK Sterling Price: £65.00)
Availability: In Stock
Media Type: Hardcover
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Subjects: Reviews:
  • ...it fills a previously bare niche in explorations of Arthurian literature, not an easy task.
    —The Historical Novels Review     December 2001
  • Howey's consideration of the role Arthurian fiction plays in popular culture's acceptance of feminism is an interesting and compelling investigation.
    —Arthuriana
Description: Though firmly rooted in the Middle Ages, Arthurian legend has captivated readers since Caxton and Malory and continues to thrive today. By looking at contemporary reworkings of Arthuriana, this book explores the intersection of popular fiction and feminist discourses in Western society. It examines selected Arthurian novels and short stories by such women writers as Fay Sampson, Mary Stewart, Gillian Bradshaw, and Marion Zimmer Bradley to analyze the textual strategies that articulate feminist ideas. While these texts maintain continuity with established literary traditions through the replication of conventions, their reworking of women's roles encourages readers to engage liberal feminist ideology. The book first gives an overview of theories of popular fiction, feminism, and reading. It then surveys the medieval texts on which the Arthurian tradition is founded and which the contemporary texts rewrite. The chapters that follow discuss how popular contemporary women writers have reworked Arthurian legend through their narrative strategies and their representation of female character types, such as the royal woman and the magical woman.
Table of Contents:
  • Preface
  • Introduction
  • Definitions and Other Theoretical Issues
  • The Medieval Legacy
  • Images of Royal Women
  • Images of Magical Women
  • Women as Protagonists
  • Narrative Techniques
  • Rewriting Arthurian Women in Short Fiction
  • Appendix A: Publishing Background
  • Appendix B: Names and Roles of Characters
  • Bibliography
  • Index
LC Card Number: 00-042226
LCC Class: PR888
Dewey Class: 823
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