Product Description: "By comparing 'ideologies surrounding women and books' on both sides of the Atlantic, it offers new interpretations of canonical texts in a series of fascinating pairings of British and American texts. . . . The most original aspect of the book is its examination of the woman reader as she appeared in illustrations in popular novels and the way illustration functioned as ‘a vehicle for illuminating issues of gender...read more

Product Description: In 1892, Charlotte Perkins Gilman published her landmark work, The Yellow Wall-Paper, generating spirited debates in literary and political circles on both sides of the Atlantic. Today this story of a young wife and mother succumbing to madness is hailed both as a feminist classic and a key text in the American literary canon...read more

Product Description: Leading scholars from the United States and England analyze the rich interplay of illustration with text to exemplify the means by which visual culture evolved. This important work contains eight new essays, arranged chronologically...read more

This collection underscores the contemporary relevance of Gilman's analysis of American society, the enduring value of her literary and theoretical work, but also raises questions about the limitations embodied and revealed in her analyses. These essays offer a range of assessments regarding Gilman's mixed legacy-her vision for a truly humane, egalitarian world alongside her persistent presentation of class, ethnic, and racial stereotypes. (view table of contents)