Mary Eagleton

This book follows the figure of ‘the clever girl’ from the post-war to the present and focuses on the fiction, plays and memoirs of contemporary British women writers. Spurred on by an ethic of meritocracy, the clever girl is now facing austerity and declining social mobility. Though suggesting optimism, a public discourse of ‘opportunity’, ‘aspiration’ and ‘choice’ is often experienced as an anxious and chancy process. In a wide-ranging study, the book explores the struggle to move away from home and traditional notions of femininity; the persistent problems associated with women’s embodiment; the pressures of class and racial divisions; the new subjectivities of the neoliberal era; and the generational conflict underpinning austerity. The book ends with a consideration of feminism’s place as a phantom presence in this history of clever girls. This study will appeal to readers of contemporary women’s writing and to those interested in what has been one of the dominant social narratives of the post-war period from upward to declining mobility.

This book follows the figure of ‘the clever girl’ from the post-war to the present and focuses on the fiction, plays and memoirs of contemporary British women writers. Spurred on by an ethic of meritocracy, the clever girl is now facing austerity and declining social mobility. Though suggesting optimism, a public discourse of ‘opportunity’, ‘aspiration’ and ‘choice’ is often experienced as an anxious and chancy process. In a wide-ranging study, the book explores the struggle to move away from home and traditional notions of femininity; the persistent problems associated with women’s embodiment; the pressures of class and racial divisions; the new subjectivities of the neoliberal era; and the generational conflict underpinning austerity. The book ends with a consideration of feminism’s place as a phantom presence in this history of clever girls. This study will appeal to readers of contemporary women’s writing and to those interested in what has been one of the dominant social narratives of the post-war period from upward to declining mobility.

Richard Hoggart: Culture and Critique provides a detailed and critical analysis of Hoggart's life and work. Some of the contributions come from a personal knowledge of and collegial friendship with Hoggart and help us to know more about particular aspects of his biography. Other contributors have sought to fit Hoggart within a British tradition from Matthew Arnold, through F. R. Leavis to E. P. Thompson and Raymond Williams. Read in their entirety, this lively collection of essays raise fundamental questions about culture and the arts, moral and aesthetic sensibility, educated citizenship and social democracy, and will be of interest to students and academics in social history, literary criticism, media studies and cultural sociology.

The Concise Companion to Feminist Theory introduces readers to the broad scope of feminist theory over the last 35 years. Introduces readers to the broad scope of feminist theory over the past 35 years. Guides students along the cutting edge of current feminist theory. Suitable for students and scholars of all fields touched by feminist thought. Covers an exceptionally broad range of disciplines, discourses and feminist positions. Organised around concepts rather than schools of feminism.

The Concise Companion to Feminist Theory introduces readers to the broad scope of feminist theory over the last 35 years. Introduces readers to the broad scope of feminist theory over the past 35 years. Guides students along the cutting edge of current feminist theory. Suitable for students and scholars of all fields touched by feminist thought. Covers an exceptionally broad range of disciplines, discourses and feminist positions. Organised around concepts rather than schools of feminism.

Using the concepts and practices of feminist literary criticism, this constantly challenging workbook not only makes the connection between women's writing and women's lives but breaks new ground in enabling students to apply critical concepts and to feel more at ease with the texts common to feminist literary theory.

Is there a distinctive women's tradition in literature? Do women write differently from men? What does it mean to define a piece of writing as "feminist"? Do women encounter particular problems in becoming writers? These are among the many questions addressed, debated and illuminated in this new edition of Mary Eagleton's classic Reader in feminist literary theory. Radically revised and expanded from its original format, this second edition retains all the features that have made it indispensable to students and teachers of feminist literary theory across the world for a decade. The range of the collection remains unmatched by any similar volume, providing a superb point of entry into one of the broadest and most vibrant areas of contemporary theory. New material has been introduced throughout the Reader, reflecting, in particular: the growing diversity of Black feminism, the continuing influence of "French feminism" and the fundamental impact of postmodernism on feminism. New emphases have been introduced in every section, and a chapter covering postmodernist theories of subjectivity has been added. Fully indexed to make cross–referencing simple, this new edition is the perfect introduction to feminist literary theory today.