| Mother Puzzles: Daughters and Mothers in Contemporary American Literature Contributor(s): Pearlman, Mickey (Author) |
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ISBN: 0313264147 ISBN-13: 9780313264146 Publisher: Praeger OUR PRICE: $94.05 Product Type: Hardcover Published: December 1989 Annotation: Despite extraordinary attention within the past five years by novelists, playwrights, and critics, the subject of mothers and daughters, and motherhood and daughterhood, has remained complicated and compelling. Mother Puzzles is a unique collection that examines how women who write have dealt with those relationships. Pearlman notes in her introduction that "missing mothers"--mothers who are physically present but emotionally absent--are often found in works by women. The question this collection addresses is why the mother, as currently portrayed in American literature by women, "has moved from sainted marginality (as icon), to vicious caricature (as destroyer), to the puzzling figure that emerges here," and why these works are often also about incest and sexual abuse. Among the authors studied are Sue Miller, Tillie Olsen, Marilyn French, Gail Godwin, Mary Gordon, Marsha Norman, and Susan Fromberg Schaeffer. Feminist/literary/psychological analyses of Housekeeping, Lovingkindness, Fierce Attachments, Men and Angels, 'night Mother, The Snow Queen, and The Good Mother are included. These essays will interest scholars in American literature, readers of contemporary fiction, and those interested in Women's Studies. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Literary Criticism | American - General - Literary Criticism | Women Authors - Social Science | Gender Studies |
| Dewey: 810.935 |
| Series: Contributions to the Study of Aging, |
| Physical Information: 0.5" H x 6.14" W x 9.21" (1.05 lbs) 210 pages |
| Themes: - Sex & Gender - Feminine |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Despite extraordinary attention within the past five years by novelists, playwrights, and critics, the subject of mothers and daughters, and motherhood and daughterhood, has remained complicated and compelling. Mother Puzzles is a unique collection that examines how women who write have dealt with those relationships. Pearlman notes in her introduction that missing mothers--mothers who are physically present but emotionally absent--are often found in works by women. The question this collection addresses is why the mother, as currently portrayed in American literature by women, has moved from sainted marginality (as icon), to vicious caricature (as destroyer), to the puzzling figure that emerges here, and why these works are often also about incest and sexual abuse. Among the authors studied are Sue Miller, Tillie Olsen, Marilyn French, Gail Godwin, Mary Gordon, Marsha Norman, and Susan Fromberg Schaeffer. Feminist/literary/psychological analyses of Housekeeping, Lovingkindness, Fierce Attachments, Men and Angels, 'night Mother, The Snow Queen, and The Good Mother are included. These essays will interest scholars in American literature, readers of contemporary fiction, and those interested in Women's Studies. |
