Democracy in Contemporary U.S. Women's Poetry - (American Literature Readings in the 21st Century) by N Marsh (Hardcover)

About the Book

"This book supplements existing narratives of feminist poetry by examining how contemporary women poets have interrogated what it means to be public. It draws on recent debates in democratic theory and third-wave feminism to explore the work of women poets as varied as Susan Howe, Rita Dove, Jorie Graham, Harryette Mullen, and Leslie Scalapino. It examines how these poets offer a critique of the normative conventions of U.S. democracy, particularly its assumptions about public and private, and use their writing, and its cultural structures, to model alternatives to them."--Jacket.

Book Synopsis

This book reads the work of contemporary women poets against recent debates in third wave feminism and democratic theory in exploring the range of ways in which women poets have interrogated the complexities of being public in contemporary U.S culture.

Review Quotes

'This book offers a set of ingenious readings of an unusual grouping of women poets, most of whom have been insufficiently studied and are now set in juxtaposition with each other in highly productive and illuminating ways. Comparison of Hejinian and Scalapino along the axis of public/private and spatiality/personhood, which underlies debates about citizenship is a juxtaposition that has an opportunity to become a foundational reading in secondary literature on women language poets. The careful readings of Spahr and Jarnot were quite moving and insightful. A strong and welcome contribution to the field.' - Maria Damon, University of Minnesota

About the Author

NICKY MARSH works in English at the University of Southampton and is the Director of Southampton's Centre for Contemporary Writing, UK.