One of the earliest works of feminist philosophical literature, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: With Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects was written by Mary Wollstonecraft and published in 1792.
In this classic, Mary Wollstonecraft (not to be confused with her daughter, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, author of Frankenstein) argues for equality of men and women: Men and women are both born with equal ability to reason, and therefore power and influence should be available to all regardless of gender.
Wollstonecraft believed that regardless of wealth and social status, males and females should have the same educational opportunities. She sought radical reform of the 18th-century education system, believing that a society where females are offered the same opportunities as males would bring only beneficial change to the future of humanity. Read More→
A short story is a fantastic way to get a sense of an author’s voice. Here are ten thought-provoking classic short stories by women authors. You’ll be able to read some of them (those in the public domain) right here on this site; others are part of these authors’ short story collections.
In some ways, it can be more challenging to create a compelling narrative in a short form than within the span of a novel. Building suspense and getting the reader to care about the characters are true marks of craftsmanship. Read More→
“Désirée’s Baby” is an 1893 short story by Kate Chopin. The bold and unconventional American author best know for the classic novella The Awakening explores the hypocrisy, racism, and sexism in upper crust Creole Louisiana.
First published in the January 1893 issue of Vogue magazine as “The Father of Désirée’s Baby,” it was included in Bayou Folk, a short story collection by Chopin published the following year.
In this fairly brief short story, Chopin wove in the themes that would come to define her works, including women’s struggle for equality, suppressed emotion, and the vagaries of identity.
Abandoned as a baby, Désirée is the adopted daughter of Monsieur and Madame Valmondé, wealthy French Creoles. When she reaches young womanhood she marries Armand, the son of another wealthy French Creole family. Read More→
In 1857, Harriet Ann Jacobs (February 11, 1813 – March 7, 1897) was completing a manuscript for an account of her life as an enslaved person, and of her struggle to free herself and her children.
It took several years to bring it to fruition, following years of seeking emancipation. Jacobs was urged by abolitionists she befriended once she was able to escape to New York and New England to tell her story.
After two publishers went bust on the eve of promised publication dates (unrelated to the book itself), Jacobs was able to procure the printing plates, and had the book privately published in a small edition. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself, was published in 1861.
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Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, published in 1938, is arguably the most iconic of the prolific British author’s novels. During the British author’s lifetime, critics frequently dismissed her work because it was popular with the public — readable and riveting. That view has since been revised.
Rebecca celebrated its eightieth anniversary of publication in 2018, never having gone out of print. It was an immediate bestseller upon publication, selling more than a million copies in hardcover in a short time. It has been reprinted countless times, and translated into numerous languages. Read More→
The Awakening is an 1899 novella depicting one woman’s struggle with societal expectations in her role as a wife and mother. Following this introduction, you’ll find a collection of quotes from The Awakening by Kate Chopin.
This elegantly written novella tells the story of Edna Pontellier, a young Creole woman who craves more than the society-sanctioned role available to her. The theme of marital infidelity from the unique perspective of the woman shocked reviewers and readers alike.
The Awakening was silenced by brutal reviews in newspapers and literary publications from coast to coast. Just a few years after publication, it fell out of print. Chopin was disheartened by its reception and her writings dwindled after its publication. She died unexpectedly in 1905, just in her fifties; The Awakening fell out of print shortly after, followed by her other works, which consisted of several novels and many evocative short stories.
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Alice Dunnigan (April 27, 1906 –May 6, 1983), was the first Black American female correspondent to receive White House credentials. She had several other firsts to her credit.
She was also the first Black female member of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives press galleries. She covered Harry Truman’s 1948 presidential campaign, another first for an African American female journalist.
A true trailblazer, Alice Dunnigan was known for her tough, forthright questions. Her gutsy approach led her from journalism into a position that spanned the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. Read More→
Rebecca West (December 21, 1892 – March 15, 1983), British novelist, journalist, and essayist, was born Cicely Isabel Fairfield in County Kerry, Ireland.
Her mother was a pianist; her father, a would-be journalist and ne’er-do-well, abandoned his family when she was eight years old, after which they moved to Edinburgh, Scotland. There she was educated at George Watson’s Ladies College, though contrary to its name, was a secondary school.
At age 14, she survived tuberculosis, and had to end her education at age 16, due to lack of finances. Some time later she studied drama at a London academy. With an unhappy childhood behind her, she assumed the name Rebecca West after a strong-willed woman in Rosmersholm, a play by Ibsen. Read More→
