|
Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social institutions > Customs & folklore > Folklore
A Feminist Mythology takes us on a poetic journey through the
canonical myths of femininity, testing them from the point of view
of our modern condition. A myth is not an object, but rather a
process, one that Chiara Bottici practises by exploring different
variants of the myth of "womanhood" through first- and third-person
prose and poetry. We follow a series of myths that morph into each
other, disclosing ways of being woman that question inherited
patriarchal orders. In this metamorphic world, story-telling is not
just a mix of narrative, philosophical dialogues and metaphysical
theorizing: it is a current that traverses all of them by
overflowing the boundaries it encounters. In doing so, A Feminist
Mythology proposes an alternative writing style that recovers
ancient philosophical and literary traditions from the pre-Socratic
philosophers and Ovid's Metamorphoses to the philosophical novellas
and feminist experimental writings of the last century.
In 1933 and 1934, Thomas Minehan, a young sociologist at the
University of Minnesota, joined the ranks of a roving army of
250,000 boys and girls torn from their homes during the Great
Depression. Disguised in old clothes, he hopped freight trains
crisscrossing six midwestern states. While undercover, Minehan
associated on terms of social equality with several thousand
transients, collecting five hundred life histories of the young
migrants. The result was a vivid and intimate portrayal of a
harrowing existence, one in which young people suffered some of the
deadliest blows of the economic disaster. Boy and Girl Tramps of
America reveals the poignant experiences of American youth who were
sent out on the road by grinding poverty, shattered family
relationships, and financially strapped schools that locked their
doors. For these young people, danger was a constant companion that
could turn deadly in an instant. The book documents the hunger and
hardships these youth faced, capturing an appalling spectacle and
social problem in America's history before any effort was made to
meet the problem on a nationwide basis by the federal government.
Boy and Girl Tramps of America is a work unique in its ability to
extend beyond statistical analyses to uncover the opinions, ideas,
and attitudes of the boxcar boys and girls. Originally published in
1934, it remains highly relevant to the turbulent moments of the
twenty-first century. This reprint features an introduction by
scholar Susan Honeyman that puts the work into our current context.
Naomi "Omie" Wise was drowned by her lover in the waters of North
Carolina's Deep River in 1807, and her murder has been remembered
in ballad and story for well over two centuries. Mistakes,
romanticization and misremembering have been injected into Naomi's
biography over time, blurring the line between reality and fiction.
The authors of this book, whose family has lived in the Deep River
area since the 18th century, are descendants of many of the people
who knew Naomi Wise or were involved in her murder investigation.
This is the story of a young woman betrayed and how her death gave
way to the folk traditions by which she is remembered today. The
book sheds light on the plight of impoverished women in early
America and details the fascinating inner workings of the Piedmont
North Carolina Quaker community that cared for Naomi in her final
years and kept her memory alive.
|
|