Title: The writings of Hesba Stretton : reclaiming the outcast /
Authors: Lomax, Elaine, 1947-
Publisher: Ashgate,
Year: 2009
Subjects: Stretton, Hesba, Criticism and interpretation.; Women authors, English; Children's literature Authorship; Literature and society Great Britain History; Social reformers Great Britain.; Children in literature
Abstract: "Highly respected as a writer by critics and commentators, Hesba Stretton (1832-1911) was a vigorous campaigner for the rights of oppressed minorities and a founding member of the London Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Though she is known today primarily as a writer of evangelical fiction for young people, including Jessica's First Prayer, this characterization fails to acknowledge the extensive range of her writings and social activism.
Contents: Part 1 Private and Public Lives: Writing and Reading Worlds: -- Personal writings, published texts, biographical perspectives -- Publishers, writers, readers and responses. -- Part 2 Roles, Representations and Social Relations: -- The child: text, context and intertext -- 'Worth her weight in gold': subtexts of sexuality -- Versions of womanhood: perspectives on motherhood and gender -- Outcast society and society's outcasts -- Religion, romance, reform and revolution: the Russian connection