Femicidal fears
Subtitle: narratives of the female gothic experience
By: Helene Meyers.
Series: SUNY series in feminist criticism and theory
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Published: 2001
Place of publication: Albany
Language: eng
Number of pages: 211
Subjects: English fiction -- 20th century -- History and criticism; Gothic revival (Literature) -- Great Britain -- History -- 20th century; Feminism and literature -- English-speaking countries -- History -- 20th century; Women and literature -- English-speaking countries -- History -- 20th century; English fiction -- Women authors -- History and criticism; American fiction -- 20th century -- History and criticism; Gothic revival (Literature) -- United States; Feminist fiction -- History and criticism; Horror tales -- History and criticism; Narration (Rhetoric)
Description: In Femicidal Fears, Helene Meyers examines contemporary femicidal plots - plots in which women are killed or fear for their lives - to argue that these female Gothic novels of death actually bring the nuances of feminist thought to life. Through her examination of works by Angela Carter, Muriel Spark, Edna O'Brien, Beryl Bainbridge, Joyce Carol Oates, and Margaret Atwood, as well as such infamous cases as the Montreal Massacre and the Yorkshire Ripper, Meyers contends that these demicidal plots restage and embody feminist debates flattened by such glib and automatic phrases as "essentialism" and "victim feminism." Bringing the Gothic and the quotidian together in discussions of heterosexual romance, the sadomasochistic couple, female paranoia, postfeminism, and images of the female body, the book affirms that refusing victimization may not be a simple story, but it is nevertheless one worth telling. -- from back cover.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 183-199) and index.