Rewriting the Women of Camelot: Arthurian Popular Fiction and Feminism

(Hardback)

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Description

Though firmly rooted in the Middle Ages, Arthurian legend has captivated readers since Caxton and Malory and continues to thrive today. By looking at contemporary reworkings of Arthuriana, this book explores the intersection of popular fiction and feminist discourses in Western society. It examines selected Arthurian novels and short stories by such women writers as Fay Sampson, Mary Stewart, Gillian Bradshaw, and Marion Zimmer Bradley to analyze the textual strategies that articulate feminist ideas. While these texts maintain continuity with established literary traditions through the replication of conventions, their reworking of women's roles encourages readers to engage liberal feminist ideology. The book first gives an overview of theories of popular fiction, feminism, and reading. It then surveys the medieval texts on which the Arthurian tradition is founded and which the contemporary texts rewrite. The chapters that follow discuss how popular contemporary women writers have reworked Arthurian legend through their narrative strategies and their representation of female character types, such as the royal woman and the magical woman.

Reviews

.,."it fills a previously bare niche in explorations of Arthurian literature, not an easy task."-The Historical Novels Review
...it fills a previously bare niche in explorations of Arthurian literature, not an easy task.-The Historical Novels Review
Howey's consideration of the role Arthurian fiction plays in popular culture's acceptance of feminism is an interesting and compelling investigation.-Arthuriana
..."it fills a previously bare niche in explorations of Arthurian literature, not an easy task."-The Historical Novels Review
"Howey's consideration of the role Arthurian fiction plays in popular culture's acceptance of feminism is an interesting and compelling investigation."-Arthuriana

Author Bio

ANN F. HOWEY is a sessional lecturer in English at the University of Alberta. Her interests include contemporary uses of Arthurian legend and popular fiction. She has published articles in Extrapolation and Arthuriana and is currently coauthoring a book-length bibliography of modern Arthurian texts.