Mothers and Daughters in the Twentieth Century: A Literary Anthology

by Heather Ingman (Editor)

This anthology of women's writing on the mother-daughter relationship covers the whole of the twentieth century and includes writing from many different cultures - black American, Jewish, West Indian, Irish, Chinese-American. The anthology has headnotes giving brief biographical details for each author plus suggestions for further reading. There is a substantial introduction tracking the evolution of the mother-daughter relationship in the twentieth century, setting it in the context of developments in psychoanalytical and feminist theory.

* Covers fiction, non-fiction and poetry from different cultures and different decades
* Substantial introduction tracing the evolution of the mother-daugher relationship in the 20th century
* Headnotes place the extracts in their historical and cultural context
* Overview of feminist and psychoanalytical theory relating to the mother-daughter relationship

The quiet house / Charlotte Mew
From Mary Olivier / May Sinclair
The angry woman / Anna Wickham
From Bread givers / Anzia Yezierska
From South Riding / Winifred Holtby
From A sketch of the past / Virginia Woolf
From Wide Sargasso Sea / Jean Rhys
I stand here ironing / Tillie Olsen
Balloons / Sylvia Plath
From The millstone / Margaret Drabble
Mother-in-law / Andrienne Rich
From journey from the North / Storm Jameson
Heirloom / Kathleen Raine
From In search of our mothers gardens / Alice Walker
From I know why the caged bird sings / Maya Angelou
From beloved / Toni Morrison
Night feed / Eavan Boland
From Beka Lamb / Zee Edgell
From the Joy Luck Club / Amy Tan
Ashputtle, or the mother's ghost / Angela Carter
Giving birth / Margaret Atwood
God's house / Michèle Roberts

272 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 1999