Helene Cixous: A Politics of Writing

by Morag Shiach

Helene Cixous' analyses of the relations between sexuality and textual production have transformed theoretical discussion of gender and writing. Her work on the implications of a feminine economy in writing, and insistence on the bodily dimensions of textual production have led to a new understanding of the project of feminist literary criticism. Morag Shiach provides an introduction for the English-speaking reader to the range of Cixous's creative and theoretical writings. In dealing with Cixous' theoretical arguments, Shiach both clarifies the philosophical and historical context of her work, and insists on its novelty and specificity. The book offers close analysis of Cixous' fictional texts, as well as her discussions of the relations between the political and the textual. There is also a detailed account of Cixous' theatrical writings, and of her collaboration with the Theatre du Soleil. This book should be of interest to students and teachers of women's studies, gender studies, cultural studies, and continental philosophy.

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 24, 1991