Spring: A Journal of Archetype and Culture, Volume 91, Fall 2014, Women's Voices

by Patrícia Reis (Editor), Nancy Cater (Editor)

The inspiration for this volume was the most recent book written by American writer, naturalist, and environmental activist Terry Tempest Williams and entitled When Women Were Fifty-four Variations on Voice. We are very honored that Terry Tempest Williams herself agreed to be interviewed for this volume. Her interview comes first and sets the tone for the articles that follow, as she explores in detail issues related to voice that were discussed in When Women Were Birds. Contained within this volume are articles that deal with the psychological issues that arise when women attempt to express themselves, the obstacles faced, the obstacles overcome (or not), the creativity that may released. Included are both clinical articles, as well as personal and more academic papers. In When Women Were Birds, Terry Tempest Williams asks, "What needs to be counted on to have a voice? Courage. Anger. Love. Something to say; someone to listen." The sixteen contributors to this volume recognize and demonstrate, directly or indirectly, the truth of Terry Tempest Williams' observation. They come from different places and from different backgrounds. They are writers, poets, teachers, analysts, educators, and theorists. Their writing styles vary accordingly, yet their works share similar themes, from the deeply personal to the cultural and historical, from the literary to the mythological and spiritual. Terry Tempest Williams' statement also implies a necessary bond between speaker and listener, or as in this case, author and reader, and it is our hope that this Women's Voices issue of Spring will encourage such a mutually inspired relationship.

300 pages, Paperback

First published September 18, 2014

About the author

PATRÍCIA REIS nasceu em Lisboa, a 12 de Dezembro de 1970. Começou como jornalista n' O Independente aos dezassete anos. Passou pela revista Sábado, de que foi editora, fez um estágio em Nova Iorque na revista Time e, no regresso dos EUA, colaborou no Expresso, trabalhou nas revistas Marie Claire e Elle e nos «projectos especiais» do jornal Público. Em 1997 passou a colaborar com o atelier de Henrique Cayatte, na produção de conteúdos para a Expo' 98. Desta colaboração surgiu o Atelier 004 de que é directora e que, entre outros projectos, produz a Egoísta.

Escreveu a curta biografia de Vasco Santana e o romance fotográfico Beija-me (2006), em co-autoria com João Vilhena, a novela Cruz das Almas (2004) e os romances Amor em Segunda Mão (2006), Morder-te o Coração (2007), que integrou a lista de 50 livros finalistas do Prémio Portugal Telecom de Literatura, No Silêncio de Deus (2008), Antes de Ser Feliz (2009), Por este mundo acima (2011), Contracorpo (2013) e O que nos separa dos outros por causa de um copo de whisky (2014).

Reviews

[Maria Menozzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far the best volume of Spring Journal I have yet read and I enjoy all of them. This volume is framed around Terry Tempest Williams' "When Women Were Birds" memoir about her mother, her relationship to her mother and other women in her life and how those women used their "voices." Each of the papers in this compilation speak to how each of the writers' have found, regained, or developed their unique "voices" of their lives through significant events, some stories inspired by Williams' tome, others contributing to the theme. I so enjoyed reading each of these essays. If you have an opportunity to come across this volume, I highly recommend it for not just women of all ages, but those who need to find inspiration from the stories of others who have challenged the status quo and found a way to keep moving resiliently on with their lives despite the suffering.