Crucial Conversations: Interpreting Contemporary American Literary Autobiographies by Women (Athene Series)

Rating:
Summary: A fine resource on autobiography
Review: "As a student, teacher, and writer of autobiography, I found this book thought-provoking and well-written. This study, which draws on--and re-examines--theories of female development as well as psychoanalytic theory, asks us to investigate the myriad ways in which memory and imagination can recombine to create a life story. This book encourages us to explore how a metaphor such as Bettina Aptheker's "braiding" can help to elucidate possible meanings within a text. It asks us to scrutinize the pact negotiated between author and reader to comprehend better the factors that might affect a reader's access to an author's experinece. Because it is such a highly accessible and readable text, CRUCIAL CONVERSATIONS might be used effectively in a variety of literature, women's studies, and autobiography courses. This book might also become a valuable resource for those of us who conceive of autobiography not only as theory but also as praxis." Excerpted from review published in a/b: Auto/biography Studies, 12.2(Fall 1997).

Rating:
Summary: A fine resource on autobiography
Review: "As a student, teacher, and writer of autobiography, I found this book thought-provoking and well-written. This study, which draws on--and re-examines--theories of female development as well as psychoanalytic theory, asks us to investigate the myriad ways in which memory and imagination can recombine to create a life story. This book encourages us to explore how a metaphor such as Bettina Aptheker's "braiding" can help to elucidate possible meanings within a text. It asks us to scrutinize the pact negotiated between author and reader to comprehend better the factors that might affect a reader's access to an author's experinece. Because it is such a highly accessible and readable text, CRUCIAL CONVERSATIONS might be used effectively in a variety of literature, women's studies, and autobiography courses. This book might also become a valuable resource for those of us who conceive of autobiography not only as theory but also as praxis." Excerpted from review published in a/b: Auto/biography Studies, 12.2(Fall 1997).