Artikel
American woman : Feminine Speech and the Reformation of National Identity Through Female Community in Louisa May Alcott’s "An Old-Fashioned Girl"
Verfasst von:
Stover, Deanna
in:
Women's writing
Wallingford:
2018
,
80-94 S.
Weitere Informationen
| Einrichtung: | Ariadne | Wien |
|---|---|
| Verfasst von: | Stover, Deanna |
| In: | Women's writing |
| Jahr: | 2018 |
| Sprache: | Englisch |
| Beschreibung: | |
| The insecurity of American identity in the years immediately after the Civil War added to fears about the dissolution of a simple, “old-fashioned” American past. Louisa May Alcott in particular worries about the Frenchified influence of “The Girl of the Period,” a fear that she addresses in An Old-Fashioned Girl (1870). After the Civil War, Alcott saw an opportunity for women to play an essential part in the creation of a revised American identity. This article argues that the “Old-Fashioned Girl” embodies what Alcott sees as a more American value system while inspiring cultural and social change. In contrast to Republican motherhood, in which women gain power through influencing their husbands and sons, Alcott emphasizes a rhizomatic female community where women gain power through their influence on and support of other women. Furthermore, the old-fashioned girl crosses age and class boundaries by building an identity and community that Alcott characterizes as distinctly American; through their speech, women (and girls) can help render not only the home but the nation “what it should be.” | |
| Anmerkung: | |
| Notes: Seiten 91-94 | |
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