Over the last 20 years, there has been an increasing interest in
feminist views of the Italian literary tradition. While feminist theory
and methodology have been accepted by the academic community in the
U.S., the situation is very different in Italy, where such work has
been done largely outside the academy. Among nonspecialists, knowledge
of feminist approaches to Italian literature, and even of the existence
of Italian women writers, remains scant. This reference work, the first
of its kind on Italian literature, is a companion volume for all who
wish to investigate Italian literary culture and writings, both by
women and by men, in light of feminist theory. This volume covers eight
centuries of Italian literature, from the Middle Ages to the present.
Included are entries for major canonical male authors, such as Dante,
Petrarch, and Boccaccio, as well as for female writers such as Lucrezia
Marinella and Gianna Manzini. These entries discuss how the authors
have shaped the image of women in Italian literature and how feminist
criticism has responded to their works. Entries are also provided for
various schools and movements, such as deconstruction, Marxism, and new
historicism; for genres and forms, such as the epic, devotional works,
and misogynistic literature; for figures and types, such as the
enchantress, the witch, and the shepherdess; and for numerous other
topics. Each entry is written by an expert contributor, summarizes the
relationship of the topic to feminist thought, and includes a brief
bibliography. The volume closes with a selected general bibliography of
major studies.