Through the Reading Glass

Women, Books, and Sex in the French Enlightenment

By Suellen Diaconoff | Publisher: State University of New York Press

About the book

2005 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title

Through the Reading Glass explores the practices and protocols that surrounded women's reading in eighteenth-century France. Looking at texts as various as fairy tales, memoirs, historical romances, short stories, love letters, novels, and the pages of the new female periodical press, Suellen Diaconoff shows how a reading culture, one in which books, sex, and acts of reading were richly and evocatively intertwined, was constructed for and by women. Diaconoff proposes that the underlying discourse of virtue found in women's work was both an empowering strategy, intended to create new kinds of responsible and not merely responsive readers, and an integral part of the conviction that domestic reading does not have to be trivial.

Editions of Through the Reading Glass

Hardcover
ISBN 9780791464212
Paperback
ISBN 9780791464229
PDF
ISBN 9780791483398

Read an Excerpt

2005 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title

Through the Reading Glass explores the practices and protocols that surrounded women's reading in eighteenth-century France. Looking at texts as various as fairy tales, memoirs, historical romances, short stories, love letters, novels, and the pages of the new female periodical press, Suellen Diaconoff shows how a reading culture, one in which books, sex, and acts of reading were richly and evocatively intertwined, was constructed for and by women. Diaconoff proposes that the underlying discourse of virtue found in women's work was both an empowering strategy, intended to create new kinds of responsible and not merely responsive readers, and an integral part of the conviction that domestic reading does not have to be trivial.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Through the Reading Glass about?

2005 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title

Through the Reading Glass explores the practices and protocols that surrounded women's reading in eighteenth-century France. Looking at texts as various as fairy tales, memoirs, historical romances, short stories, love letters, novels, and the pages of the new female periodical press, Suellen Diaconoff shows how a reading culture, one in which books, sex, and acts of reading were richly and evocatively intertwined, was constructed for and by women. Diaconoff proposes that the underlying discourse of virtue found in women's work was both an empowering strategy, intended to create new kinds of responsible and not merely responsive readers, and an integral part of the conviction that domestic reading does not have to be trivial.

What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Through the Reading Glass?

Biography, Literature and Literary studies > Literature: history and criticism

Where can I read a sample of Through the Reading Glass?

You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9780791464212

How long is Through the Reading Glass and how many pages does it have?

Through the Reading Glass has 276 page(s)

Is Through the Reading Glass part of a series, and can it be read as a standalone?

Yes it is a part of series SUNY series in Feminist Criticism and Theory

Who is/are the Author/s of the book Through the Reading Glass?

Suellen Diaconoff

Who is the Publisher of the book Through the Reading Glass?

State University of New York Press

What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?

Through the Reading Glass is available as hardcover(ISBN 9780791464212) and paperback(ISBN 9780791464229) and pdf(ISBN 9780791483398)

Where can I buy Through the Reading Glass online or support local independent bookshops?

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Where can I buy Through the Reading Glass?