Author of feminist classic has died

» Published: November 19 2024

Author of feminist classic has died
Photo: Anna Tomforde

Share this article

Sandra M Gilbert, who together with Susan Gubar wrote the groundbreaking feminist classic "The Madwoman in the Attic", has passed away at the age of 87, writes The New York Times.

The book was published in 1979 and analyzes the literary strategies used by, among others, Mary Shelley, Jane Austen, and Emily Dickinson in a patriarchal world. "The Madwoman in the Attic" became a widely used concept, and is taken from Charlotte Brontë's book "Jane Eyre". There, the angelic governess Jane notices more and more of a confined "mad" woman in the attic: as a symbol for everything women are not allowed to be.

"Even the most apparently conservative female authors create compulsively strong independent individuals who try to destroy the patriarchal structures that both their authors and their submissive heroines seem to accept as inevitable", wrote Gilbert and Gubar.

The duo's last book together was "Still Mad: American Women Writers and the Feminist Imagination" (2021), which they wrote after Donald Trump won the presidential election in 2016 over Hillary Clinton.

Tags

Author

TTT
By TTEnglish edition by Sweden Herald, adapted for local and international readers

More news

The Handmaid's Tale Banned in Alberta School Libraries
1 MIN READ

The Handmaid's Tale Banned in Alberta School Libraries

Woody Allen Expresses Interest in Filming with Donald Trump
1 MIN READ

Woody Allen Expresses Interest in Filming with Donald Trump

Police Criticized for Canceling Yasin's Trädgården Festival Performance
1 MIN READ

Police Criticized for Canceling Yasin's Trädgården Festival Performance

Dwayne Johnson Stars in Film Competing at Venice Film Festival
3 MIN READ

Dwayne Johnson Stars in Film Competing at Venice Film Festival

SVT's It's in the Walls Tops TV Ratings This Week
1 MIN READ

SVT's It's in the Walls Tops TV Ratings This Week

Warwick Davis Returns as Flitwick in New Harry Potter Series
1 MIN READ

Warwick Davis Returns as Flitwick in New Harry Potter Series

Def Leppard to Perform at Dalhalla in Sweden Next Year
1 MIN READ

Def Leppard to Perform at Dalhalla in Sweden Next Year

Netflix to Release Swedish Drama on Axel von Fersen's Life
1 MIN READ

Netflix to Release Swedish Drama on Axel von Fersen's Life

Sweden Introduces Cultural Canon After Years of Debate
3 MIN READ

Sweden Introduces Cultural Canon After Years of Debate

Siw Malmkvist's Life Explored in New Documentary "The Film about Siw"
3 MIN READ

Siw Malmkvist's Life Explored in New Documentary "The Film about Siw"

Klas Östergren Explores Peace Movement's Struggles in New Novel
4 MIN READ

Klas Östergren Explores Peace Movement's Struggles in New Novel

Disney+ to Release First Swedish Drama Series "Koka björn" on October 15
1 MIN READ

Disney+ to Release First Swedish Drama Series "Koka björn" on October 15

Alicia Vikander Stars in New Putin Drama Film with Jude Law
3 MIN READ

Alicia Vikander Stars in New Putin Drama Film with Jude Law

Marie and Bill Nylander Buy One Euro House in Italian Renovation Project
2 MIN READ

Marie and Bill Nylander Buy One Euro House in Italian Renovation Project

New Ice Age Film Boiling Point Premieres February 2027
1 MIN READ

New Ice Age Film Boiling Point Premieres February 2027

Protesters in Venice Rally Against Gaza Conflict During Film Festival
1 MIN READ

Protesters in Venice Rally Against Gaza Conflict During Film Festival

Bob Hund Fans Parade Through Stockholm Ahead of Final Concert
1 MIN READ

Bob Hund Fans Parade Through Stockholm Ahead of Final Concert

Mads Mikkelsen Talks Filming Challenges for The Last Viking
3 MIN READ

Mads Mikkelsen Talks Filming Challenges for The Last Viking

Critics Disappointed by Hov1's Farewell Concert in Stockholm
2 MIN READ

Critics Disappointed by Hov1's Farewell Concert in Stockholm

Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein Debuts at Venice Film Festival
3 MIN READ

Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein Debuts at Venice Film Festival