Judith Sargent Murray: A Brief History with Documents, Vol. 1 » (1st Edition)

Sheila L. Skemp is professor of history at the University of Mississippi, where she received an award for Outstanding teacher in the Liberal Arts. She is the author of William Franklin: Son of a Patriot, Servant of a King (1990) and of Benjamin and William Franklin: Father and Son, Patriot and Loyalist (Bedford Books, 1994). She has also served as co-editor of two volumes dealing with issues of race and gender in the South. Skemp is currently completing a full-length cultural biography of Judith Sargent Murray.

Judith Sargent Murray (1751-1820) was at the center of the post-Revolution discussion concerning the proper role of women in the new Republic. Her voice dominated American discussion of women's character and their future in both intimate and public life. Here, Sheila Skemp supports her biographical essay with 15 of Murray's letters, essays, and poems.

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A brief study of the life and work of America's first notable feminist, providing a window on gender issues being debated during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Nine thematic chapters examine Murray's experience of and pronouncements on marriage, motherhood, religion, women's education, writing, and the construction of gender in American society. Fifteen primary documents, including letters, poems, and essays, give access to her views. Includes a chronology. Distributed by St. Martin's Press. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.