Feminist Literary Criticism Lacanian Psychoanalysis Gender Bias

Feminist literary criticism occupies a very important historical place in feminist theory and practice today with many of the first successful women in the west being writers, educators, critics and littérateurs.

Indeed, literature has never been seen as overtly masculine and book writing is largely a form of domestic production women have gained access to novel writing and other forms of literary work at a time when virtually every other form of non-domestic and paid occupation was closed to them except governess which was again a residential activity. This is why women authors were among the first of their sex to enter public life.While some scholars still dispute the entry of women in the field of literature, feminist literary criticism a tool of their movement to bring about gender parity in society. Feminists argue that because of its historicity, there is a distinctive women's tradition in literature and, as different hormonal entities with alternate experiences and perspective, women do write differently from men even if their writing may sometimes be overtly feminist or directly promote the values of womens equality and liberation.

Due to persistent sexism and forms of oppression of women in society, feminist literary criticism has always been on a high due to which women face particular problems in becoming writers as well as other successful professional, especially in backward cultures. The history of literary criticism highlights feminism as broad and varied ranging from that of classics by 19th century authors like George Elliot and Margaret Fuller.

Early feminist literary criticism that took place during the period before the 1970s has been concerned with the representation of women in literature and the politics of being a woman writer while later day criticism is more divergent, analyzing gender in terms of Freudian and Lacanian psychoanalysis, deconstructing power relations and viewing gender as a concrete political investment. It has also laid the foundation of transsexual and queer studies.

Linguist Lisa Tittle has defined the scope of modern day feminist literary criticism as work that aims to uncover the tradition of womens writing, rediscover old texts, uncover the symbolism in womens works lost to the male gaze, resist sexism and combat politics in language and style.

Feminist literary criticism detractors continue to dispute the entry of women in literature and their various successes, challenging the practice of women taking up writing as a professional and the perceived lack of strength and acuity in their work. Feminist Literary Theory: A Reader by Mary Eagleton analyses their point of view as well as that of the others and opens up the debate surrounding the women writers and reflects on the growing diversity of black and nonwestern writing and criticism while attempting to summarize the accomplishments of womens critics and the challenges and motivation that they face in the present times. Feminist literary criticism