Contemporary Women’s Ghost Stories: Spectres, Revenants, Ghostly Returns

This book explores socially and culturally engaged Gothic ghost stories by twentieth and twenty-first century female writers, revealing links between political and personal, genocides and domestic tyrannies, and the disenfranchisement of women. It demonstrates that there is much to point the spectral finger at and speak out about in terms of women's ghost stories.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 274 pages
Publication date: 04 June 2023
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

This book presents fresh perspectives on socially and culturally engaged Gothic ghost stories by twentieth- and twenty-first-century female authors, including Shirley Jackson, Angela Carter, Toni Morrison, Ali Smith, Susan Hill, Catherine Lim, Kate Mosse, Daphne du Maurier, Helen Dunmore, Michele Roberts, and Zheng Cho. Through the haunting presence of ghosts, possessions, and visitations, women's ghost stories reveal the connections between political and personal spheres, genocides, and domestic tyrannies, serving as a constant reminder of violence and violations. Historically, women have been marginalized and confined to domestic roles and spaces by familial and hereditary norms, leading to legal and political disenfranchisement. They have been sold dreams of romance and domesticity, but their ghost stories speak the unspeakable, exposing these contradictions and oppressions. Wisker's book highlights the significance of women's ghost stories in shedding light on these issues and advocating for change.

Dimension: 210 x 148 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030890568
Edition number: 1st ed. 2022