New York Women of Wit in the Twentieth Century

Female humorists have been resisted and overlooked, but New York Women of Wit in the Twentieth Century focuses on the foremothers of womens humor in modern America, who used satire, irony, and wit as indirect forms of social protest. Sabrina Fuchs Abrams argues that the advent of modernism, the womens suffrage movement, the emergence of the New Woman and the New Negro Woman, and the growth of urban centers in the 1920s and 30s gave rise to a new voice of womens humor.

Format: Hardback
Length: 244 pages
Publication date: 21 November 2023
Publisher: Pennsylvania State University Press

Female humorists have often been perceived as being too intelligent, too sassy, too sexy, and too outspoken, leading to their resistance and marginalization within the realm of comedy. However, New York Women of Wit in the Twentieth Century seeks to rectify this tendency by highlighting the pioneering foremothers of women's humor in modern America. These women employed satire, irony, and wit as subtle yet powerful tools for social protest, challenging the prevailing norms and expectations of gender roles in American society.

The book specifically focuses on the women who inhabited the periphery of predominantly male New York intellectual circles during the twentieth century. Sabrina Fuchs Abrams argues that the arrival of modernism, the women's suffrage movement, the emergence of the New Woman and the New Negro Woman, as well as the growth of urban centers in the 1920s and 30s, gave rise to a distinct voice of women's humor. This new voice was characterized by its defiance and complexity in defining female identity and the underlying assumptions about gender roles in American society.

Through her comprehensive study, Abrams pays particular attention to the contributions of several notable satirists, including Edna St. Vincent Millay (pseudonym Nancy Boyd), Tess Slesinger, Dorothy Parker, Jessie Redmon Fauset, Dawn Powell, and Mary McCarthy. Grounded in theories of humor, feminist and critical race theory, and urban studies, this book appeals to scholars and students interested in women writers, feminist humor, modern American literature, and African American studies. By delving into the lives and works of these pioneering female humorists, New York Women of Wit in the Twentieth Century offers valuable insights into the evolution of women's humor and its role in shaping the cultural landscape of twentieth-century America.

Weight: 522g
Dimension: 159 x 237 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780271095714