We Women and Our Authors

"We Women and Our Authors" by Laura Marholm is a critical examination of the role women play in literature, written in the late 19th century. This work delves into the evolving consciousness of women and their relationship with authorship, particularly focusing on the influential male writers of the time and their portrayals of women. Marholm explores the themes of female independence, individuality, and self-awareness against the backdrop of the literary landscape shaped by prominent figures. The opening of the book sets the tone for Marholm's exploration of women's changing roles in society through literature. She reflects on a time when women were seen primarily as appendages to men, yet she observes a burgeoning desire among women to assert their individuality. This transformation is attributed to the literary works of contemporary authors, who not only depicted women but also influenced their awakening and desire for independence. Marholm identifies various writers, including Gottfried Keller and Paul Heyse, noting how their portrayals of women prompted a deeper self-understanding and a quest for autonomy among female readers. Throughout the opening portion, it becomes clear that Marholm intends to engage in a comprehensive analysis of literature's impact on gender dynamics in her era. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Laura Katharina Marholm (1854–1928) was a Baltic-German writer of literary criticism, biographies about women, and novels. The main characters in her novels were women who felt fulfilled in marriage. Marholm was a New Woman feminist that wrote about feminist issues. Due to some of her beliefs, some other feminists did not consider Marholm to be among them. She believed that literature could be used to help gender relations. Some of Marholm's works were part of "feminist literary criticism" known as gynocriticism, 70 years before the term was coined, with much of that work being focused on Nordic women authors.