A. S. Byatt and Intellectual Women

Leanne Bibby is Senior Lecturer in English Studies at Teesside University, UK.

• 1 Introduction.- 2 Cultural Histories of the Intellectual: From Patriarchal Myth to Feminist Mythopoeia.- 3 A. S. Byatt: Creating the Intellectual Woman.- 4 Minds and Bodies.- 5 Intellectuals and Sexual Specificity.- 6 Women Intellectuals, Private Intellectuals?.- 7 Future Histories of Intellectual Women.- 8 Afterword: Mythopoeia: Beyond Torment.

“Bibby’s book proves rewarding in its discussion of Byatt’s female characters, particularly regarding their relationship with art, history, and the patriarchal tradition. There are moments of insight when she unravels the plethora of cultural theories that contribute to the making of Byatt’s unique women intellectuals, whose life stories vie with those of their male counterparts for the reader’s attention.” (Xiuchun Zhang, Women's Studies, Vol. 52 (1), 2023)