Collected Letters of a Renaissance Feminist

This is a collection of the letters of Laura Cereta (1469-1499), which present feminist issues in a predominantly male environment. Cereta's works circulated widely in Italy, and in them she explores the history of women's contributions to the intellectual and political life of Europe. Cereta argues against the slavery of women in marriage and for the rights of women to higher education, the same issues which have occupied women of later centuries. The letters also furnish a detailed portrait of an early modern woman's private experience, for Cereta addressed many letters to a close circle of family and friends, discussing highly personal concerns, such as her difficult relationships with her mother and husband. The letters provide a testament to an individual woman and to enduring feminist concerns.