Description: Mary Astell: Reason, Gender, Faith includes essays from a variety of disciplinary perspectives to consider the full range of Astell's political, theological, philosophical, and poetic writings. The volume's contributors show Astell to have had few parallels among her contemporaries, bestowing upon her the attention that she deserves-not merely as a proto-feminist, but as a major figure of the early modern period.
Review Quotes: 'This is an excellent collection and contributes much to an understanding of Astell in her contemporary contexts.' Ecclesiastical History 'This is exactly the sort of anthology of Astell's writings which is needed in English. Mary Astell: Reason, Gender, Faith makes an excellent critical companion... as well as being an important new contribution to the study of Mary Astell in its own right.' Gender & History 'Gracefully acknowledging the earlier feminist recovery work, this collection moves past benchmark labels to position Astell within the discourses of power, authority, and spirituality in her lifetime... essential reading for its portrayal of a woman fully engaged with the central intellectual debates of her times.' The Scriblerian