The Female as Subject Format: Paperback

The Female as Subject reveals the rich and lively world of literate women in Japan from 1600 through the early twentieth century. Eleven essays by an international group of scholars from Europe, Japan, and North America examine what women of different social classes read, what books were produced specifically for women, and the genres in which women themselves chose to write. The authors explore the different types of education women obtained and the levels of literacy they achieved, and they uncover women’s participation in the production of books, magazines, and speeches. The resulting depiction of women as readers and writers is also enhanced by thirty black-and-white illustrations.

P. F. Kornicki is Deputy Warden of Robinson College and Professor of East Asian Studies at the University of Cambridge.

Mara Patessio is Lecturer in Japanese history at the University of Manchester.

G. G. Rowley is Professor at