Introduction: The Politics of Domesticating Culture, Then and Now -- The Rise of Female Authority in the Novel -- The Logic of the Social Contract -- The Logic of the Sexual Contract -- The Sexual Contract as Narrative Paradigm -- The Sexual Contract as Narrative Process -- The Rise of the Domestic Woman -- The Book of Class Sexuality -- A Country House That is Not a Country House -- Labor That is Not Labor -- Economy That is Not Money -- The Power of Feminization -- The Rise of the Novel -- The Battle of the Books -- Strategies of Self-Production: Pamela -- The Self Contained: Emma -- History in the House of Culture -- The Rhetoric of Violence: 1819 -- The Rhetoric of Disorder: 1832 -- The Politics of Domestic Fiction: 1848 -- Figures of Desire: The Brontes -- Seduction and the Scene of Reading -- The Woman's Museum: Jane Eyre -- Modern Men: Shirley and the Fuegians -- Modern Women: Dora and Mrs. Brown
Summary
"A strikingly original treatment of the rise of the novel, Desire and Domestic Fiction makes a major contribution to feminist theory, to the understanding of the role of gender in culture and its relation to political change, and to studies in the history of the British novel. Its successful application of contemporary theory, especially its use of Foucault's History of Sexuality, will interest scholars involved in the criticism of culture"--Jacket
