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Lorraine Code, ed., ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FEMINIST THEORIES: Sarah Gamble, ed., ROUTLEDGE CRITICAL DICTIONARY OF FEMINISM AND POSTFEMINISM
These two new resources from Routledge explain the intricacies of feminist thought in ways of value to the initiated and the uninitiated alike. The Encyclopedia states as its purpose
to produce a resource for students and teachers across the academic disciplines -- both those already involved in feminist studies, and those interested in learning about this area of inquiry.... Its most innovative features are its cross-disciplinary scope; and the inclusion of mini-biographies of feminist theorists, designed to introduce readers to some of the makers of feminist theory, and to acknowledge the specifically located crafting processes that make feminist knowledge possible. (p.xxiv)
Later, the editor adds, "Given that feminist theory has infiltrated most if not all of the established academic disciplines and fields of inquiry/research in the English-speaking world, many of the volume's longest entries address the state of feminist inquiry in those disciplines" (p.xxiv).
In short, then, there are three hallmarks of the Encyclopedia that need illustration: biographical entries, the application of feminist theory in specific disciplines, and crossdisciplinarity.
The editor says she was limited (by the publisher?) to sixty mini-biographies. Who are these women (and men?) who made it through a rigorous selection process? A list would have been helpful, but none is provided. The next best way to find them, and a quicker one than paging through the entire book, is to scan the thirty-page, double-columned subject index looking for names that are followed by page numbers in bold. A quick scan turned up writers...