Policy Press Women, Politics and the Public Sphere

Women, Politics and the Public Sphere is a socio-historical analysis of the relationship between women, politics and the public sphere. It looks at the fault-lines established in the eighteenth century for later developments in social and political discourse and considers the implications for the political representation of women in the West and globally, highlighting how women public intellectuals now reflect much more social and cultural diversity. Covering the legacy of eighteenth-century intellectual groupings which were dominated by women such as members of the 'bluestocking circles' and other more radical intellectual and philosophical thinkers, the book focuses on women such as Catherine Macaulay and Mary Wollstonecraft. These individuals and groups which emerged in the eighteenth century established 'intellectual spaces' for the emergence of women public intellectuals in subsequent centuries. It also examines women public intellectuals in the US including Samantha Power, Anne-Marie Slaughter, Elizabeth Warren, Condoleezza Rice, Susan Rice, Hillary Clinton and Sheryl Sandberg. Review "A remarkable book about women as public intellectuals, covering three centuries. Obstacles and opportunities to women's involvement in the public sphere, including in the USA, are carefully analysed." Miriam E. David, Professor Emerita, UCL Institute of Education About the Author Ann Brooks took up the position of Professor in Sociology at Bournemouth University in January 2015. She has held positions in universities in Singapore, Australia and New Zealand and has held visiting fellowships and scholarships in Singapore and the U.S. Ann s research interests are wide ranging including: sociology of emotions; intimacy and emotions in contemporary society; academic women and universities; gender in organisational structures; human rights, migration and emotions; gender and differentiated labour markets in Southeast Asia and the West; cultural economy, cultural theory, consumption and urban spaces; and popular culture.