Women Versed in Myth: Essays on Modern Poets

Throughout history, men have prayed to gods and poets have interpreted ancient myths for new audiences. But what about women? With sections on teaching and modern writing, this collection of new essays examines how modern female poets--including H.D., Louise Gluck, Ruth Fainlight, Rita Dove, Sylvia Plath and others--have subverted classical expectations in interpreting such legends as Persephone, Helen and Eurydice. Other mythological figures are also explored and rewritten, including Buddhism’s Kwan Yin, Celtic Macha, the Aztecs’ Coatlicue, Pele of Hawaii, India’s Sita, Sumer’s Inanna, Yemonja of the Yoruba and many more.

Colleen S. Harris serves as a librarian on the faculty of California State University Channel Islands. A three-time Pushcart Prize nominee for her fiction and poetry, she is the author of three poetry collections and lives in Camarillo, California. Valerie Estelle Frankel teaches English at Mission College and San Jose City College. The author of 75 popular culture books and more than 100 stories and essays, she lives in Sunnyvale, California.