Gates of Freedom: Voltairine de Cleyre and the Revolution of the Mind

Description

"The question of souls is old; we demand our bodies, now." These words are not from a feminist manifesto of the late twentieth century, but from a fiery speech given a hundred years earlier by Voltairine de Cleyre, a leading anarchist and radical thinker. A contemporary of Emma Goldman---who called her "the most gifted and brilliant anarchist woman America ever produced"---de Cleyre was a significant force in a major social movement that sought to transform American society and culture at its root. But she belongs to a group of late-nineteenth-century freethinkers, anarchists, and sex-radicals whose writing continues to be excluded from the U.S. literary and historical canon. Gates of Freedom considers de Cleyre's speeches, letters, and essays, including her most well known essay, "Sex Slavery." Part I brings current critical concerns to bear on de Cleyre's writings, exploring her contributions to the anarchist movement, her analyses of justice and violence, and her views on women, sexuality, and the body. Eugenia DeLamotte demonstrates both de Cleyre's literary significance and the importance of her work to feminist theory, women's studies, literary and cultural studies, U.S. history, and contemporary social and cultural analysis. Part II presents a thematically organized selection of de Cleyre's stirring writings, making Gates of Freedom appealing to scholars, students, and anyone interested in Voltairine de Cleyre's fascinating life and rousing work. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS......Page 5 CONTENTS......Page 9 Part One: REVOLUTION of the MIND......Page 11 INTRODUCTION......Page 13 Freethinkers......Page 24 A Normal Life......Page 31 Voluntary Abundance......Page 38 The Question of Methods......Page 52 De Cleyre's Position......Page 66 De Cleyre's Views on Violence......Page 73 "A Rocket of Iron"......Page 80 "Germinal"......Page 86 Theory and Practice......Page 90 Sex Slavery and Wage Slavery......Page 117 "The White Room"......Page 125 Freeing Words, Freeing Thought......Page 134 Oppositional Metaphors and Dominant Ideas......Page 146 "Ave et Vale"......Page 154 Part Two: Selected Writings of VOLTAIRINE de CLEYRE......Page 163 Section One. DE CLEYRE'S LIFEWORK: Hope , Despair, Solidarity......Page 165 The Burial of My Past Self......Page 173 New and Strange Ideas......Page 175 Civilizing the World......Page 178 To Print the Force of My Will......Page 184 Do You Remember . . . ?......Page 188 Possessed by Barren Doubts......Page 191 Impractical! Hell!......Page 196 Report of the Work of the Chicago Mexican Defense League......Page 199 Section Two. FREEDOM, JUSTICE, ANARCHISM......Page 202 The Hurricane......Page 205 A Rocket of Iron......Page 207 Appeal for Herman Helcher......Page 210 The Chain Gang......Page 211 The Commune Is Risen......Page 215 Section Three: ON WOMEN, SEXUALITY, AND THE BODY......Page 220 Selling Their Bodies......Page 229 Sex Slavery......Page 232 The Gates of Freedom......Page 245 The White Room......Page 261 Mary Wollstonecraft......Page 264 If I Had Married Him......Page 266 The Past and Future of the Ladies' Liberal League......Page 270 The Case of Woman vs. Orthodoxy......Page 281 The Woman Question......Page 294 The Heart of Angiolillo......Page 296 The Death of Love......Page 305 The Hopelessly Fallen......Page 309 They Who Marry Do Ill......Page 312 INTRODUCTION......Page 324 CHAPTER 1......Page 325 CHAPTER 2......Page 327 CHAPTER 3......Page 328 CHAPTER 4......Page 329 WORKS BY VOLTAIRINE DE CLEYRE......Page 332 OTHER WORKS......Page 336 SELECTED INDEX OF NAMES......Page 342