Rethinking Feminist History and Theory

“Historian Joan Sangster’s analytic vision has inspired scholars across generations and national borders. Pasolli and Smith’s edited collection is a testament to the collective force of that vision. Drawing on prominent conceptual frames Sangster has explored over the course of an extraordinary career, Pasolli and Smith’s volume assembles a notable diversity of authors. The collection not only acknowledges the depth of Sangster’s insight but innovatively exhibits how historians at all tiers of the discipline have embraced and expanded the many methodological and intellectual lessons Sangster’s body of scholarship has so generously delivered. This volume gifts the reader revelatory riches.” -- Carol Williams, Professor Emerita of History and Women and Gender Studies, University of Lethbridge
“Focusing on Joan Sangster’s socialist-feminist historical works, Pasolli and Smith have produced an exemplary edited collection of feminist, labour, working-class, and women’s history from the late nineteenth -century to the present. The chapters offer a range of engaging topics, but more impressive is the integrity of the collection. Its strength is its exploration of new ways of theorizing and new methods; the results are new ways of knowing.” -- Meg Luxton, Professor Emerita and Senior Scholar in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies, York University
“Rethinking Feminist History and Theory is a fitting tribute to Joan Sangster’s scholarship and activism. The essays in this collection reflect Sangster’s wide-ranging interest in feminism, labour, colonialism, left politics, theory, and the law. These histories document women’s resistance to power structures that constrained their choices and informed their politics. A celebration of her mentorship, this book demonstrates how women’s past activism can inspire our own dreams of equality.” -- Nancy Janovicek, Professor of History, University of Calgary
“A worthy tribute to the visionary scholarship of Joan Sangster, a true thought-leader in working-class and women’s history. These timely, probing essays capture the rich legacy of female resistance around the world and model innovative new approaches to cultural and materialist analysis. Researchers and activists alike will find inspiration and wisdom in this eye-opening, superb new collection devoted to understanding the people, ideas, and forces propelling progressive social change.” -- Dorothy Sue Cobble, Distinguished Professor Emerita of History and Labor Studies, Rutgers University, and author of For the Many: American Feminists and the Global Fight for Democratic Equality