Prophetic Women

Library Journal

Ann Hutchinson is recognized as an important figure in colonial New England history, but the meaning of her dissent has long been controversial. Lang approaches Hutchinson from a fresh and revealing perspective by examining the treatment of ``the American Jezebel'' in American literature from the 17th to the 19th centuries. After a brief, lucid analysis of the historical Hutchinson, Lang demonstrates why she was such a compelling figure for so many religious, historical, and imaginative writers. Lang is especially skillful in analyzing the connections usually drawn between Hutchinson's gender and her heretical religious views. A work of great value for women's studies and for American intellectual history, literature, and religion.Mel Piehl, Christ Coll., Valparaiso Univ., Ind.