{"product_id":"in-search-of-the-swan-barbara-fass-leavy-9780814751008","title":"In Search of the Swan Maiden: A Narrative on Folklore and Gender","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn her compendious study, [of the folktale of the runaway wife] Leavy argues that the contradictory claims of nature and culture are embodied in the legendary figure of the swan maiden, a woman torn between the human and bestial worlds. \u003cbr\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e This is a study of the meaning of gender as framed by the swan maiden tale, a story found in the folklore of virtually every culture. The swan maiden is a supernatural woman forced to marry, keep house, and bear children for a mortal man who holds the key to her imprisonment. When she manages to regain this key, she escapes to the otherworld, never to return. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e These tales have most often been interpreted as depicting exogamous marriages, describing the girl from another tribe trapped in a world where she will always be the outsider. Barbara Fass Leavy believes that, in the societies in which the tale and its variants endured, woman was the other--the outsider trapped in a society that could never be her own. Leavy shows how the tale, though rarely explicitly recognized, is frequently replayed in modern literature. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Beautifully written, this book reveals the myriad ways in which the folktales of a society reflect its cultural values, and particularly how folktales are allegories of gender relations. It will interest anyone involved in literary, gender, and cultural studies.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Barbara Fass Leavy\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0814751008\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780814751008\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New York University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 07\/01\/1995\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 388\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.15lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.96h x 6.02w x 0.91d","brand":"Barbara Fass Leavy","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":44522271506687,"sku":"9780814751008","price":32.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_7ab861bf-ec74-48a9-8274-f8df2e1da58e.jpg?v=1700156406","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/in-search-of-the-swan-barbara-fass-leavy-9780814751008","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}