A History of Nineteenth-Century American Women's Poetry is the first book to construct a coherent history of this complex field. With contributions from some of the most prominent scholars of nineteenth-century American literature, it explores a wide variety of authors, texts, and methodological approaches. Organized into three chronological sections, the essays examine multiple poetic genres, consider poems circulated in various manuscript and print venues, and propose alternative ways of narrating literary history. From these essays, a rich story emerges about a diverse poetics that was once immensely popular but has since been forgotten. This volume confirms that the field has advanced far beyond the recovery of select individual poets. It is an invaluable resource for students, teachers, and critics of both the literature and the history of this era.--Book jacket.