Eco/Feminism and History in Fantasy Writing by Women (Critical Essay‪)‬

Introduction A childhood pastime I've not yet outgrown is reading Fantasy and Science Fiction. These days, however, my interest especially in Fantasy is not unconnected with scholarship, both History and Feminist Studies. In this essay I reflect on ways in which women's Fantasy has been inspired by feminist ideas, with particular emphasis on 'spiritual ecofeminism' and feminist history. I approach this as a world gender historian and historian of feminism, rather than a Science Fiction/Fantasy critic. As such, this essay is alert to dis/continuities and junctures in recent Fantasy that explicitly deals with history and appears to be influenced by ecofeminism. To illustrate such influences, I draw upon selective examples from some leading American Fantasy and Science Fiction authors--Andre Norton, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Sheri Tepper and the like--while also referring to some Australian fantasists popular since the 1990s. Of particular interest to me is Sara Douglass, who was formerly an academic historian, especially her Axis Trilogy (1995-96) and its sequel, The Wayfarer Redemption trilogy (1997 to 1999).