With a new introduction placing The Sturdy Oak as a foundational story of feminist literature, this composite novel, written by fourteen popular authors including nine women, was drawn together during first wave of feminism when the status of women in American life was brought into the spotlight. All proceeds of the book were donated to the Suffrage cause and the tale itself sought to reveal the tensions and expectations in Whitewater, a fictional district of New York. Jordan's assembled team of writers sought to undermine the stereotypical idea of the sturdy oak (the traditional male) with its clinging vines (the women) requiring his support.
Foundations of Feminist Fiction. The early 1900s saw a quiet revolution in literature dominated by male adventure heroes. Both men and women moved beyond the norms of the male gaze to write from a different gender perspective, sometimes with female protagonists, but also expressing the universal freedom to write on any subject whatsoever.