List of feminist rhetoricians

This is a list of the major works of feminist women who have made considerable contributions to and shaped the rhetorical discourse about women. It is the table of contents of Available Means: An Anthology of Women's Rhetoric(s), edited by Joy Ritchie and Kate Ronald and published by University of Pittsburgh Press (2001).

(c. 469-c. 406 BCE) Aspasia was the mistress of the statesman Pericles, and after he divorced his wife (this may or may not be true) they lived together as if they were married. Their home was a communal meeting place for a wide variety of people. It was a place of conversation and culture which people from all over contributed to rhetoric. Aspasia's writings do not remain, but she is mentioned by writers such as Plato in regard to her contributions to rhetoric. She also said to have taught other women how to carry themselves and speak to groups of people intelligently. Aspasia was a great rhetor and was said to have written the famous speech given at Pericles' funeral.

Aspasia's rhetoric and social contributions were seen through a gendered lens.

Socrates references Diotima in Plato's Symposium, as a seer or priestess who taught him "the philosophy of eros" when he was young. It is not known whether she was a real person, or a character he developed.

(1347–1380) St. Catherine of Siena was the daughter of a poet and had no formal education. She devoted her life to Christ, and wrote hundreds of letters to individuals in authority and to the Pope. Over three hundred of these letters still exist and are viewed as a major work of early Tuscan literature.

(1364–1430) de Pizan had a writing career that spanned approximately thirty years. During that time, she wrote numerous pieces (41 known works) and was considered as Europe's first professional writer. She is seen as a feminist who challenged the misogyny of male writers.

(1469–1499) Cereta's main writing consisted of letters to other scholars. She believed in women's right to education and fought against the oppression marriage brought to women.

(c. 1373-after 1438) Kempe's book, possibly the first autobiography in English, gives readers a glimpse of a woman's life in the Middle Ages.

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