College of Saint Elizabeth Professor Honored With Book Republication

Dr. Margaret Roman, an English professor at the College of Saint Elizabeth, penned a non-fictional analysis of a prominent 19th century author in 1992. 25 years later, the University of Alabama Press decided to honor Roman by publishing her "Sarah Orne Jewett: Reconstructing Gender" as new in paperback in the spring of 2017.

The republication of Roman's thought provoking work, that explores the theme of androgyny Jewett emphasizes in her 19 volumes of short stories and novels, speaks to its significance in modern society.

"The women, and men, who succeed in (Jewett's) stories are those who buck the stereotypical roles for men and women during the 19th century in America – which are the same stereotypes we have today," says Roman. "So, the theme is timely."

Jewett portrays women as strong pillars of the community who lead with empathy and compassion. Roman argues that Jewett strove to eliminate the necessity for rigid and narrowly defined male-female roles.

"If women are isolated and passive; if men are opinionated and domineering, they lose in Jewett," says Roman.

As the director of the honors program at CSE, Roman also guides a highly selective group of students whose high school record, rank in class and SAT scores indicate a superior scholastic aptitude. This academic year there were 96 students in the honors program.

Learn more about this program here: http://www.cse.edu/honors

Roman's book can be purchased here: http://amzn.to/2t5BaT7.