FIRST STONE - Softcover

Garner, Helen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0747532524 ISBN 13: 9780747532521

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, 1997

Synopsis

When two young women students claimed they had been indecently assaulted at a party by the Master of Ormond at Melbourne University, the shock not only split the college and university communities but focused sharply the larger social debate about sexuality and power.

About this title

Review

The First Stone is at once an account of one of Australia's most explosive sexual harassment cases and an investigation into the soul of sexual politics. To provide the framework for her inquiry, Helen Garner takes the very public case of a University of Melbourne college master accused of sexual harassment by two of his students. After reading about the charge in the newspaper, Garner, a longtime feminist, impulsively wrote a letter of support to the accused man. The letter was made public and in the wake of much criticism over her support of the man, Garner set out to explore the women's claims. Along the way she uncovers issues that challenge her notions of feminism, political activism, gender relations, and power dynamics. With a journalist's eye for detail, Garner leads the reader into a riveting examination of the nature of sex and power in contemporary society.

Edition details

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0747532524
• ISBN 13: 9780747532521
• Binding: Paperback