Publisher's Synopsis
During the long nineteenth century, British women reframed the masculine paradigm of the Grand Tour. They created a feminist travel gaze, intentionally or unintentionally, that differs from male peers. Unlike their brothers, who went in search of educational refinement, those who could departed from their English homes for the great Italian cities of Florence, Naples, and Rome to escape personal disappointments and the social limitations posed by parents, spouses, and society. The opportunities and anonymity of travel to a distant land and new-found freedoms fostered a hybrid female persona who could fulfil her personal and creative ambitions. Their significant achievements, entrepreneurial journalism, literary masterpieces, and social advocacy for their gender redefined the contours of the Anglo-Italian cultural landscape and travel for women. The historical evidence presented here testifies to the life- changing nature of travel and firmly demonstrates how British women's history and literature enriches and broadens narratives about Britain and the World.
