The work of a common woman : the collected poetry of Judy Grahn, 1964-1977 ; with an introd. by Adrienne Rich

Edward the dyke and other poems.--The common woman.--She who.--A woman is talking to death.--Confrontations with the devil in the form of love.

In her work, Grahn seeks to link various oppressions in order to facilitate the emergence of coalitions of the oppressed. She draws her themes and images from ancient myths, Western literary and philosophical traditions, and historical and social trends, defining---or redefining---them as expressing feminine and homoerotic desire and then appropriating them for their subversive potential. For example, she invents a new, more expressive "American sonnet" for "The Common Woman" sequence in Edward the Dyke and Other Poems (1971), which celebrates both women's differences and commonalities.