Be Good, Sweet Maid

The Trials of Dorothy Joudrie

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Gender Studies, Feminism & Feminist Theory, Women&, Biography & Memoir
Cover of the book Be Good, Sweet Maid by Audrey Andrews, Wilfrid Laurier University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Audrey Andrews ISBN: 9780889203839
Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier University Press Publication: August 25, 2011
Imprint: Wilfrid Laurier University Press Language: English
Author: Audrey Andrews
ISBN: 9780889203839
Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier University Press
Publication: August 25, 2011
Imprint: Wilfrid Laurier University Press
Language: English

January 21, 1995: Dorothy Joudrie is arrested for attempting to murder her estranged husband. Soon after, Audrey Andrews begins to write her book. Audrey and Dorothy had known each other as children, but the identification of Andrews with Joudrie goes beyond merely the accident of a childhood acquaintance. It has to do with being subjected to the same societal constraints placed on girls and women during the years immediately following World War II, the years in which they had prepared for their adult lives. Expectations, placidly accepted then, are now seen as unrealistic and unreasonable. Did these expectations have some part in causing the tragedy in Dorothy Joudrie’s life?

When Andrews attempted to understand why Dorothy Joudrie had tried to kill her husband, and to write Joudrie’s story, she began to examine her own life, her own expectations — those she had of herself and those others had of her. She also realized that telling the story of anyone is an intricate and often ephemeral pursuit. Any story she wrote could only be her version of Joudrie’s experience. Nevertheless, it was important to be as honest as she could about her interpretation of that life. She determined to show carefully and accurately the damage that had been done to one woman — damage that is still being done to many others — through prejudice, attitudes, traditions and the institutions that are still the foundation of our society, and of our lives, everyday.

The result is a fascinating account of events leading up to the trial, the trial itself and the effect of Joudrie’s trial on the life of Audrey Andrews.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

January 21, 1995: Dorothy Joudrie is arrested for attempting to murder her estranged husband. Soon after, Audrey Andrews begins to write her book. Audrey and Dorothy had known each other as children, but the identification of Andrews with Joudrie goes beyond merely the accident of a childhood acquaintance. It has to do with being subjected to the same societal constraints placed on girls and women during the years immediately following World War II, the years in which they had prepared for their adult lives. Expectations, placidly accepted then, are now seen as unrealistic and unreasonable. Did these expectations have some part in causing the tragedy in Dorothy Joudrie’s life?

When Andrews attempted to understand why Dorothy Joudrie had tried to kill her husband, and to write Joudrie’s story, she began to examine her own life, her own expectations — those she had of herself and those others had of her. She also realized that telling the story of anyone is an intricate and often ephemeral pursuit. Any story she wrote could only be her version of Joudrie’s experience. Nevertheless, it was important to be as honest as she could about her interpretation of that life. She determined to show carefully and accurately the damage that had been done to one woman — damage that is still being done to many others — through prejudice, attitudes, traditions and the institutions that are still the foundation of our society, and of our lives, everyday.

The result is a fascinating account of events leading up to the trial, the trial itself and the effect of Joudrie’s trial on the life of Audrey Andrews.

More books from Wilfrid Laurier University Press

Cover of the book It Can't Last Forever by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Indian Country by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Catholic Sexual Theology and Adolescent Girls by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Social Poesis by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book The Widowed Self by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Ontario Boys by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Growing Up in Armyville by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Brought to Light by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Travels and Identities by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book The Traditional History and Characteristic Sketches of the Ojibway Nation by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book The Dialectic of Truth and Fiction in Joshua Oppenheimer's The Act of Killing by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book In Search of the Visible Past by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Producing Canadian Literature by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book The Origins of the Bahá’í Community of Canada, 1898-1948 by Audrey Andrews
Cover of the book Syria, Press Framing, and the Responsibility to Protect by Audrey Andrews
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy