A considerable number of women's novels document histories of ferocity and abuse. Gottfried examines a sampling of these novels, including Toni Morrison's "Beloved," Cynthia Ozick's "The Shawl," and Leslie Marmon Silko's epic "Almanac of the Dead." From the msrspective of social and historical conditions influencing much of contemporary women's writings, she investigates the uses of violence in these novels. She argues that the authors discussed wield violence both to uncover long-suppressed stories and to dramatically change the perspectives from which these stories have traditionally...