Life in Language: Mission Feminists and the Emergence of a New Protestant Subject

A new anthropology of Protestant feminism, anchored by the language experiments of one Lutheran community.

The language of the Bible is a powerful lens through which many Protestants understand themselves and their world, and its prohibitions on women’s speech pose complicated challenges to women. Nevertheless, women frequently serve as vocal leaders in Protestant organizations, including the early twentieth-century Norwegian Mission Society. In Life in Language, Ingie Hovland offers a uni...