DAY,DOROTHY AS AUTOBIOGRAPHER

The multiple public identities of Dorothy Day (1897-1980) as social critic, protestor, dissenter, anarchist, pacifist, communist become Catholic, journalist, editor, founder of the Catholic Worker movement, and mother invite exploration of the ways in which Dorothy Day viewed herself, as distinct from the ways others name and describe her. Focusing this study on four key books which include an autobiographical novel as well as personal and historical narratives widens the autobiographical lens through which we are able to discover Day's self-perceptions and self-presentations. Literature on autobiography and the women's autobiographical tradition provide further resources for understanding Day's own personal sense of identity. © 1990.