false 3919603 1 Displayed on European stages from 1810 to 1815 as the Hottentot Venus, Sara Baartman was one of the most famous women of her day, and also one of the least known. As the Hottentot Venus, she was seen by Westerners as alluring and primitive, a reflection of their fears and suppressed desires. But who was Sara Baartman? Who was the woman who became the Hottentot Venus? Based on research and interviews that span three continents, <i>Sara Baartman and the Hottentot Venus</i> tells the entwined histories of an illusive life and a famous icon. In doing so, the book raises questions about the possibilities and limits of biography for understanding those who live between and among different cultures.<br><br> In reconstructing Baartman's life, the book traverses the South African frontier and its genocidal violence, cosmopolitan Cape Town, the ending of the slave trade, the Industrial Revolution, the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars, London and Parisian high society, and the rise of racial science. The authors discuss the ramifications of discovering that when Baartman went to London, she was older than originally assumed, and they explore the enduring impact of the Hottentot Venus on ideas about women, race, and sexuality. The book concludes with the politics involved in returning Baartman's remains to her home country, and connects Baartman's story to her descendants in nineteenth- and twentieth-century South Africa.<br><br> <i>Sara Baartman and the Hottentot Venus</i> offers the authoritative account of one woman's life and reinstates her to the full complexity of her history. 3965058 20 11 2008 Sara Baartman and the Hottentot Venus: A Ghost Story and a Biography total:4|5:1|4:2|3:0|2:1|1:0| 4 15 24 1 0 1 false false Mon Oct 27 11:32:12 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 27 11:32:57 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Mon Nov 16 14:02:13 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 14:02:13 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sat Oct 31 10:01:31 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 13 18:16:46 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 13 18:16:46 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Aug 19 05:48:36 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 19 05:48:36 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu May 28 13:13:20 -0700 2009 Thu May 28 13:13:20 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue May 19 06:57:30 -0700 2009 Tue May 19 06:57:30 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu May 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri May 15 04:26:02 -0700 2009 Wed May 20 20:34:40 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Mar 27 12:25:14 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 27 12:25:14 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Sat Feb 28 14:09:11 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 28 14:09:11 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Tue Feb 24 19:27:24 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 24 19:27:24 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Tue Feb 17 09:29:11 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 17 09:29:11 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Wed Feb 11 11:24:46 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 11 11:24:46 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Feb 06 07:07:23 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 06 07:07:23 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Jan 19 03:46:50 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 19 03:46:54 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Tue Dec 16 17:17:55 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 16 17:17:55 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Mon Dec 15 05:18:04 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 15 05:18:04 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Sun Dec 14 03:36:43 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 14 03:36:52 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Sat Dec 13 23:11:12 -0800 2008 Sat Dec 13 23:11:24 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Sat Dec 13 19:39:34 -0800 2008 Sat Dec 13 19:39:50 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Mon Dec 08 06:16:15 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 08 06:16:15 -0800 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=3919603