There are more women writing today than ever before, but what kind of recognition are they receiving? Well, not as much as you might think.
My teacher distributed a handout the other day in class with the following statistics, which she found in an article by Amy King on the VIDA: Women In Literary Arts website. They show that, in terms of prominent book awards and “best of” lists, gender equality hasn’t changed at all.
Check out these startling gender distribution statistics for, not 1950, but 2009:
Amazon- Top 100 Editor’s Picks 2009
77 Men
23 Women
Los Angeles Times Book Prize 2009
Innovator’s Award- 1 Man
Robert Kirsch Award- 1 Man
LA Times Favorite Fiction 2009
16 Men
9 Women
LA Times Favorite Nonfiction 2009
19 Men
6 Women
The National Book Awards 2009
Fiction- 1 Man
Nonfiction- 1 Man
Poetry- 1 Man
Young People’s Literature- 1 Man
Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2009
71 Men
29 Women
Publishers Weekly Top 10 Books of 2009
10 Men
0 Women
Washington Post Best Books of 2009
Nonfiction
69 Men
17 Women
Fiction
57 Men
27 Women
Slate- Best Reads of 2009
15 Men
7 Women
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 1948-2009
40 Men
16 Women
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry 1950-2009
44 Men
16 Women
U.S. Poet Laureate 1937-2009
36 Men
10 Women
© 2010 VIDA
www.vidaweb.org
Author: Amy King
As a young poet, these statistics are utterly dissuading. Here I was thinking that the powerful voices of Adrienne Rich and Sharon Olds had forged a way for future women writers.
However discouraging these numbers are, they are still important to acknowledge. We have a long way to go.
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