A paper by Lynn Lubamersky, associate professor of history, was published in The Polish Review (Vol. 59, no. 1 [2014]: 87-100.). In the paper, titled “Unique and Incomparable: The Exceptional Life of the First Female Doctor in Poland, Regina Salomea Pilsztynowa,” Lubamersky argues that three waves of feminism can be seen in Pilsztynowa’s “Life’s Travels and Adventures.”
The 18th century memoir fascinated first-wave feminists and antifeminists at the turn of the 20th century, since it was a compelling narrative of female agency and emancipation. To antifeminists, it was evidence of a world turned upside down in which warped emancipated women lost their way in the world, but feminists found evidence that the 20th century drive for women’s freedom had its roots in the struggle waged for freedom by 18th century foremothers.
Second-wave feminists rediscovered the memoir in the 1970s-1990s and third-wave feminists used it in gender studies classes in the 1990s. Contemporary scholars used digital media to cast a wider net capturing a multiplicity of views including new discoveries regarding Pilsztynowa’s memoir as a unique and incomparable story.