Suffragette Sally

Published in 1911, Suffragette Sally is one of the best-known popular novels promoting the cause of women's suffrage in Britain at the beginning of the twentieth century. The novel details the militant campaign of the suffragist Women’s Social and Political Union against the political establishment of the time. Through its three female protagonists, each from a different class, the novel recounts the challenges faced by women who dared to flout social convention by agitating for the vote. The Sally of the title is Sally Simmonds, a maid-of-all-work in a household where she has to deal with her employer’s advances along with her daily tasks. The novel follows Sally’s conversion to the suffrage movement and details the consequences she must face as a working-class woman who risks her job, her relationships, and eventually her life for the cause.The novel weaves together the fictional stories of the three main characters with documentary material drawn from contemporary suffrage and mainstream newspapers, and raises the hope that female alliances might someday transcend class boundaries. This Broadview edition also includes fascinating historical materials on the suffrage movement, including contemporary accounts of imprisonment, hunger strikes, and battles with police.

Alison Lee is Associate Professor of English and of Women's Studies and Feminist Research at the University of Western Ontario.