Virago Press is a British publishing company founded in 1973 by Carmen Callil primarily to endorse women’s writing and increase awareness of women’s literary history. Inspired by the women’s movement, the name ‘Virago’ and the bitten apple logo suggest the power of courageous, outspoken females, as well as the power of subversive knowledge. Elaine Showalter’s (1941–) A Literature of their Own (1977) influenced the Virago Modern Classics series, which reissues books by overlooked or underappreciated writers.