Of all the major Hollywood stars, Katharine Hepburn is the least conventional, conforming to none of the stereotypes of stardom. Instead, she always appeared wilful and independent, able to develop her own persona within the confines of the studio system. This monograph by the late Andrew Britton, published for the first time in illustrated hardcover form, proposes a feminist reading of Hepburn's films, arguing that her persona raises problems about class, female sexuality and women's oppression which test the conventions of cinema ultimately committed to the reassertion of bourgeois gender roles. This book on the Hollywood cinema focuses on a film star rather than a director or a genre and as such should appeal to anyone interested in the movies.