Women's Worlds in Seventeenth Century England : A Sourcebook

ISBN-13: 9780415156387 / Angielski / Miękka / 1999 / 336 str.

Patricia M. Crawford; Laura Gowing

Opis

This volume presents a collection of source materials on women's lives in 16th and 17th century England. The book introduces a diverse group of women and a series of voices that have rarely been heard in history, from Deborah Brackley, a poor Devon servant, to Katharine Whitstone, Oliver Cromwell's sister, and Queen Anne. Drawing on archival materials, the text explores the everyday lives of ordinary early modern women, including their: experiences of work, sex, marriage and motherhood; beliefs and spirituality; political activities; relationships; and mental worlds. In a time when few women could write, the book seeks to reveal the multitude of ways in which their voices and experiences leave traces in the written record, and deepen and challenge our understanding of women's lives in the past.

Recenzje

'This is genuinely a treasure chest of resources for early modernists and historians of women.' - The Economic History Review

Spis treści

List of documents -- List of illustrations -- Acknowledgements -- Permissions -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1 BODIES -- Conception and pregnancy; Parturition; Breasts and breastfeeding; Menstruation and reproductive health; Health and beauty -- 2 RELIGION, BELIEFS, SPIRITUALITY -- Spirituality: the journey of the Christian soul; The practice of faith; God and the nation; Popular beliefs -- 3 WORK -- Service; Getting a living; Professions; Running a household: domestic tasks -- 4 POVERTY AND PROPERTY -- Making shift; Poverty and relief; The world of goods -- 5 SEXUAL EXPERIENCES -- Sex and single women; Sex and marriage; Sex between women; Secrecy and adultery; Rape, assaults, and attempts -- 6 MARRIAGE -- Courtship; Wives and husbands; Remarriage -- 7 MATERNITY -- Lying-in; Being a mother; Childcare, health and advice; The maternal relationship -- 8 RELATIONSHIPS -- Neighbours; Families; Friends and lovers; Animals and spirits -- 9 POLITICS AND PROTESTS -- 10 MENTAL WORLDS -- Depression and despair; Fits and disorders; Dreams and visions; Prophesying the future -- Notes -- Further reading -- Glossary -- Index.

O autorze

Patricia Crawford is Professor of History at the University of Western Australia, and her books include Women in Early Modern England (Oxford University Press, 1998), with Sara Mendelson. Laura Gowing is Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Hertfordshire, and is author of Domestic Dangers: Women, Words, and Sex in Early Modern London (Oxford University Press, 1996).