Women's History Commons^™

"The Quality Of Women's Intelligence" : Female Humanists In Renaissance Italy., Julie Myers-Mushkin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how the advent of humanism in Renaissance Italy impacted women, namely those who were raised within intellectual families and granted educational opportunities not before afforded to members of their sex. In quattrocento Italy, learned women began to circulate their writings and participate in the humanist milieu, and the intellectual lives and published works of these female humanists all in some manner contested Renaissance patriarchy and gender perceptions. As such, this thesis challenges the conception that the Renaissance further disenfranchised women and offers a framework for analyzing and appreciating the ways in which women participated in the academic …

French Women In Art: Reclaiming The Body Through Creation/Les Femmes Artistes Françaises : La Réclamation Du Corps À Travers La Création, Liatris Hethcoat

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The research I have conducted for my French Major Senior Thesis is a culmination of my passion for and studies of both French language and culture and the history and practice of Visual Arts. I have examined, across the history of art, the representation of women, and concluded that until the 20^th century, these representations have been tools employed by the makers of history and those at the top of the patriarchal system, used to control women’s images and thus women themselves. I survey these representations, which are largely created by men—until the 20^th century. I discuss pre-historical …

Prudery And Perversion: Domination Of The Sexual Body In Middle-Class Men, Women, And Disenfranchised Bodies In Victorian England, Ashley Barnett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research argues that with the rise of the middle-class, Victorian England saw the development of a power model in which middle-class men, middle-class women and disenfranchised bodies of children and lower-class women suffered from the demands of bodily domination. Because the bodily health of middle-class men was believed to represent national health, it was imperative that he dominate his body, particularly with regard to sexual urges. Consequently, the bodies of women with whom he sought sexual release suffered from forms of bodily domination as well. Through an analysis of journals and private writings of those living in Victorian England, …

Theatre Women And Cultural Diplomacy In The Transatlantic Anglophone World (1752-1807), Sandra Perot

Doctoral Dissertations

Anglophone theatre provided a solid cultural bridge between Britain and America and served as an influential, informative, and accessible mode of social, political and cultural exchange transported throughout the eighteenth-century transatlantic world. Unlike works focusing on colonial American restrictions on theater, or examining its subsequent role in constructing American nationhood and identity, I explore how theatre served to both cultivate and challenge transatlantic connections. I show that actresses and women playwrights played a distinctive role in this process; they exercised agency in helping shape Anglo identity, influenced the formation of the cult of celebrity, challenged physical gendered spaces and normative …

Research And Study Of Fashion And Costume History Spanning From Ancient Egypt To Modern Day, Kaitlyn E. Dennis Miss

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Through a generous donation to Morehead State University, research has been conducted on thousands of slides containing images of artwork and artifacts of historical significance. These images span from Egyptian hieroglyphs to the inaugural dress of every first lady of the United States. The slides are in the process of being recorded and catalogued for future use by students in hopes of furthering academic comprehension and awareness of the influence of fashion and costume history through the ages. Special thanks to the family of Gretel Geist Rutledge, faculty mentor Denise Watkins, as well as the Department of Music, Theatre, and …

A Home For Lucille Vinyard’S Lifework In Humboldt State University Library’S Special Collections, Carly Marino, Nicole Martensen, Kaycie Voigt, Alexandria Jones, Cathlyn Garibay, Blanca Drapeau, Victoria Bruner, Kathleen C. Bromley

IdeaFest: Interdisciplinary Journal of Creative Works and Research from Cal Poly Humboldt

No abstract provided.

Contributors To Indian Catholicism: Interventions And Imaginings, Mathew Schmalz

Journal of Global Catholicism

Contributors to Indian Catholicism: Interventions and Imaginings, the inaugural issue of the Journal of Global Catholicism.

The Tying Of The Ceremonial Wedding Thread: A Feminist Analysis Of “Ritual” And “Tradition” Among Syro-Malabar Catholics In India, Sonja Thomas

Journal of Global Catholicism

This article presents a feminist analysis of patriarchy persisting in Catholicism of the Syro-Malabar rite in Kerala. The article specifically considers the impact of charismatic Catholicism on women of the Syro-Malabar rite and argues that it is important to interrogate this new face of religiosity in order to fully understand how certain rituals are allowed to change and be fluid, while others, especially concerning female sexuality, are enshrined as “tradition” which often restricts the parameters for women’s empowerment and may reinforce caste and patriarchal hegemonies preventing feminist solidarity across different religious- and caste-based groups.

An Alliance Of Ladies: Power, Public Affairs, And Class Construction In Early National New York City, Alisa J. Wade

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The dissertation studies elite women’s political consciousness in New York City between 1783 and 1815, contextualizing women’s position within the city’s social strata and the rise of market capitalism in the post-Revolutionary era. In a period of deferential politics, women within the leadership class played a unique role in remodeling the structure of republican government and determining who belonged within it. Building on the foundation of learned femininity, they constructed the etiquette that undergirded men’s political careers and oversaw the marriage market. They mediated divisions between new merchant capital and more established landed wealth, reinforcing dynastic stability. Moreover, they were …

Shifting Understandings Of Lesbianism In Imperial And Weimar Germany, Meghan C. Paradis

Scholarly Undergraduate Research Journal at Clark (SURJ)

This paper seeks to understand how, and why, understandings of lesbianism shifted in Germany over the course of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Through close readings of both popular cultural productions and medical and psychological texts produced within the context of Imperial and Weimar Germany, this paper explores the changing nature of understandings of homosexuality in women, arguing that over the course of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the dominant conceptualization of lesbianism transformed from an understanding of lesbians that was rooted in biology and viewed lesbians as physically masculine “gender inverts”, to one that was …

Taking On The Man: Female Rebellion Against Gender Roles In Classical Greek Drama, Gabrielle Killough

Senior Honors Theses

The portrayal of women in Ancient Greek drama seems at times opposed to the societal gender roles within Classical Athens. In the plays, women are strong and dynamic figures who enact change and upheaval in their world. Ancient dramas, like Agamemnon, Medea, Antigone, and Lysistrata, portrayed women with strong autonomy and minds which matched their male counterparts; whereas the women in Classical Athens found themselves in more limited circumstances. In analyzing the nature of these disparities, it seems that the constant factor is that the plays concern the violation of the household. The female characters respond in one of …

Naccs 43rd Annual Conference, National Association For Chicana And Chicano Studies

NACCS Conference Programs

¡Chicana/o Power! Transforming Chicana/o Activism, Discourse and Scholarship into Power

April 6-9, 2016

DoubleTree by Hilton

Ms-161: Ellen Wild Letters, Savannah G. Rose

All Finding Aids

The Ellen Wild Letters Collection contains 21 letters, primarily featuring letters written in 1862 to 1865. The majority of the letters come from 1862, but several also come from her time following the Civil War. The letters recount Mrs. Wild’s time during the Civil War, waiting for news from her husband as well as surviving on the home front. She recounts Edward Wild’s adventures during the war, his life in camp, and his numerous woundings and ailments. Mrs. Wild discusses her husband’s involvement in North Carolina as well as with the free African Americans. She briefly mentions the Battle of …

She Spoke For Those Without A Voice, John M. Rudy

Civil War Era Studies Faculty Publications

Statistically, about 50% of Adams County’s history has been women’s history since the dawn of time. But it can sometimes be painfully difficult to find out about the women of our county and their experiences. And as with most history, it is the troublemakers who stand out in the records. Luckily one of Adams County’s greatest troublemakers, Elsie Singmaster Lewars, is easy to find in the files of the Adams County Historical Society. Mrs. Lewars had the courage to speak for those without a voice. [excerpt]

Gettysburg College Journal Of The Civil War Era 2016

The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era

No abstract provided.

Introduction To "Independent Stardom: Freelance Women In The Hollywood Studio System", Emily Carman

Film and Media Arts Faculty Books and Book Chapters

During the heyday of Hollywood’s studio system, stars were carefully cultivated and promoted, but at the price of their independence. This familiar narrative of Hollywood stardom receives a long-overdue shakeup in Emily Carman’s new book. Far from passive victims of coercive seven-year contracts, a number of classic Hollywood’s best-known actresses worked on a freelance basis within the restrictive studio system. In leveraging their stardom to play an active role in shaping their careers, female stars including Irene Dunne, Janet Gaynor, Miriam Hopkins, Carole Lombard, and Barbara Stanwyck challenged Hollywood’s patriarchal structure.

Through extensive, original archival research, Independent Stardom uncovers this …

Leap Year: Chance, Chase, Or Curse?, Sue Lynn Mcdaniel

SCL Faculty and Staff Publications

Based on a popularized legend in which St. Patrick granted to St. Bridget the right for all single women to propose marriage during leap years, the custom has produced ephemera as evidence of stereotypical old maids and bachelors and created vinegar valentines, ball invitations, dance cards, sheet music and calling cards. Between 1904 and 1916, at least 54 publishing houses created Leap Year postcards illustrated by more than 17 of the most talented artists of the day. Despite possible good intentions, the majority of the ephemera stereotypes single women as so desperate to marry that even unsuitable spouses, including alcoholics, …

Prescribing The American Dream: Psychoanalysts, Mass Media, And The Construction Of Social And Political Norms In The 1950'S, Daniel P. Kamienski

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This paper surveys how and why psychoanalysis during the 1950s—its “Golden Age” in the United States—emerged as a highly respected professional discipline with great public currency. The prevalence and popularity of psychoanalysts in public culture is substantiated by an extensive survey of primary print sources featuring psychoanalysts opining on many of the major social and political issues of the decade. Combining these opinions with those expressed in professional journals and publications, this paper reveals how psychoanalysts used their growing public currency to shape debates about which social identities and behaviors, cultural values, and political ideals were appropriate and legitimate for …

To Be Magic: The Art Of Ana Mendieta Through An Ecofeminist Lens, Elizabeth Ann Baker

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Ana Mendieta was a Cuban-born American artist whose unique body of work incorporated performance, activism, Earth art, installation, and the Afro-Cuban practices of Santería. She began her career at the University of Iowa, were she initially received her degree in painting in 1969. It was not until 1972 that Mendieta shifted radically to performance art.

Though she was raised Catholic, she developed an interest in the rituals involved with Santería, a culturally predominant Cuban religion, and it deeply influenced her work in her choice of materials and settings. Santería is one of the major faith-based lifestyles of Cuba …

Arnold Michael Shankman Papers - Accession 259, Arnold Michael Shankman

Manuscript Collection

The Arnold Shankman Papers are a treasure trove of historical research in a variety of areas. Within the American Civil War era, Shankman had extensively researched the “copperhead” movement of northern opposition to the war and was an expert on one of its leading members, Clement Vallandigham. Pursuing his interest in ethnic history, Dr. Shankman was a pioneer in the study of how ethnic and immigrant groups viewed each other. For example, he was one of the first to use early African-American newspapers to determine the views of blacks toward Italian immigrants and other groups. Shankman also was singularly instrumental …

0835: The Links, Incorporated Collection, 1955-2016, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Established in 1955, the Huntington, West Virginia chapter of The Links, Incorporated is a women’s volunteer organization that works to support culture, education, health and wellness for seniors, adults, and youth in the African American community. The national Links, Incorporated organization, founded in 1946 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, oversees four regional areas, including the Central Area, which consists of 69 Links chapters in Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. The Huntington, WV chapter is the only Links, Incorporated chapter in West Virginia, and its activities extend to Williamson and Bluefield. Chapter members such …

The Relationship Between Sexology And The Lesbian Identity In Early 20th-Century Britain, Shaina Paige Maciejewski

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

The Catholic Enlightenment. The Forgotten History Of A Global Movement, Ulrich Lehner

Ulrich L. Lehner

No abstract provided.