Product Description

This is a major new edition of a stimulating and authoritative book. Merry Wiesner has updated and expanded her prize-winning study; she has added new sections on topics such as sexuality, masculinity, the impact of colonialism, and women's role as consumers. Other themes investigated include the female life cycle, literacy, women's economic role, artistic creation, female piety--and witchcraft--and the relationship between gender and power. Accessible, engrossing, and lively, this book will be of central importance for those interested in gender history, early modern Europe, and comparative history.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #436917 in Books
• Published on: 2000-07-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 342 pages

Review
"...a clear and stimulating textbook that introduces undergraduates and general readers to the topic of early modern European women and to the extensive literature available in English on various dimensions of their lives....Wiesner's command of this scholarship and the clarity of her analysis make this the best single volume on the topic." Choice

Customer Reviews

Great Introduction to Womens Lives 1500-1750
This book covers topics from Laws regarding Women and Women's Economic Role to Religion and Witchcraft. For a 21st century reader some of the ideas are almost comical, unfortunately, it's how people really felt at the time. One particular chapter entitled "The Female Life-Cycle" talks about the mis-understanding of menstruation and thus it was often compared to male nosebleeds or hemorrhoids. Not to mention that menstruation carried a great many religious taboos. Under the chapter of female education there was an interesting topic about women writers of the time period. Since sex of any type was rarely, if ever, discussed, it is very difficult to find any type of writing, but particularly, by a woman which talks about sexual activity. One of my favorite chapters is entitled "Women and the creation of culture" which covers culture as being dominated by religion but how women influenced culture anyway. Female artists of the time are discussed and it is explained how they got away with being artists in a time when it was highly discouraged. Sofonisba Anguissola and Judith Leyster are both discussed and some of their paintings are available in this book.

This is an excellent book for research or just general knowledge of women and the time period. All the chapters are interesting and easy to read.