HR 341: Women in Modern Europe
MWF, 2:10-3:25 PM
(January 23 to April 5, 2008)
Jennifer Popiel
Office Hours by appointment
Office Location: Humanities 314
Office Phone: 977-3229
Home Phone: 752-5206 (except Sundays)
Email: popieljj@gmail.com
**Email is generally the best way to reach me.**
Course Description:
In the late nineteenth century, the French printer and patriot P. J. Proudhon claimed that there
were two possible roles for women, “harlot and housewife, no other choice.” Proudhon found no
shortage of supporters for this view in France. Across the Channel and even the Atlantic, there were
also plenty of people of both sexes who believed that women only belonged in the home, raising
children and staying out of public view.
This course will examine the development of domestic ideology and gender ideals in France,
Great Britain, and the United States in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It will also explore
changes and challenges to these ideas in the twentieth century. Central issues will involve: the
relationship between political, religious, and domestic ideologies, the difference between the domestic
experiences of the bourgeoisie and the working class, and women's responses (both as individuals and
in groups) to household ideology. Topics for examination include gender and sexuality, the structure of
families and households, women's participation in the labor force, and the familial impact of
democracy, changing marriage patterns, and the welfare state. We will use these varied depictions to
determine what family ideals mean for the social enunciation of gender roles.
Course Reading:
Berenson, Trial of Madame Caillaux.
Cott, The Bonds of Womanhood: "Woman's Sphere" in New England, 1780-1835.
May, Homeward Bound: American Families in the Cold War Era.
Pederson, Family, Dependence, and the Origins of the Welfare State.
Stone, The Family, Sex and Marriage in England 1500-1800.
Ulrich, Good Wives : Image and Reality in the Lives of Women in Northern New England, 1650-1750.
***article pack/reserve articles ***
Course Requirements/Grading (Honors Option):
•
3 “five” page essays
10% each
•
1 final paper (15 pages)
30%
•
3x Discussion/ Presentation
15%
•
Participation/Preparation
25%
Structure of the Course:
This seminar-style class will meet three times a week (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) for an hour
and 15 minutes each session. This is an accelerated format; instead of a traditional 15 week course, all
material will be completed in 10 weeks.
Class Attendance/Use of Technology:
College courses require the active participation and cooperation of both faculty and students.
There is generally a strong statistical relationship between doing well in history courses and attending
classes faithfully. A student who misses class frequently or arrives unprepared will have a hard time
understanding the material and will also miss points from in-class participation.
Attendance and preparation are especially important in this class, which is a small seminar-style
class. Multiple absences will affect your grade negatively while consistently valuable participation in
class discussions will help your final grade.
In order to access many of the readings, you will need to have consistent access to a computer,
as many of the articles are available on Blackboard or eReserve. In addition to retrieving some readings
and assignments, you will find other class resources available for you online
Classroom Decorum:
In order to ensure the best learning experience for everyone, please conform to the
following expectations:
 Arrive prepared! Discussion relies on the full participation of prepared students.
 If you use a computer, do not surf the internet during class
 Turn your telephone ringer off while in class
 Do not start packing your things and shuffling papers before the class is over.
Course Requirements:
In addition to attendance and participation, requirements for the course include three “five”
pages essays (topic to be determined by you) and a final paper (topic to be determined in conjunction
with the instructor). Your final paper will certainly involve some research beyond the course readings;
how much research will depend on the paper topic. All essays must be turned in by hard copy and
electronically to popieljj@gmail.com. All essays must have one inch margins and be typed and doublespaced, in a 12 point proportional font (such as Times New Roman).
You will also be required to lead discussion in class three times. If you prefer, you may, instead
of leading discussion, present on an academic article that is related to the topic of the day but has not
been assigned to you. (You must let me know in advance which option you have chosen.)
If you have a special situation, are confused, need additional help, or just want to chat about the
course, please see me as soon as possible. I can only help you when I know that you need help! If you
would like to meet with me, please email or call to arrange a mutually acceptable time. I would be
happy to meet with you.
Plagiarism and cheating are violations of the academic integrity policy and grounds for failure
of this course, suspension, or even dismissal from the university. Plagiarism is using other
people’s ideas or work as your own (or reusing your own work without indicating that it has
been used to fulfill a requirement in another class). Please do not plagiarize, cheat, or collude
to cheat. If you are not sure how to cite other people’s ideas, ask. If you are unclear about
what does and does not constitute academic dishonesty, find out. You do not want to fail this
course any more than I want for you to fail.
2
Discussion Topics and Reading List
Section One: Overview of the Problem
January 23 – Overview of Domesticity
January 25 – The Classic View: Public and Private Women.
On Blackboard, read: Welter, “Cult of True Womanhood,” and “Kerber, “Separate
Spheres, Female Worlds,” and Pateman, “Sex and Power.” On eReserve, read
Landes, “Introduction,” and “Rousseau’s Reply.”
January 28 – Challenges to the Classic View.
On Blackboard, read Lasser, “Beyond Separate Spheres,” Hunt, “Reading the French
Revolution,” and Desan, “War Between Brothers and Sisters.”
Section Two: The Advent of Domesticity: Religion, Work, Sex, and Family Life
January 30 – Colonial Life, Domesticity, and Huswifery.
Read Ulrich, Good Wives, first half (through Chapter Six, Consort).
February 1 – Colonial Life, cont.
Read Ulrich, Good Wives, second half, to end.
February 4 – The Affectionate Family , Economic Change, and Sexual Liberation in Great
Britain.
Read Stone, The Family, Sex and Marriage in England, Chapters 1, 2, 5.
February 6 – The Affectionate Family , cont.
Read Stone, The Family, Sex and Marriage in England, Chapters 6, 8, 9.
February 8 – The Affectionate Family , cont.
Read Stone, The Family, Sex and Marriage in England, Chapter 13. On Blackboard,
read McCall, “Reign of Brute Force,” and Shammas, “Domestic Environment.”
February 11 – Domesticity, Civisme, and the Feminine Ideal in France.
On Blackboard, read selections from Popiel, Rousseau’s Daughters, through the end of
Chapter Two
February 13 – Domesticity, cont..
On Blackboard, read selections from Popiel, Rousseau’s Daughters, through end of the
Conclusion.
February 15 – First Essay Due to History Department by 2 pm (no class held).
Section Three: Internalizing Domesticity: Economics, Religion, and “Private” Behavior
February 18 – The Market Revolution and the Cult of Domesticity in New England.
Read Cott, The Bonds of Womanhood, through page 101 (Chapter 3, Education).
February 20 – The Market Revolution, cont.
Read Cott, The Bonds of Womanhood, to end.
February 22 – The Cult of Domesticity expands.
On Blackboard, read Darrow, “French Noblewomen,” Clark, “Chartist
Domesticity,” and Zlotnick, “Thousand Times,” and Wahrman, “Middle-Class
Domesticity.”
February 25 – Private Behavior, etc., cont.
On eReserve, read Davidoff and Hall, Prologue and pages 162-192, and Bonnie
Smith, all.
February 27 – Private Behavior, etc., cont.
On Blackboard, Read Ford, “Private Lives, Public Order,” Rappaport, “Halls of
3
Temptation,” and Tosh, “Masculinities.”
February 29 – Second Essay Due to History Department by 2 pm (no class held).
Section Four: Moving Beyond Family, Past Domesticity?
March 3 – Domesticity, Passion, and the Ideal Woman.
Read: Berenson, Trial of Madame Caillaux, Prologue and Chapters 1 and 2.
March 5 – Domesticity, Passion, and the Ideal Woman.
Read: Berenson, Trial of Madame Caillaux, Chapters 3 and 4.
March 7 – Domesticity, Passion, and the Ideal Woman.
Read: Berenson, Trial of Madame Caillaux, Chapters 5 and 6 and Epilogue and on
Blackboard, read Nye, “ Fencing.”
March 10 – Maternity and the Government.
Read Pederson, Family, Dependence, and the Origins of the Welfare State : Britain and France,
1914-1945, Chapters 1 and 2.
March 12 – Maternity and the Government.
Read Pederson, Chapters 3 and 5.
March 14 – Maternity and the Government.
Read Pederson, Chapters 6, 7, and Conclusion..
March 26 – The Cold War and the Family.
Read May, Homeward Bound: American Families in the Cold War Era, Introduction
through end of Chapter 5.
March 28 – Cold War, cont.
Read May, Homeward Bound: American Families in the Cold War Era, Chapter 6 to end.
March 31 – Third Essay Due to History Department by 2 pm (no class held).
April 2 – Beyond Domesticity, I.
On Blackboard, read Scott, “Gender: A Useful Category of Analysis,” Harrison and
McMillan, “Feminist Betrayals,” and Meyerowitz, “Beyond the Feminine Mystique.”
April 4 – Beyond Domesticity, II.
On Blackboard, read Sklar, “A Call For Comparisons,” Kerber et al, “Beyond Roles,
Beyond Spheres.”
FINAL PAPER DUE TO HISTORY DEPARTMENT BY 2 PM ON APRIL 11.
4