The Widows' Might : Widowhood and Gender in Early British America / Vivian Bruce Conger.
Conger, Vivian Bruce, author.
2009
HQ1058.5.U5 C657 2009
Available Online

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Title
The Widows' Might : Widowhood and Gender in Early British America / Vivian Bruce Conger.
Author
Conger, Vivian Bruce, author.
ISBN
9780814772966
DOI
https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9780814772966.001.0001
Published
New York, NY : : New York University Press, [2009]
Copyright
©2009
Language
English
Language Note
In English.
Description
1 online resource
Item Number
10.18574/nyu/9780814772966.001.0001 doi
Call Number
HQ1058.5.U5 C657 2009
Dewey Decimal Classification
306.883097309032
Summary
In early American society, one's identity was determined in large part by gender. The ways in which men and women engaged with their communities were generally not equal: married women fell under the legal control of their husbands, who handled all negotiations with the outside world, as well as many domestic interactions. The death of a husband enabled women to transcend this strict gender divide. Yet, as a widow, a woman occupied a third, liminal gender in early America, performing an unusual mix of male and female roles in both public and private life.With shrewd analysis of widows' wills as well as prescriptive literature, court appearances, newspaper advertisements, and letters, The Widows' Might explores how widows were portrayed in early American culture, and how widows themselves responded to their unique role. Using a comparative approach, Vivian Bruce Conger deftly analyzes how widows in colonial Massachusetts, South Carolina, and Maryland navigated their domestic, legal, economic, and community roles in early American society.
Access Note
Access limited to authorized users.
System Details Note
Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.
Digital File Characteristics
text file PDF
Source of Description
Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 18. Sep 2023)
In
New York University Press Backlist eBook-Package 2000-2013
Available in Other Form
print 9780814716748
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Frontmatter
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction: "Lay In A Stock Of Graces Against The Evil Day Of Widowhood"
1. "Though She Were Yong, Yet She Did Not Affect a Second Marriage": The Cultural Community and Widow Remarriage
2. "Prosperity & Peace May Alwais Him Attend That to the Widdow Prove Himselfe a Friend": Widows and the Law
3. "To the Tenderness of a Mother Add the Care and Conduct of a Father": Widows and the Household
4. "Tho She No More Increase One Family, She May Support Many": Neighborly Widows
5. "Through Industry and Care Acquired Some Estate of My Own . . . Much Advanced the Same": Widows in the Economic Community
Conclusion: "Witnesses to a Will of Madam Toys"
Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author

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