This book examines the important social role of charitable institutions for women and children in late Renaissance Florence. Wars, social unrest, disease, and growing economic inequality on the Italian peninsula displaced hundreds of thousands of families during this period. In order to handle the social crises generated by war, competition for social position, and the abandonment of children, a series of private and public initiatives expanded existing charitable institutions and founded new ones. Philip Gavitt's research reveals the important role played by lineage ideology among Florence's elites in the use and manipulation of these charitable institutions in the often futile pursuit of economic and social stability. Considering families of all social levels, he argues that the pursuit of family wealth and prestige often worked at cross-purposes with the survival of the very families it was supposed to preserve.

By World War I, managers wanted young women with some high school education for new "light manufacturing" jobs in the office. Women could be paid significantly less than men with equivalent educations and the "marriage bar"--the practice of not hiring or retaining married women--ensured that most of them would leave the workplace before the issue of higher salaries arose. Encouraged by free training gained in high schools and by working conditions better than those available in factories, young working-class women sought out office jobs. Facing sexual discrimination in most of the professions and higher-level office jobs, middle-class women often found themselves "falling into" clerical positions. Sharon Hartman Strom details office working conditions and practices, drawing upon archival and anecdotal data. She analyzes women office-workers' ambitions and explores how the influences of scientific management, personnel management, and secondary vocational education affected office workplaces and hierarchies. Strom illustrates how businessmen manipulated concepts of scientific management to maintain male dominance and professional status and to confine women to supportive positions. She finds that women's responses to the reorganized workplace were varied; although they were able to advance professionally in only limited ways, they used their jobs as a means of pursuing friendships, education, and independence.

Here's your invitation to join a literary as well as a personal relationship with the deeply insightful and profoundly expressive perspectives of Regina Diane Jemison. As you encounter these soul-stirring pieces, you may imagine listening to one of God's own trombones. The poetry, prose and personality in "Soul Clothes," may rub up on a curious and compassionate place within you, a place of stark reality drenched in divine hope. Imagine a John Coltrane solo, with words instead of tenor sax.
Acclaim for "Soul Clothes"
""Soul Clothes" dances naked and unabashed across the page. Jemison's poetry connects spirit to spirit, stripping away masks and guiding us to divine adornments of grace, truth, faith."
--Aundria Sheppard Morgan, author "Cross My Heart and Hope to Die"
""Soul Clothes" is one poet's passionate expression of what it is to be human. Her poems encompass a vast expanse of emotions, from suffering and grief to love and celebration. While being real about the human experiences we all share, many of these poems also exalt the divine within us."
--Valerie Jean, author of "Woman Writing a Letter"
""Soul Clothes" reveals a collection of compelling, compassionate, daring, devoted, honest and unafraid poems with a spiritual undertone."
--Sweta Srivastava Vikram, author of "Kaleidoscope: An Asian Journey of Colors"
For more information see www.ReginaJemison.com
From the Reflections of America Series at Modern History Press
Poetry: African-American

This is a timely collection exploring the politics of female celebrity across a range of contemporary, historical, media and national contexts. "In the Limelight and Under the Microscope" is a timely collection exploring the politics of female celebrity across a range of contemporary, historical, media and national contexts. Amidst concerns about the apparent 'decline' in the currency of modern fame ('famous for being famous'), as well as debates about the shifting parameters of public/private visibility, it is female celebrities who are positioned as the most active discursive terrain. This collection seeks to interrogate such phenomena by forging a greater conceptual, theoretical and historical dialogue between celebrity studies and critical gender studies. It takes as its starting point the understanding that female celebrity is a particularly fraught cultural phenomenon with ideological and industrial implications that warrant careful scrutiny. In moving across case studies from the 19th century to the present day, this book works from the assumption that the case study should play a crucial role in generating debate about the dialogue between 'past' and 'present', and the individual essays will seek to reflect this spirit of enquiry.

Alternative Histories of the Self investigates how people re-imagined the idea of the unique self in the period from 1762 to 1917. Some used the notion of the unique self to justify their gender and sexual transgression, but others rejected the notion of the unique self and instead demanded the sacrifice of the self for the good of society. The substantial introductory chapter places these themes in the cultural context of the long nineteenth century, but the book as a whole represents an alternative method for studying the self. Instead of focusing on the thoughts of great thinkers, this book explores how five unusual individuals twisted conventional ideas of the self as they interpreted their own lives. These subjects include: * The Chevalier/e d'Eon, a renegade diplomat who was outed as a woman * Anne Lister, who wrote coded diaries about her attraction to women * Richard Johnson, who secretly criticized the empire that he served * James Hinton, a Victorian doctor who publicly advocated philanthropy and privately supported polygamy * Edith Ellis, a socialist lesbian who celebrated the 'abnormal' These five case studies are skilfully used to explore how the notion of the unique individual was used to make sense of sexual or gender non-conformity. Yet this queer reading will go beyond same-sex desire to analyse the issue of secrets and privacy; for instance, what stigma did men who practiced or advocated unconventional relationships with women incur? Finally, Clark ties these unusual lives to the wider questions of ethics and social justice: did those who questioned sexual conventions challenge political traditions as well? This is a highly innovative study that will be of interest to intellectual historians of modern Britain and Europe, as well as historians of gender and sexuality.

"The Concise Companion to Feminist Theory" introduces readers to the broad scope of feminist theory over the last 35 years.
Introduces readers to the broad scope of feminist theory over the past 35 years.
Guides students along the cutting edge of current feminist theory.
Suitable for students and scholars of all fields touched by feminist thought.
Covers an exceptionally broad range of disciplines, discourses and feminist positions.
Organised around concepts rather than schools of feminism.

A Cultural History of The Human Body presents an authoritative survey from ancient times to the present. This set of six volumes covers 2800 years of the human body as a physical, social, spiritual and cultural object. Volume 1: A Cultural History of the Human Body in Antiquity (1300 BCE - 500 CE) Edited by Daniel Garrison, Northwestern University. Volume 2: A Cultural History of the Human Body in The Medieval Age (500 - 1500) Edited by Linda Kalof, Michigan State University Volume 3: A Cultural History of the Human Body in the Renaissance (1400 - 1650) Edited by Linda Kalof, Michigan State University and William Bynum, University College London. Volume 4: A Cultural History of the Human Body in the Enlightenment (1600 - 1800) Edited by Carole Reeves, Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine, University College London. Volume 5: A Cultural History of the Human Body in the Age of Empire (1800 - 1920) Edited by Michael Sappol, National Library of Medicine in Washington, DC, and Stephen P. Rice, Ramapo College of New Jersey. Volume 6: A Cultural History of the Human Body in the Modern Age (1900-21st Century) Edited by Ivan Crozier, University of Edinburgh, and Chiara Beccalossi, University of Queensland. Each volume discusses the same themes in its chapters: 1. Birth and Death 2. Health and Disease 3. Sex & Sexuality 4. Medical Knowledge and Technology 5. Popular Beliefs 6. Beauty and Concepts of the Ideal 7. Marked Bodies I: Gender, Race, Class, Age, Disability and Disease 8. Marked Bodies II: the Bestial, the Divine and the Natural 9. Cultural Representations of the Body 10. The Self and Society This means readers can either have a broad overview of a period by reading a volume or follow a theme through history by reading the relevant chapter in each volume. Superbly illustrated, the full six volume set combines to present the most authoritative and comprehensive survey available on the human body through history.

The 19th century witnessed an explosion of writing about unproductivity, with the exploits of various idlers, loafers, and "gentlemen of refinement" capturing the imagination o fa country that was deeply ambivalent about its work ethic. Idle Threats documents this American obsession with unproductivity and its potentials, while offering an explanation of the profound significance of idle practices for literary and cultural production. While this fascination with unproductivity memorably defined literary characters from Rip Van Winkle to Bartleby to George Hurstwood, it also reverberated deeply through the entire culture, both as a seductive ideal and as a potentially corrosive threat to upright, industrious American men. Drawing on an impressive array of archival material and multifaceted literary and cultural sources, Idle Threats connects the question of unproductivity to other discourses concerning manhood, the value of art, the allure of the frontier, the usefulness of knowledge, the meaning of individuality, and the experience of time, space, and history. Andrew Lyndon Knighton offers a new way of thinking about the largely unacknowledged "productivity of the unproductive," revealing the incalculable and sometimes surprising ways in which American modernity transformed the relationship between subjects and that which is most intimate to them: their own activity.

Unconditional Praise is a book that will bring you into the realization of what authentic praise and worship really should be and it will put your thinking in line with the word of God concerning praise and worship. This book feeds your spirit man and challenges your character. Can you stand to praise God no matter what condition you are in? This book unlocks answers to praise and worship that will help you in a closer walk with God and trusting God.

Being a parent is a lifetime job. No one knows that more than Eddie Marie Durham, mother of three adult sons. In her guidebook filled with practical parenting advice, Durham shares not only her personal experiences but also poetry, scripture, and quotes in order to help parents find their way down what can be a very challenging road while raising children in today's world. Durham, a retired elementary school teacher, has always relied on God's guidance and her family values to carry her through difficult times while parenting her children. Guided by these principles, Durham leads others chronologically through her experiences, both good and bad, while offering wisdom and encouragement to other parents that will help them respect one another, talk to children about expectations and consequences, carry out discipline, allow children to grow and mature, be active with children in all facets of life, and lean on their faith for strength. While Being a Parent shares time-tested advice from a blessed mother that will help other parents attain the greatest reward in life: mentoring a child into a productive, loving adult.

Jacob Abbott's account of Mary Queen of Scots life and untimely death is complete with original illustrations of Mary herself and her various residences. Abbott's history is both embracing and superb as an introduction to one of the most divisive and controversial figures of the Tudor era. Mary had a complex role in the politics of the day, and had potential as a rival to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The book begins by examining Mary's childhood years, and her French education. The agreement - The Treaty of Greenwich - which would pair the young Mary to Edward, the son of Henry VIII, is detailed, as are hopes that the union would cement relations between the English and the Scots. Clever, capable and charming, Mary Queen of Scots was initially seen as a promising monarch. However the rules of accession of the time made her very existence problematic for Queen Elizabeth I. This problem would underline the remainder of Mary's life, her nature as a potential threat made eternal by her very blood.

Gender studies in the professional realm has long been a heavily researched field, with many feminist texts studying topics including the wage gap and family life. However, female administration in higher education remains largely understudied, particularly on the influence of personal, professional, and societal factors on women. There is a need for studies that seek to understand how gender intersects with the multiple dimensions of women leaders' personhoods, such as family status, marital status, age, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, to inform women's career path experiences and leadership aspirations. Challenges and Opportunities for Women in Higher Education Leadership is a pivotal reference source that provides vital research on the specific challenges, issues, strategies, and solutions that are associated with diverse leadership in higher education. While highlighting topics such as educational administration, leader mentorship, and professional promotion, this publication explores evidence-based professional practice for women in higher education who are currently in or are seeking positions of leadership, as well as the methods of nurturing women in administrative positions. This book is ideally designed for educators, researchers, academicians, scholars, policymakers, educational administrators, graduate-level students, and pre-service teachers seeking current research on the state of educational leadership in regard to gender.

Guidance. Reassurance. Science. Stories. Practical tools. Support.

Has this middle part of life left you wondering: Is this . . . it? I thought it would get easier. I thought I'd have more figured out by now. Something is wrong, and I just can't put my finger on it. Is it my thyroid? Perimenopause? Or is this just what midlife feels like?

Dr. Mikala Albertson draws on her eighteen years in evidence-based clinical practice as well as her own personal experience to offer real stories and current medical information on a wide range of topics common to women in their later thirties, forties, fifties, and beyond.

Full of practical tools to empower you to care for and find healing in the body you actually have in this life you are actually living, Everything I Wish I Could Tell You About Midlife digs deep into:

    · Preventive health and well-being specific to YOU and your unique parameters
    · Perimenopause, mood disorders, and body image (as well as the harmful effects of cultural and societal expectations)
    · Co-occurring life stressors like relationship issues, caregiver expectations, and shifting work/motherhood roles
    · Support systems, purpose, and healing in your one precious, beautiful life

Life is hard--and today you may feel weary--but there are steps you can take toward health, growth, and healing while discovering along the way: There is beauty here, too.

Knowing is a process, not an arrival. "The Place of Knowing: A Spiritual Autobiography" celebrates the spiritual-both seen and unseen-through the life of acclaimed writer and devout Mormon Emma Lou Warner Thayne.

In this insightful, eloquently written memoir, Emma Lou-author of thirteen books of poetry, essays, and fiction-shares poignant personal anecdotes that begin with a terrifying near-death experience when, without warning, a six-pound iron rod smashed through a car windshield into her face. As she narrates her journey through her recovery process, she reflects on previous life experiences-from the daily to the sublime. Through both example and insight, she shares adventures while offering a calming presence for those who may fear death, yearn to know how to celebrate life, and crave direction on how to access the wonders of the divine.

For anyone who has wondered about life after death or who desires a better understanding of his or her divine self, "The Place of Knowing" will inspire spiritual seekers everywhere to reach out in friendship to others and to embrace new experiences-ultimately discovering themselves in the process.

This book begins with an examination of the numbers of women in physics in English-speaking countries, moving on to examine factors that affect girls and their decision to continue in science, right through to education and on into the problems that women in physics careers face. Looking at all of these topics with one eye on the progress that the field has made in the past few years, and another on those things that we have yet to address, the book surveys the most current research as it tries to identify strategies and topics that have significant impact on issues that women have in the field.