Books > Professional & Technical > Agriculture & farming > Smallholdings
|
Buy Now
Working the Land - The Stories of Ranch and Farm Women in the Modern American West (Hardcover)
Loot Price: R904
Discovery Miles 9 040
|
|
Working the Land - The Stories of Ranch and Farm Women in the Modern American West (Hardcover)
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
|
Helen Tiegs didn't take to driving a tractor when she became a
farmer's wife, but after fifty years she considers herself the hub
of the family operation. Lila Hill taught piano, then ultimately
took a job off the farm to augment the family income during a
period of rising costs. From Montana's cattle pastures to New
Mexico's sagebrush mesas, women on today's ranches and farms have
played a crucial role in a way of life that is slowly disappearing
from the western landscape.
Recalling her own family-farm ties, Sandra Schackel set out to
learn how these women's lives have changed over the second half of
the twentieth century. In Working the Land, she collects oral
histories from more than forty women-in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho,
New Mexico, Oregon, and Texas-recalling their experiences as
ranchers and farmers in a modernizing West.
Through this diverse group of women-white and Hispanic, rich and
poor, ranging in age from 24 to 83-we gain a new perspective on
their ties to the land. Although western ranch and farm women have
often been portrayed as secondary figures who devoted themselves to
housekeeping in support of their husbands' labors, Schackel's
interviews reveal that these women have had a much more active role
in defining what we know as the modern American West.
As Schackel listened to their stories, she found several currents
running through their recollections, such as the satisfaction found
in living the rural lifestyle and the flexibility of gender roles.
She also learned how resourceful women developed new ways to make
their farms work-by including tourism, summer camps, and
bed-and-breakfast operations-and how many have become activists for
land-based issues. And while some like Lila made the difficult
decision to work off the farm, such sacrifices have enabled
families to hold onto their beloved land.
Rich with memory and insight into what makes America's family farms
and ranches tick, Working the Land provides a deeper understanding
of the West's development over the last fifty years along with new
perspectives on shifting attitudes toward women in the workforce.
It is both a long-overdue documentation of the lives of
hard-working farm women and a celebration of their contributions to
a truly American way of life.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
|
|
Email address subscribed successfully.
A activation email has been sent to you.
Please click the link in that email to activate your subscription.