In the 19th Century, Deerfield, MA, became almost entirely female. This work uses Deerfield as a lens through which to study gender roles and social relations in the late 19th and early 20th century then applies lessons learned to other historical periods.

During the last half of the nineteenth century, a number of social and economic factors converged that resulted in the rural village of Deerfield, Massachusetts becoming almost entirely female. This drastic shift in population presents a unique lens through which to study gender roles and social relations in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The lessons gleaned from this case study will provide new insight to the study of gender relations throughout other historical periods as well.

Through an intensive examination of both historical and archaeological evidence, the author presents a clear picture of the gendered social relations in Deerfield over the span of seventy years. While gender relations in urban settings have been studied extensively, this unique work provides the same level of examination to gender relations in a rural setting. Likewise, where previous studies have often focused only on relations between married men and women, the unique case of Deerfield provides insight into the experiences of single women, particularly widows and spinsters.

This work presents a unique contribution that will be essential for anyone studying the historical archaeology of gender, or gender roles in the Victorian era and beyond.

In-depth study of a unique, mainly female population Examines gender relations between married couples as well as single women Gives insight on gender relations in a rural setting

Klappentext

The ways in which individuals understand their roles as gendered beings and their relationships to other gendered beings is constantly pushed and pulled by forces both internal and external to the individual and the family/social/economic unit to which they belong. Gender interacts with a myriad of other social prismsincluding, but not limited to, competing gender ideologies, socioeconomic class, patterns of identities and relationships. The village of Deerfield was an ideal lens through which to explore issues of culture change and the re-creation of social order, specifically gender relations and family structure, throughout the late eighteenth and into the twentieth century.

In Deerfield, residents were aware of republican motherhood, cult of domesticity, equal rights, feminism, and domestic reform, among many other ideologies. Women and men, however, created and codified gender roles and relations in ways that were appropriate to their respective needs, desires, and abilities. Although gender ideologies existed in idealized forms, they were rarely adopted in totality; rather, they were interpreted and/or combined according to their unique labor requirements, financial constraints or abundance, economic and social position, and the like.

The villageparticularly the main streethas been occupied for more than three centuries, which allowed gender relations and other complex social processes to be examined over time. Like a kaleidoscope, the six families in this study provided a lens through which to view the lives of village residents and begin to understand the complexities of gender ideologies in Deerfield and the influence of the complex social forces in the negotiations and expressions of gender relations.

Inhalt
Gender Ideologies as Complex Social Forces.- Theoretical Framework for Understanding Gender Roles and Relations.- The Village, Families, and Archaeological Assemblages in this Study.- Gendered Landscapes in Historic Deerfield.- Complex Intersection of Social Relations and the Material World.- Critical Analyses of Separate Spheres and the Role of Life Cycle in Shaping the Material World.- Through a Kaleidoscope: Gendered Lives in Deerfield, MA.