Renaissance Woman: a Sourcebook, by Kate Augusterson, highlights the constructs of femininity during that time in England. This collection of personal accounts from women during Early Modern England is separated into nine basic sections, specifying the particular cultural contruct of the chapter. Augusterson's chapters are: Theology, Biology (yeah, super interesting stuff from ye ole science and the beliefs about a woman's body), Conduct, Sexuality and Motherhood (also really useful for those studying women in every aspect), Politics and Law, EDUCATION!, Work (I thought this section was a little disappointing, to be honest), Writing and Speaking, and Feminism (or the kind of feminist-type-thing they had going on at the time). These sections really helped me to distinguish which parts of the book I deemed most useful for my research, and gave insight into really specific details from Early Modern England, ACTUALLY FROM A WOMAN'S PERSPECTIVE. A lot of the RCE articles are written by women scholars, but much of the content in Augusterson's book is from the actual documents produced by women of the time. Mothers, daughters, writers, seamstresses--these women all had different views. For this reason, the sourcebook is really useful and if anyone would like to make a few copies or flip through it, I will bring it to class!
Aughterson, Kate. Renaissance Woman: a Sourcebook : Constructions of Femininity in England. London: Routledge, 1995. Print.
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