Between Women: Domestics and Their Employers

Labor and Social Change

by Judith Rollins

A study of the relationship between women employers and employees. It provides an overview of domestic service in the Western tradition, a history of servitude in the South and northeastern United States, with an attention to a few non-Western locales.

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction, Womens, Sociology

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

Reviews

[CMC · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book really delves into an adequate, in-depth discussion of the interpersonal relationship between women in the domestic service sector. The only thing that really prevented me from giving it a five is that by the end of the book, I felt like some of the ideas were overtly repetitive. Otherwise, it's a great read and I think it's just me being picky.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

While ethically problematic in her methods (and she offers something in the way of an explanation, but not a good enough one), Rollins has produced a fantastic study of everyday relations and the subtle push and pull between women and their domestics at a particular moment in this country's history.