Writing Gender History

by Laura Lee Downs

Feminist scholarship has changed history writing to where it is no longer imaginable to write history, whether of the political, military, social, economic, or intellectual varieties, without taking gender into account. Downs's book explores the evolution of historical writing about women and gender from the 1930s until the early twenty-first century. The discussion moves from women's history to gender history, and then to poststructuralist challenges to women's and gender history. Designed to be accessible to students, discussion focuses neither on abstract theory nor on historiography per se , but rather upon the practical application of theory in historical scholarship on women and gender.

Laura Lee Downs is Director of Studies at the Centre de Recherches Historiques, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris. Feminist scholarship has changed history writing to where it is no longer imaginable to write history, whether of the political, military, social, economic, or intellectual varieties, without taking gender into account. Downs's book explores the evolution of historical writing about women and gender from the 1930s until the early twenty-first century. The discussion moves from women's history to gender history, and then to poststructuralist challenges to women's and gender history. Designed to be accessible to students, discussion focuses neither on abstract theory nor on historiography per se , but rather upon the practical application of theory in historical scholarship on women and gender.

Feminist scholarship has changed history writing to where it is no longer imaginable to write history, whether of the political, military, social, economic, or intellectual varieties, without taking gender into account. Downs's book explores the evolution of historical writing about women and gender from the 1930s until the early twenty-first century. The discussion moves from women's history to gender history, and then to poststructuralist challenges to women's and gender history. Designed to be accessible to students, discussion focuses neither on abstract theory nor on historiography per se , but rather upon the practical application of theory in historical scholarship on women and gender.
"Downs puts the entire range of women's and gender history into context, showing how it challenges the conventional pieties, opens up new veins of research, and transforms our understanding of every aspect of history. Her command of the literature is simply astounding and her work is sure to be seen as a landmark in the development of the field of history in the broadest sense."—Lynn Hunt, UCLA

"Ingenuity and perspicuity shine through Laura Lee Downs superb distillation and analysis of women's and gender history. To understand accomplishments and changes in the field, put this book at the top of your list."—Nancy Cott, Harvard University

Genres: History, Feminism

256 pages, Paperback

First published May 26, 2005

Reviews

[Myra Belacqua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ottima introduzione alla storiografia femminista negli Stati Uniti e UK con preziosi suggerimenti di lettura e testi base per chi si avvicina alla materia o chi ha bisogno di una prospettiva cronologica del pensiero femminista e le sue applicazioni da parte di studios* nell'ambito degli studi storici.Tuttavia, spesso vi è poca precisione o insufficiente attenzione alla definizione di tendenze che hanno avuto un impatto importante nella discussione e definizione di metodi di ricerca storico-sociale. Grandissimo problema è la mancata menzione degli studi queer, LGBT ed il contributo di studios* post-strutturalist*, come ad esempio Butler, che vengono praticamente ignorati, nonostante sia ovvio che abbiano influenzato anche le scienze storiche, soprattutto nel mondo anglosassone. Inoltre, anche i contributi del Black Feminism soprattutto negli Stati Uniti non sono sufficientemente approfonditi e inseriti all'interno dei dibattiti sollevati dal femmismo radicale negli USA in ambito accademico.

[Teoman Versteegen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every chapter is fascinating, and illustrates what gender history can uncover really well.