California State University, Fresno

Department of History

 

HIST 129T: Women, Sex, and Power in Early Modern Europe

 

Spring 2004

Professor Maritere Lopez

 

 

Research Project: Topic Suggestions

 

General Topics:

 

    These are overall areas of research which you would narrow down to a viable topic.

    I would recommend, where possible, narrowing down your topic to one or two women writers, artists, etc.

 

  1. Prescribed roles for early modern women
  2. Early Modern women’s sexuality: views and prescriptions
  3. Books of conduct for Early Modern women
  4. Early Modern nuns/monachation: views and/or realitites
  5. Prostitution/Courtesanship
  6. Education of Early Modern women
  7. Women and religion: mystics, books for female worship, etc.
  8. Witchcraft
  9. Midwifery
  10. Early Modern women writers: female humanists, the querelle des femmes, poets, letter writers, etc.
  11. Diarists: Glueckel of Hameln, Alessandra Strozzi, etc.
  12. Early Modern female patronage
  13. Women artists: Sofonisba Anguissola, Artemisia Gentileschi, etc.
  14. Salonnieres / Women and the Enlightenment
  15. Women at court: queens, mistresses, ladies-in-waiting, etc.
  16. Early modern depictions of women: could be in art, literature, drama, etc.

 

Possible Primary Sources:

 

    These are just a few examples of possible primary sources.  There are plenty more, so don’t limit yourself to these if nothing here interests you.

 

1.      Check the “Other Voice in Early Modern Europe” series.  It has a fine list of offerings, such as the correspondence of the Duchesse d’Orleans against marriage, Veronica Franco’s letters and poems (a 16th century courtesan), Anna Maria van Schurman’s treatise on whether Christian women should be educated, etc.  The series is published by Chicago University Press, and you can check out the whole list of available titles through their website.  Many of the titles are available in the Madden Library.

2.      Women writers – there are dozens of them available in translation.  Some examples are:

                  Glueckl of Hameln’s Memoirs

                  Cecilia Ferrazzi’s Autobiography of an Aspiring Saint

                  Her Immaculate Hand – an anthology of writings by female humanists

                  Selected writings of Christine de Pizan (several of her books are available)

                  Casandra Fedele’s Letters and Orations

                  Veronica Franco’s Letters and Poems

                  Any of the anthologies now available

 

    For other primary sources, you may search the net.  Here are some particularly good sites:

 

Sunshine for Women

            A good site for bibliographical references to early modern women’s primary sources in print.

            http://www.pinn.net/~sunshine/biblio/theobib2.html

 

            For a bibliography of anthologies: http://www.pinn.net/~sunshine/biblio/antholgy.html

 

Early Modern Resources: Women, Gender, Sexuality

            Offers a list of thematically organized websites related to women and gender in the Early Modern Period.

            http://www.earlymodernweb.org.uk/themes/womengs.htm

 

Letters Written by the Wives of Henry VIII

            http://www.englishhistory.net/tudor/letters.html

 

Renascence Editions

            Online repository of works printed in English between 1477 and 1799.

            http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~rbear/ren.htm

 

The Norton Anthology of English Literature

            Offers primary sources and critical analyses thereof; subdivided into periods.

            http://www.wwnorton.com/nael/17century/topic_1/welcome.htm

 

Medieval Sourcebook

            Links to primary sources for the Middle Ages and Renaissance.  This link is to witchcraft sources.

            http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/witches1.html