CFP for RSA 2019 panel: Friends, Neighbours, Allies: The Networks of Non-Elite Women in Early Modern Societies

Call for proposals for a panel on “Friends, Neighbours, Allies: The Networks of Non-Elite Women in Early Modern Societies” at the at the 2019 meeting of the Renaissance Society of America (Toronto, 17-19 March, 2019).

An ever-richer scholarship has explored the social relationships and cultural collaborations of literate and elite early modern women. This panel seeks to broaden our understanding of homosocial networks to include working, poor, and marginalized women between 1500 and 1700. Representations drawn from literary texts, visual imagery, and archival sources are welcome. Themes of interest might include: the role of gender in female same-sex relationships; relationships between peers or across social categories, such as mistress and servant; meanings of friendship among plebeian women; emotions, especially empathy; instrumentality and collaboration; material exchanges; and coping strategies, including the illegal. Papers about a mix of geographical and cultural settings will advance discussion of similarities and differences in the homosocial networks of early modern women. 

Professor Elizabeth Cohen (York University), collaborating on this CFP, will chair the panel. 

Please email paper proposals, including a title and abstract of 100-150 words, as well as a one-page C.V. (300 words) to Marlee Couling by 14 July, 2018

Contact Info: 

Marlee Couling
PhD Candidate, ABD
History
York University
Toronto, CA

Contact Email: