Course Resources Archive

Topics covered in the course of the module include: an examination of the construction of the Victorian ‘ideal woman’ using contemporary writings; the realities of women’s lives: middle-class women and philanthropy, women’s changing legal status; working-class women and the impact of industrialisation; trade unions and protective labour legislation; women’s political activism and movements; marriage and maternity; violence against women; lesbian history; women, the First World War and the peace movement. The module places a particular focus on adopting a critical approach to the variety of sources used for the study of British women’s history and makes use of historical documents as evidence. Analysis of the issues raised by the module takes place within the context of current historiographical debates.

i.  Knowledge and understanding
By the end of the module, students should be able to demonstrate:
a)  a good acquaintance with a range of issues relating to women's lives in the period 1830-1920;
b)  knowledge and understanding of selected primary materials relevant to this area of study;
c)  awareness of different historiographical approaches used in the study of women's history.

ii.  Skills
Students should be able to demonstrate the following skills:
a)  document analysis;
b)  written and verbal communication;
c)  construction of bibliographies.

Staff / student contact: 20% (lectures, seminars and tutorials)
Student directed learning: 80%

The Library Catalogue contains full details of the current reading list for this module. Further details may also be found in the Module Guide.