The bonds of womanhood: "woman's sphere" in New England 1780-1835

About this book

This twentieth anniversary edition of Nancy F. Cotts acclaimed study includes a new preface in which Cott assesses her own and other historians development of the concept of domesticity from the 1970s to the 1990s. "Nancy Cotts Bonds of Womanhood is not just a pioneer work in womens history. It is a classic. Despite all the work published since it is still an essential starting place for understanding New England in the early republic". -- Laurel Thatcher Ulrich "Cott still the best historian of womens bonds and bondage foresaw twenty years ago the tendency of domesticitys bonds to lead both to feminism and the far right. An essential book for understanding todays women. -- Carolyn Heilbrun