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الاستماع والقراءة

Sonia D Picker

Michelle Rosenberg

What springs to mind when you think of British Victorian men and women? – manners, manners and more manners. Behavior that was as rigid and constricted as the corsets women wore. From iron-knicker sexual prudery to men so uptight they furtively released their pent up emotions in opium dens and prostitute hot spots. All, of course, exaggerated clichés worthy of a Victorian melodrama. Each generation loves to think it is better than the last and loves to look aghast at the horrifying trends of their ancestors. But are we really any different? This glimpse at life for Victorian men and women might make you think again. Men and women were expected to live very differently from one another with clearly defined roles regardless of class. However, lift the skirts a little and not only will you see that they didn’t wear knickers but they were far less repressed than the persistent stereotypes would have us believe. The Victorians were as weird and wonderful as we are today. From fatal beauty tips to truly hysterical cures for hysteria to grave robbers playing skittles with human bones, we have cherry picked some of the more entertaining glimpses into the lives led by our Victorian brothers and sisters.

Pen & Sword History

History Snapshots

Not So Virtuous Victorians

Femmes both fierce and fatale. “A superb slice of history served up in a grand manner” from the coauthor of Historical Heroines (Books Monthly).
 
 The world is full of women we don’t know whose stories have been overlooked or airbrushed from history.
 
 Often faced with limited life choices, this book proudly showcases those women who took matters into their own hands and became forces to be reckoned with.
 
 These are women you SHOULD know about. Love them or loathe them, they made their mark. From cross dressing soldiers to scheming mistresses and courtesans, Warriors and Wenches offers up an indulgent romp through centuries of history, from widows turned tank drivers bent on bloody vengeance and fierce martial arts fighters, to women who magnificently and outrageously turned their social lot in life to their advantage: the mistresses, courtesans and uniquely French maitresse-en-titres who wielded incredible power and influence in the sumptuous courts of Europe.
 
Warriors and Wenches doesn’t seek to decide whether these women were “good” or “bad;” we’ll leave it up to you to make up your own minds. But these are just some of the women who, through military skill, incredible courage and loyalty, scandal, poison plots and sexual debauchery, have crossed over into the realm of legend and myth and become powerful symbols of feminist power. In the words of literary critic Charles-Augustin Sainte-Reuve, “When the destiny of a nation is in a woman’s bedroom, the best place for the historian is in the antechamber.”
 
 “An absolutely fascinating and informative read from cover to cover, and nicely enhanced with the inclusion of black-and-white illustrations.” —Midwest Book Review

Warriors and Wenches: Sex and Power in Women's History