Table of Contents

Contents: Introduction; Law in early modern France; Widows and religious institutions; Women's place in Guilds; Widows in the workshop; The calculus of remarriage; The trap of poverty; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.

About the Author

Janine M. Lanza is Assistant Professor of History at Wayne State University, USA.

Reviews

'Based on painstaking and original archival research, Lanza has uncovered rare and precious documents regarding widows' lives; she offers new and significant conclusions that challenge the dogmas established by a previous generation of women's and family historians. One of the real strengths of the book is its focus on women of the artisanal classes, rather than the elite or literary widows who have attracted most historians' attention ... a well-written, exciting, and highly original study.' Clare Crowston, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA 'Professor Lanza has written a careful and scholarly study, set in the wider context of arguments about the improvement or decline of women's status in the period. It will form a useful part of further investigations into the world from a woman's perspective.' Parergon 'Although Lanza draws on the work of social and women's historians of eighteenth century France (such as Arlette Farge, Darrel Hafter, Clare Haru Crowston, and Cynthia Truant), there is to my knowledge no general work in English or French that examines the experience of the widows of guild masters with Lanza's attention to detail. Specialists in eighteenth-century women's history and labor history will benefit greatly from her findings.' H-France Reviews 'Because the study can speak to so many audiences and is composed in a straightforward and thoughtful manner, the book should be included on graduate reading lists and on all university library shelves.' Sixteenth Century Journal