~THEREBE N Teyycl
WOMEN AND SOCIETY Ne S C

The City University Graduate Center

33 West 42 Street, New York City 10036 212 790-4435

Volume IV, No. 4 March = April 1983

Marxist-Feminist Approaches to Women's History
SON

Over the years of the women's movement, women's history has become a rich
field, blossoming and ripening in splendid diversity. Methodologies are being
developed to coax understanding out of data not previously subjected to a gen-
der analysis. Indeed, the focus of the Sixth Berkshire Conterence on the
History of Women, to be held June 1-3, 1984 at Smith College! » is mainly on
methodology.

One of the most dynamic approaches is Marxist-feminism, which tries to grasp
women's history in the context of and engagement with "general" history. In con-
trast to a model of universal female oppression, Marxist-feminism stresses the
diversity of experience, depending on local conditions.

"Marxist theory argues that society is fundamentally constructed

of the relations people form as they do and make things needed to

survive humanly. Work is the social process of shaping and trans-

forming the material the social worlds, creating people as social

beings as they create value. It is that activity by which people

become who they are. Class is its structure, production its con-

sequence, capital its congealed form, and control its issue."

Control is exercised by those who own and/or restrict access to the means of pro-
duction necessary for life and for wealth. It determines whether and how much
inequality there shall be. And work, which creates people as social beings, is
divided into tasks for greater efficiency. The oldest and most lasting division
has been the sexual division of labor, which may or may not lead to unequal
access and control.

Control over the means of production, the division of ‘labor including sexual
division, and inequalities of class, race, and gender vary greatly according to
historical circumstance. In order to see how these affect women, Marxist-feminists
have identified several categories of research:

1. the relationship between kinship or family and class structure

2. the relationship between control over the means of production and the means of
reproduction, defined broadly as not only childbirth but also socialization of

children and sexuality.

3. the relationship between male supremacy in the social structure and state

power, as both affect women. <
4. the source of patriarchal ideologies and the degree to which they both mirror

and affect social reality.

5. the relationship of all the above to women's consciousness and the relation-

ship between women's consciousness and revolutionary transformation.


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A few examples of recent scholarship are:

Mary P. Ryan, Cradle of the Middle Class: The Family in Oneida County,
New York, 1780-1865 (New York and London: Cambridge University Press, 1982),
which traces changes in family forms and relationships, showing these as res-
ponding to growing commercialism and industrialism in the early nineteenth
century United States, using Oneida County as case study. She stresses women's
role in non-familial associations in helping to establish new values.

Bettina Aptheker, Woman's Legacy (Amherst: University of Massachusetts
Press, 1982), which integrates the historical experience of black and white
women, showing how racism and sexism reinforce one another.

Meredith Tax, The Rising of the Women: Feminist Solidarity and Class
Conflict, 1880-1917 (New York and London: Monthly Review Press, 1980), which shows
a united front of women coming together from organized labor, socialism, and
feminism, to win gains for working women in the late nineteenth century Illinois.
A fortunate conjecture made it possible but long-term cross-class alliance proved
impossible.

Judith Walkowitz, Prostitution and Victorian Society: Women, Class and the
State (New York and London: Cambridge University Press, 1980) shows another ver-
sion of cross-class alliance among women for repeal of the Contagious Diseases
Acts in England in the 1870s, which paid off,but resulted in new laws ultimately
making middle class women accomplices in the persecution of prostitutes.

Class, Race, and Sex: The Dynamics. of Control (G.K. Hall & Co., forthcoming),
containing the proceedings of two Barnard College Women's Center conferences of The
Scholar and the Feminist, includes several Marxist-feminist articles. One is my
"Notes Toward A Feminist Dialectic," in which I propose that feminism be seen as
a process (rather than a program) of coming-to-consciousness, which allows for
varieties of feminism in different places at different points in time and which
also acknowledges the contribution of anti-feminism to the development of feminism.

Space does not allow a fuller discussion here, but one thing is certain:
women's history is alive and flourishing and Marxist-feminism has contributed a
great deal to that happy result.

Renate Bridenthal

Assoctate Prof., History and Women's
Studies

Brooklyn College

Footnotes

1. Proposals should be sent to Carol Groneman, History Department, John Jay
College, 445 West 59th Street, New York, NY 10019. Send a paragraph abstract
and curriculum vita.

2. Catherine A. MacKinnon, "Feminism, Marxism, Method, and the State: An Agenda
for Theory,'' SIGNS: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, vol. 7, no. 3
(Spring 1982), p. 515.

3. Rosalind Petchesky, '"Dissolving the Hyphen: A Report on Marxist-Feminist Groups
1-5," Zillah R. Eisenstein, Capitalist Patriarchy and the Case for Socialist Femi-
nism (New York and London: Monthly Review Press, 1979), p. 375.





Calls for....

The Doris Lessing Society, an Allied Organization of the Modern Language
Society, will sponsor two panels on Lessing's work at the 1983 MLA convention
in New York. 3-page abstracts of papers for a session on DORIS LESSING AND
AFRICA should be sent to Linda Susan Beard, English Department, Michigan State
University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824. 3-page abstracts or completed papers
for a session titled STRATEGIES FOR READING CANOPUS IN ARGOS should be sent to
Betsy Draine, English Department, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Helen White
Hall, 600 N. Park Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53703. The deadline for submission
is March 15, 1983.

The Doris Lessing Society announces a new contest for the best undergraduate
or graduate student essay on Doris Lessing. There is no formal requirement for
entry format or length. Essays may address any aspect of Lessing's work or may
be comparative in nature. The winner will receive a $50.00 prize and the winning
essay will be published in the Doris Lessing Newsletter. The deadline for sub-
mission is June 1, 1983. For further information, contact Professor Ellen Rose,
English Department, Haverford College, Haverford, Pennsylvania 19041.

Joan Nestle, one of the founding members of the Lesbian Herstory Archives and
the Lesbian Herstory Educational Foundation, Inc., is researching the herstory
of the Lesbian Community in New York City from the beginning of the twentieth
century up until 1970. Lesbians who were in New York before 1970 or anyone who
has Lesbian/gay documents and memorabilia -- photographs, newspaper clippings,
home movies, diaries, personal correspondence or stories to share, should con-
tact Joan Nestle, 215 West 92nd Street, New York, NY 10025, (212) 874-7232.
Confidentiality is assured.

The Journal of the National Association for Women Deans, Administrators, and
Counselors is soliciting papers for 1983. Manuscripts should be of value to
those with a professional commitment to and interest in the education and personal
development of women and girls. Submissions should not exceed 3,000 words and
must be submitted in triplicate. The Journal follows APA style. Send corres-
pondence, manuscripts, and queries to: Dr. Patricia A. Gartland, Editor, Journal
of NAWDAC, c/o The American College Testing Program, P.0.Box 168, Iowa City,

Towa 52243.

SSSSSSSSS SSS SSS SSS SO SSS

Readers wishing to send ideas and announcements for future issues, or to
respond to items appearing in the Newsletter are encouraged to do so. Decisions
about publication will be made on the basis of space considerations.

Please submit all materials for the May - June issue no later than April 5th
and mail to: Center for the Study of Women and Society Newsletter, CUNY Graduate
Center, 33 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036, Attn.: Lisa Master, Editor.




CUNY News

FEMINISM, WOMEN'S STUDIES, AND HOME ECONOMICS -- THREE SISTERS OR THREE WITCHES?
a one-day conference which will be held Saturday, March 12, 9:30 a.m. at Herbert
H,. Lehman College. In addition to workshops, the program will feature two spe-
cial addresses: "Feminism and the Dilemma of Domesticity" and "Sex Equity Issues
in Education: The View from Home Economics." Conference registration costs
$5.00; buffet dinner, $10.00; and Dayton Ballet performance, a special conference
event, $1 .00. To register, send check, payable to Alpha Rho, to Professor
Patricia Thompson, Lehman College, CUNY, The Bronx, New York, NY 10468. For
information, call (212) 960-8750, 8173 or 8174. ;

WOMEN'S HISTORY WEEK CELEBRATION

Title: An Evening of Women's History Works -— in - Progress
Date: Tuesday, March 8, 1983

Time: 7:00 - 10.00 p.m.

Place: Room 207, CUNY Graduate Center

Speakers: Carol Berkin, Baruch College, "Step Daughters of American
Women's History: A Research Effort on Southern Women"

Renate Bridenthal, Brooklyn College, "Feminist Dialectic:
The German Case"

Virginia Sanchez-Korrol, Brooklyn College, "Women's Work
Reevaluated: The Role of Early Puerto Rican Migrants in
New York City"

Barbara Omolade, City College, "If the World was as Willing
as She's Able: Black Women's Work and Visions"

The evening is co-sponsored by the Graduate Center History Program and
by the Center for the Study of Women and Society's Program on Socio-
logy and Economics of Women and Work.

IMAGES OF WOMEN IN FILM, the eleventh annual spring conference of the CUNY Women's
Coalition will take place Saturday, April 16 in Lehman Auditorium of Barnard
College, Broadway and 120th Street, New York City. The morning panel presentations
will explore: "Funny Ladies: Images of Women in Comedy"; "Women in Films of the
1980s"; "Unlucky Ladies: The Image of Women in Thrillers"; "Dietrich to Monroe:
From Angle to Curve -- The Dissolving Images of Women in Film" and "Women, Sadism
and Sex Symbols in Film". Afternoon panel talks include: "Black Women in Film";
"Marriage and Careers: Women in Films of the 40s"; "Enduring Female Stars";
"Women in Educational Films" and "Women in the Film Industry". Preregistration
costs $6.00/full time faculty and staff; $3.00/part time faculty, staff, and stu-
dents. Registration at the door costs $8.00/full time; $4.00 part time and stu-
dents, and begins at 9:00 a.m. Make check payable to CUNY Women's Coalition and
mail to Clara Melman, Sociology, College of Staten Island, Staten Island, New York
10301 by March 30. For further information, contact Carol Flomerfeldt, Conference
Coordinator, Health and Physical Education, Kingsborough Community College,

2001 Oriental Blvd., Brooklyn, NY 11235, (212) 934-5696.





Two Laws (1982), a documentary film by Carolyn Strachan, depicts the current
struggles by Australian Aborigines for land rights and cultural identity. It
portrays the prominent role women in this society play in the decision-making
process, The Doctoral Program in Anthropology will be screening the film
Monday, March 7, 6:00 p.m. at the Graduate Center. To confirm date and time
of the showing and find out the location, call the Program in Anthropology,
790-4617.

"Subsidies, Quality and Regulation in the Nursing Home Industry" will be the
subject of a lecture sponsored by the Graduate Center Ph.D. Program in Economics
to be held Thursday, March 10, 1983. Paul Gertler, Assistant Professor of Econo-
mics, State University of New York at Stony Brook will speak at 4:15 in room 800
at the Graduate Center, 33 West 42nd Street.

Women, Education, and Employment, A Bibliography of Periodical Citations, Pamph-
lets, Newspapers, and Government Documents, 1970-1980 ($25.00; 275 pp) by Renee
Feinberg, Professor and Reference Librarian at Brooklyn College, is available
from The Shoestring Press, 995 Sherman Avenue, P.0.Box 4327, Hamden, Connecticut
06514.

WOMEN AND HEALTH

We are planning to include in the CSWS Newsletter a regular listing

of special events, beginning or on-going projects, publications, and
other activities related to topics of Women and Health. We hope to

develop a resource list of individuals and organizations, academic,

activist and advocacy, who can provide us with timely information

about work being done in the area of women and health. We would
appreciate receiving names, phonenumbers and background information
from these who are willing to be canvassed by us before the publi-
cation of each Newsletter (5X/year). Please write or call:

Center for the Study of Women and Society, CUNY Graduate Center,

33 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036, attn.: WOMEN AND HEALTH,
(212) 790-4435.

Tenth Anniversary of Legal Abortion

Rhonda Copelon, an attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights, spoke at
the Center for the Study of Women and Society on January 21, 1983, at an event
marking the tenth anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling which legalized abortion.
Copelon, who has been active in key. cases on reproductive rights and family plan-
ning since 1971, presented a brief history of the struggle for abortion rights,
described the current status of abortion, and forecast future challenges to legal,
accessible abortion. She also discussed related reproductive freedom issues, such
as parental notification, informed consent, and sterilization abuse. Finally,
Copelon identified the continued need to organize around these issues to regain
lost ground (recently withdrawn Medicaid funding for abortion in some states), de-
fend the hard won rights still under attack (legal abortion, available and legal
contraception) and press for greater reproductive freedom for all women in the
future.




CUNY_FEMINIST NETWORK

Working For Child Care

Representatives from different’ CUNY campuses have joined in a coalition to
draw attention to the need for child care for students, faculty, and staff.
This need is particularly crucial for college students because they are in-
eligible for government-funded programs. Several campus based child care
committees are also forming following the successful model developed by Medgar
Evers students, faculty, and staff. (For further information about Medgar Evers
Child Care Committee, call Nancy Romer, Brooklyn College, 780-5485) Several
other important precedents have been set in recent months for the expansion of
child care for college students, faculty, and staff. For example, California
now mandates the provision of child care for students in the state educational
system,

Joseph S. Murphy, the newly appointed CUNY Chancellor, is at present con-
ducting a survey of child care needs and has expressed a commitment to estab-
lishing child care facilities in the CUNY system. His office is planning a
conference in the early spring to discuss the issue of child care.

The newly formed CUNY-wide coalition also plans to conduct a city-wide
assessment of child care needs. For information about the time and place of the
campus based and city-wide coalition meetings, call Annette Bus at the Center
for the Study of Women and Society, 790-4435.

New CUNY Feminist Newspaper

Feminist students and faculty at Brooklyn College are initiating a news-
paper designed as a forum for feminists to share writing, poetry, artwork,
graphics, and information with other students and faculty throughout CUNY.

The newspaper also will increase coverage of feminist activities and issues
throughout the CUNY system and will help disseminate information about all of
the CUNY women's centers and women's studies programs. In addition, students
who work on the newspaper will have the opportunity to learn production and
editorial skills.

Initially, the newspaper will appear once a semester, but eventually, it
will be published twice each semester. Students and faculty from all CUNY cam-
puses are encouraged to submit materials for publication. Submissions should be
typed, double-spaced and sent to: Feminist Newspaper Project, c/o Women's
Studies Program, Brooklyn College, Bedford Avenue and Avenue H, Brooklyn, NY
11210, no later than March 14. For further information regarding submission re-
quirements, contact Alexandra Epstein, Freddie Wachsberger or Bonnie Anderson
at 780-5476. Those interested in joining the newspaper collective or wanting
more general information should speak with Alexandra Epstein.

The newspaper collective is also seeking funds to facilitate its efforts.
Please send contributions or fundraising suggestions to the Feminist Newspaper
Project at the address listed above.

Directory of Feminist Scholars

Faculty who have not submitted their forms for inclusion in the CUNY Feminist
Network Directory of feminist scholars must send them to the CSWS office by April l.
To obtain a form, contact Annette Bus, CSWS, 790-4435.




Graduate Center Feminist Study/Support Group

As an outgrowth of the Feminist Network Conference held in November, a
Feminist Study/Support Group has been formed at the Graduate Center. The group's
goals are to facilitate the professional, personal, and feminist development of
participants through discussions in four areas: (1) the academic/research/em-
ployment experiences of participants (including presentations of one's own re-
search); (2) the relationship between the structure of academia and the ability
to produce meaningful research; (3) feminist research--is there such a thing,
and how is it done; and (4) the interconnections between one's professional
and personal lives and how each impacts upon the other. An integral part of the
group experience is critical, yet supportive feedback from colleagues. The group
meets on alternate Mondays, 12-2 p.m. in the basement-mezzanine conference room
(BM10). New members are welcome. For more information, contact Ann Saltzman,
(201) 889-5305.

Liaison of Graduate Students Union

At the last CUNY Feminist Network meeting, there was some discussion about
the formation of the Graduate Student Union. In recent months, students at the
Graduate Center, most of whom are active in the Doctoral Students Council, have
been meeting to form a Graduate Student Union. The organizers seek to create an
organization which would be open to all graduate students and which would deal
with their increasing economic problems. The union organizers have taken stands
Supporting: decent and affordable health coverage for graduate students; more
financial aid; greater power for students in decision-making bodies; more adjunct
work for City University students; adequate child care provided by the City Uni-
versity for students and staff; and a commitment to affirmative action hiring
practices.

The Graduate Student Union organizers have invited the participants of the
CUNY Feminist Network to help develop the Union program and an organizing stra-
tegy. Feminist students interested in getting involved in the organizing effort
should contact Lorraine Cohen throught the Center, 790--4435. Those seeking more
information about the Union should contact Jeff Gerson, Room 208 at the Graduate
Center, 79-4448,

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOSS

The CUNY Feminist Network grew out of a CUNY-wide conference in November 1982
that was sponsored by the Graduate Center's Center for the Study of Women and
Society and Feminist Student Organization. Committees to work in the following
areas have been formed: organizing for child care facilities at the CUNY campuses;
developing a directory of feminist scholars in the CUNY system; evaluating sexism
in the curriculum; developing consciousness raising strategies for the 1980s; and
extending outreach efforts. The next general meeting of the CUNY Feminist Network
will be Friday, March 25, Room BM10 at the Graduate Center from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.

Terry Shtob, a doctoral candidate in the sociology department, has been
hired as Coordinator for the Network. For further information about Network acti-
vities, call Terry in the CSWS office, Thursdays and Fridays, at 790-4435.

Lorraine Cohen, Alexandra Epstein, Faye Ginsburg and Nancy Naples provided
information for this issue of the Newsletter about Network activities.




Announcements

THE SCHOLAR AND THE FEMINIST X: THE QUESTION OF TECHNOLOGY. Barnard College

Women's Center's tenth annual conference will take place at Barnard on Saturday,
April 23, 1983. The morning panel sessions will consider: the impact of tech-
nology on women in the home and in the workplace; the meaning of technological
change for women of different class and race backgrounds as well as for men;
technology's effect on concepts of time and space; and what factors have preven-
ted women from making decisions about uses of technology. Concurrent afternoon
workshops will address: the politics of reproductive engineering; housework
technology and its implications; the impact of technology on the disabled; the
electronic cottage; electronic factories in Mexico, and more. Preregistration is
required and limited to 600. For further information, contact the Women's Center,
Barnard College, New York, NY 10027, (212) 280-2067.

The Barnard Women's Center announces its Spring 1983 monthly luncheon meetings
on women's issues. ("FEMINISTS OF FAITH: JOURNEYS OF LEADERSHIP" will be the
theme of the meeting Tuesday, March 22; "WOMEN AND PEACE: COMMITMENT AND RES-
PONSIBILITY" will be the issue Tuesday, May 3. Meetings are held 12 noon - 2:00
p.m. in the James Room, 4th floor, Barnard Hall, 117th Street and Broadway, New
York, NY 10027. Lunch costs $ 3.50 ($ 2.50 for students) payable at the door.

For further information about speakers, or to register, write or call The Women's
Center, address and phone listed above.

WOMEN SURVIVING: THE HOLOCAUST, a conference sponsored by The Institute for
Research in History and Programs in Public Philosophy, will take piace Sunday,
March 20 and Monday, March 21, at Stern College, 245 Lexington Avenue, beginning
at 8:30 a.m. Scholars and women survivors of the holocaust will participate in
the conference, which will examine the gender defined roles of women in ghettoes,
in hiding and passing, in resistance organizations and in the concentration camps
of Nazi-occupied Europe. Eve Fogelman and Valerie Wiener, doctoral students in
the Graduate Center's Program in Social and Personality Psychology, will lead a
workshop on women as rescuers, the rescuing relationship, and women as helpers
in extreme situations involving life threatenign risks. To register for the con-
ference, call (212) 689-1931, or write Dr. John Ringelhein, Project Director, The
Institute for Research in History, 432 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016.

NEUROTIC REACTIONS TO WOMEN IN POWER: OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH RESULTS, a
talk by Dr. Jeanne Safer, will take place on Thursday, March 17 at 7:00 p.m.
and WOMEN IN MID-LIFE: A STUDY OF CREATIVE SELF-APPRAISAL, a talk by Dr.
Helen Kafka, will take place on Wednesday, April 27. Both lectures are parts
of a series sponsored by the Women's Institute and will be held at the Con-
ference Center of the Equitable Life Assurance Society Building, 1285 Avenue
of the Americas. To pre-register ($ 12) contact Women's Institute, 310 West
86/2A, New York, NY 10024, (212) 877-2878.

COMMON DIFFERENCES: THIRD WORLD WOMEN AND FEMINIST PERSPECTIVES, will take
place on April 9-13 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. ''Colo-
nization and Resistance", "Images and Realities", and "International Women's
Movements" will be three major themes addressed. For further information, con-
tact Chandra Talpade Mohanty and Anne Russo, Conference Coordinators, Office for
Women's Resources and Services, 346 Fred H. Turner Student Services Building,
610 East John Street, Champaign, Illinois 61820. (217) 333-3137.





THE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S WRITING GUILD will hold its 12th annual conference
at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York, on July 22-29, 1983. "Aspects
of Transformation", the conference's overall theme, will be explored in a synm-
posium; forty workshops in every genre of writing will be offered. For further
information, contact Hannelore Hahn, Executive Director, IWWG, P.O. Box 810,
Gracie Station, New York, NY 10028, (212) 737-7536.

State Communities Aid Association and the New York State Coalition of the
Concerned for Older Americans will convene a two-day STATEWIDE CONFERENCE ON
OLDER WOMEN, scheduled for October 1983. For further information, contact Leora
A. Magier, Conference Coordinator, COCOa, 105 East 22nd Street, Suite 710, New
York, NY 10010, (212) 677-0250.

The New School for Social Research Center for New York City Affairs announces
two one-day workshops which are part of a series entitled CAREERS IN NEW YORK.
"Moonlighting Strategy for Economic Survival in New York" will take place Satur-
day, March 12, 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. and costs $ 55. "How to Get Hired in the
New York Job Market" will take place Saturday, May 14, 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. and
costs $55. For further information, call (212) 741-5690.

The Crystal Quilt consulting service for women announces its spring workshops
and special events. MOTHER WIT: PARENTING IN UNCONVENTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES, a
panel discussion, will take place Saturday, March 26, 1:30 - 4:00 p.m. at the
Washington Square Church, 135 West 4th Street, New York City ($ 5); A FEMINIST
ANALYSIS OF LONELINESS will take place Sunday, March 27, 4:00 - 6:30 p.m. at
Soho 20, 469 Broome Street, New York City (Cider and Cheese, $ 6); SPEAKING
OUR FEAR: AUDRE LORD'S ‘THE CANCER JOURNALS" will take place Saturday, April 2,
3:00 —- 5:30 p.m. at 11 Echermerhorn Street, # 4FE, Brooklyn Heights, New York.
For further information about these and other events, call Linda Marks at
(212) 622-7545.

OFF THE MAINSTREAM: BLACK WOMEN UP AGAINST THE CULTURAL CONSTRAINTS OF THE
MAINSTREAM ART WORLD AND HOW THEY COPE WITH IT IN THEIR LIVES, CAREERS AND ART,
is the subject of a panel discussion sponsored by the New York Chapter of Women's
Caucus for Art, to be held Monday, March 7, 7:00 p.m. at Soho 20 Gallery, 469
Broome Street, New York, For further information, write to WCA, 229 East 21 St.,
New York, NY 10010. For information about the national organization, write or
call WCA President's Office, School of Art, Arizona State University, Tempe,
Arizona 85281, (602) 253-5125.

NEW YORK STATE LEGISLATIVE FORUM ON WOMEN'S ISSUES, the fourth annual legis-
lative forum convened by the NYC Commission on the Status of Women, will take
place Saturday, March 5, 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon at the First Women's Bank,

111 East 57th Street. The forum will focus on such issues as: employment, child
care, domestic violence, rape, job training, private clubs, displaced homemakers,
reproductive freedom, sexual orientation, support enforcement, and divorce law.

A panel of Legislators and legislative experts will discuss these issues which are
likely to be addressed in this year's session of the New York Legislature. .Re-
gistration at the door will be $ 4.00. For further information, contact Ginny
Vida at the CSW office, (212) 566-3830.




Book Review

Bound by Love: The Sweet Trap of Daughterhood, by Lucey Gilbert and Paula
Webster (Boston: Beacon Press, 1982) 175 pp., $13.50.

Bound by Love: The Sweet Trap of Daughterhood by Lucy Gilbert and Paula

Webster addresses the development and reproduction of women's victimization.
Gilbert, a psychotherapist, and Webster, an anthropologist, are concerned with
how the cultural and psychological requirements of daughterhood prepare all
women to be powerless and victimized. Focusing on incest, battering, and rape,
the authors present compelling evidence for their claim that women respond to
these acts of abuse in ways that reflect their feminine identity and ensure
their continued victimization. Such responses, they argue, are not unique to
victims of physical or sexual abuse but are internalized by all women in the
process of first becoming daughters in the nuclear family and then women in
patriarchal society.

By focusing on the ways in which victimization is internalized, the authors
help us understand both the lack of anger and rebellion expressed by many abused
women and also why women often remain in situations where they are victimized,
even if they could be finanically independent.

They also emphasize the connection between acceptance of extreme forms of
victimization (rape, battering and incest) and all women's day-to-day acceptance
of powerlessness in relations to friends, families, and employers. The strongest
chapters in this book are those in which physically and sexually abused women
describe their victimization. Self-blame and lack of anger are the most striking
elements of their reactions, Gilbert and Webster continually draw connections
between such responses and the preparation that all daughters receive for femi-
ninity.

The richness of the chapters on rape, incest, and battering lies in the
testimony of abused women and in the authors' skill in explaining such victimi-
zation in the context of the two-gender system. Less compelling are the book's
earlier chapters that deal with the dynamics of daughterhood. The authors
attempt to outline the essential aspects of femininity, with its requirement that
women be victims, and how these are embedded in the nuclear family. Although
they claim that the underlying structure of femininity crosses ethnic and class
lines, their description of family relationships appear to be characteristic of
specific socio-historical conditions and social class structures. Furthermore,
they do not examine how experiences of dauhgterhood and femininity are shaped by
differences in social class, race, ethnicity, and sexual preference. The possi-
bilities for changing existing gender arrangements may become apparent when we
explore how diverse groups of women have both internalized and sought to overcome
the oppressive requirements of femininity mandated by their specific social con-
ditions. ;

Gilbert and Webster have made an important contribution to feminist scholar-
ship by dealing with an issue that has far too often been taboo in the women's
movement. This concerns the ways in which we internalize and reproduce our power-
lessness. In many ways, theirs is a depressing message. However, the last chapter
of Bound by Love offers hope and encouragement to women who seek to change then-
selves and their social relationships. This is an important and overdue step in
the women's revolution.

Mary Clare Lennon, Postdoctoral Fellow
Columbia Universtty School of Public Health




Professional Opportunities

SUMMER INSTITUTE FOR WOMEN IN HIGHER EDUCATION ADMINISTRATION, a residential
program to be held on the Bryn Mawr College campus, July 5-29, 1983, will offer
woman faculty and administrators intensive training in educational administra-
tion and management skills. The curriculum will include sections on Academic
Governance, Finance and Budgeting, Management and Leadership, Administrative
Uses of the Computer, and Professional Development. The Institute is co-
directed by Diane Balestri, Bryn Mawr College and Cynthia Secor, HERS, Mid-
Atlantic. The cost, including tuition, room and board is $ 2700; application
fee is $ 50. For further information, write to: Bryn Mawr College/HERS Mid-
Atlantic Summer Institute, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania 19010.

THE NATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE IN WOMEN'S STUDIES, a residential program, spon-
sored by the Great Lake Colleges Association will take place on the University
of Michigan campus, July 3-23, 1983. It offers teaching faculty, researchers,
administrators and librarians with an interest in Women's Studies an opportunity
for intensive study in feminist theory and its transforming potential at every
level of the academy. The curriculum includes theory seminars, teaching and
curriculum workshops, individual projects, and an information technology work-
shop. The cost, including tuition, room and board, will be $ 1,300, plus a
registration fee of $ 35. For further information, contact Barbara Caruso, Ph.D.
Director, The National Summer Institute in Women's Studies, Box 94, Earlham
College, Richmond, Indiana 47374, (317) 962-6561, ext. 505 or 322.

Cornell University's NYS School of Industrial and Labor Relations announces its
Spring schedule of courses in TRADE UNION WOMEN'S STUDIES. The courses, taught
on Monday evenings beginning April 4, are entitled COLLECTIVE BARGAINING and
SOCIAL BEHAVIOR AND WORK, and are open only to women trade unionists. For
further information, contact Rochelle Semel or Diane Kirschner at (212) 599 4580
or 4581.

The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
announces the availability of stipends for 1984-85 under the RADCLIFFE RESEARCH
SCHOLARS PROGRAM, and small research grants under the Radcliffe Research Support
Program. Both programs are intended to support research utilizing the Schle-
singer Library or the Henry A. Murray Research Center of Radcliffe College. The
application deadline is April 15. For further information, contact the Rad-
cliffe Research Support Program, c/o The Henry A. Murray Research Center, Rad-
cliffe College, 10 Garden Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, (617) 495-8140.

WOMEN AND INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC POLICY: A LONDON SEMINAR, sponsored by the Public
Leadership Education Network and offered by the International Studies Program of
Marymount Manhattan College, will take place June 24-July 14, 1983. The program

is offered to undergraduate students presently enrolled in a college or university
and may be taken for college credit. Final application date is March 25. For
application and further information, contact Women and International Public
Policy, c/o Dr. Gurcharan Singh, Director, International Studies Program, Mary-
mount Manhattan College, 221 East 71 Street, New York, NY 10021 (212) 472-3800,
ext. 452.




Resources

The Media Book: Making the Media Work for Your Grassroots Group ($8.50; 48 pp)
is now available from the Committee to Defend Reproductive Rights. The book is
aimed at reproductive rights groups, but can be used by all activists. It dis-
cusses talk shows, press releases, getting local news coverage, handling press
conferences, placing Public Service Announcements and Free Speech Messages, and
more. To order, send $8.50 to the Committee to Defend Reproductive Rights,

1638 Haight Street, San Francisco, California 94117. For information, call
(415) 552-2000.

Program Network Notes, a newsletter of the National Women's Studies Association,
focuses on issues of concern to coordinators and directors of Women's Studies
Programs in colleges and universities. Subscriptions for NWSA members are $5;
for non-NWSA members $10; To subscribe, send check to Betsy Jameson, P.O.Box 8,
El Rancho Station, Golden, Colorado 80401.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT ON CAMPUS, a special issue of the Journal of the National
Association for Women Deans, Administrators, and Counselors contains practical
articles on policy development, institutional responses to sexual harassment;
training programs for faculty, staff, and students; career counseling considera=_-
tions; and results of on-campus survey projects. It is available for $6.00, plus
$1.50 postage and handling, from NAWDAC National Headquarters, Suite 624-A,

1625 I Street N.W., Washington D.C. 20006, (202) 659-9330.

The Barnard College Women's Center invites individuals to use its Birdie Gold-
smith Ast Resource Collection. The collection "contains a wide range of material
representing the fruits of research on women over the past 15 years, from prac-—
tical, theoretical and historical perspectives." The collection includes
materials about women's studies curricula and programs throughout the United
States, women's organizations and activities, books, articles, reports, essays
from the mid and late 60s. The non-circulating collection is housed in the Bar-
nard Women's Center, Barnard Hall, Broadway at 117th Street, New York, NY. For
further information, call (212) 280-2067.

School Age Child Care: An Action Manual (486 pp, $12.00/paper, $24.95/hardcover)

by Baden, Genser, Levine, and Seligson provides guidance for a range of actions:
forming an action group; assessing community needs; designing a program; identi-
fying funding sources; setting policies and procedures; administering a program,
etc. Send check or credit card information (add $2.00 postage and handling) to
Auburn House Publishing Company, 131 Clarendon Street, Boston, Massachusetts
02116. For information, call (617) 247-2650.

NETWORK NEWS, a bi-monthly publication with health information for women, is
available with membership in the National Women's Health Network. NETWORK NEWS
contains articles and features about health, as well as providing information
about federal health policies and local actions. To join the Network, write to
National Women's Health Network, 224 Seventh Street SE, Washington D.C. 20003.