This thesis reports on a study of women married to Royal Navy personnel and resident in the West of England and Wales. The analyses are based on data derived from secondary sources, a questionnaire survey and in-depth interviews, the field-work having been conducted between January 1985 and April 1986. Past research has concentrated on the emotional reaction of wives to husband absence, its relationship to anxiety and depression. This thesis is, however, concerned with the social situation of wives intermittently without husbands. It is an exploration of the marital and domestic consequences of husband absence and the implications it has for the wider relationships of wives periodically without husbands. A distinction is drawn between long-term absences of weeks and often months and short-term, weekday absences. - Here the evidence suggests that short but frequent absences are the most disruptive and "weekend marriages" the least satisfactory. Husband absence is seen to impact deeply into the life course experiences of wives; it increases their domestic powers and responsibilities, especially if they are resident in private housing; it alters relationships with children and the contexts of child-rearing; it effect the employment opportunities and experiences of wives; it transforms domestic routines and household timetables; and it influences the social contacts and neighbouring relations of wives, leaving wives without husbands relatively isolated members of the community. The thesis also suggests that although separation and absence have been the foci of past concern, reunion and reintegration are equally problematic. The findings provide case study information on a particular set of marital experiences and relate to wider perspectives on the construction of marriage and wifehood.

During the eighteen century there was a significant growth in patchwork materially and linguistically. It was the century when patchwork was stitched at all levels of society and has been identified as the time when patchwork moved out from the small domestic world of decorative sewing into the wider public sphere, leaving behind other needlework as it became embedded in the language and writing of the period. This research examines the social and cultural contexts relating to the making of patchwork in the long eighteenth century and in doing so contributes to the story of women and their material lives in the period. Noted for its longevity, surviving as a widespread practice across the century, patchwork was a democratic needlework that was practiced by any woman capable of stitching a variety of fabric pieces together to make a larger whole. A widespread understanding of the term and familiarity with the practice enabled it to be employed successfully in the literal and figurative language of the period. Patchwork was heralded as a fashionable activity in the early eighteenth century, but was later used to represent the ideal of the moral and capable housewife, devoted to her sewing skills and thrifty in her practice. The figurative style of the period allowed the simultaneous use of the word in differing ways so that patchwork was used both positively and negatively in literature, drama, critical review, political debate and theoretical discourse.

Excavation of middens from two households in a peripheral parish of the colonial city of Riobamba, in the Audiencia of Quito (today Ecuador), has included analysis of faunal and botanical remains, in order to better understand the relationship between race, social class, and material culture in the 18th century Andean city. Although city officials of the 16th century attempted to maintain separate neighborhoods for indigenous people, by the 18th century such neighborhoods had become racially mixed. Despite the hybrid nature of the material remains in such households, poverty, status as artisans, and racial classification as indios were still significant factors in the lives of those who lived in the San Blas parish in the 18th century. Much historical archaeology focuses on the level of households as a scale of analysis, and yet for urban environments, it is important to also consider the parish, or neighborhood, as an important unit of analysis. / La excavación de basurales de dos casas de barrios periféricos de la ciudad colonial de Riobamba, en la Audiencia de Quito (hoy Ecuador), ha incluido el análisis de restos botánicos y de fauna con el fin de lograr un mejor entendimiento de las relaciones existentes entre raza, clase social y cultura material en una ciudad andina del siglo XVIII. A pesar de que las autoridades locales del siglo XVI intentaron mantener barrios exclusivos para la gente indígena, para el siglo XVIII, estos mismos barrios se transformaron en lugares racialmente mestizos. Pese a una naturaleza híbrida de los materiales culturales en estos contextos, la pobreza, un estatus de artesanos y la clasificación racial de «indios» fueron factores determinantes en la vida de quienes poblaron la parroquia San Blas en siglo XVIII. Gran parte de la arqueología histórica se enfoca al nivel de unidades domésticas en la escala de análisis y, aun para entornos urbanos, es importante también considerar a la parroquia, o vecindario, como una importante unidad de análisis.

Sit, Eat, Drink, Talk, Laugh – Dining and Mixed Media, is an exploratory study of qualities in everyday life and challenges people to enjoy the qualities of mundanity. Seeking inspiration in ethnographic studies, field work was conducted in domestic settings, returning an extensive body of material to work from. The study challenges people to absorb the moment, reflect and enjoy, rather than pacing through a lifetime, with a constant focus on the future instead of the present. This work takes a starting point in food and dining as a social activity, where interactive sound and a reference to online social media is explored through two interventions. The results of these are discussed with central findings around food and dining in the area of sociology, the use of sound in ambient computing and on a higher level around the topic of temporality.

The Morleyville Methodist Mission located near Morley, Alberta, was occupied from 1873 to 1921 (approximate date of abandonment). The Reverend George McDougall and his son John were responsible for the establishment of the mission. Both men were prominent figures in the history of the settlement and development of Alberta and the Canadian northwest. John was a major participant in the settlement of Treaty 7 and the arrival of the N.W.M.P. in the west.<p> The mission site was excavated over two field seasons in 1984-85 by Dr. Margaret A. Kennedy, now of the University of Saskatchewan. The resultant artifact assemblage contains in excess of 25,000 items, largely in a fragmentary state. Of this number approximately 3,000 artifacts were considered for analysis.<p> The focus of this current research is an examination of the mission's domestic sphere, specifically as it applied to women and Methodism. For the purpose of this research only the categories of "Ceramics", "Other Glass",and "Bottles and Jars" were considered. Though the Morleyville Mission was occupied during the Victorian era, historic literature and documents tell us little of the reality of the domestic sphere at a frontier site. The domestic elaboration of the Victorian era has been well documented. However, whether such elaboration was the case at the mission site was open to some speculation.<p> Therefore, these categories were assessed as providing the most accurate reflection of the domestic life of the mission households. It is believed that the presence and absence of specific ceramic waretypes and the identification of patterned sets will help illuminate this issue. It was hoped that, by using these categories to examine the domestic life of these middle-class Victorian Methodists a more accurate picture of the domestic life of the inhabitants of a mission on the northwest frontier of Canada could be developed.<p> However, it is with caution that I put forth my conclusions for the Morleyville Mission. Though the Archeological evidence does not support my initial objectives, this thesis has succeed in providing important information regarding the domestic lifestyle at the Morleyville Mission and indicates that other factors were active at the site.

The Morleyville Methodist Mission located near Morley, Alberta, was occupied from 1873 to 1921 (approximate date of abandonment). The Reverend George McDougall and his son John were responsible for the establishment of the mission. Both men were prominent figures in the history of the settlement and development of Alberta and the Canadian northwest. John was a major participant in the settlement of Treaty 7 and the arrival of the N.W.M.P. in the west.<p> The mission site was excavated over two field seasons in 1984-85 by Dr. Margaret A. Kennedy, now of the University of Saskatchewan. The resultant artifact assemblage contains in excess of 25,000 items, largely in a fragmentary state. Of this number approximately 3,000 artifacts were considered for analysis.<p> The focus of this current research is an examination of the mission's domestic sphere, specifically as it applied to women and Methodism. For the purpose of this research only the categories of "Ceramics", "Other Glass",and "Bottles and Jars" were considered. Though the Morleyville Mission was occupied during the Victorian era, historic literature and documents tell us little of the reality of the domestic sphere at a frontier site. The domestic elaboration of the Victorian era has been well documented. However, whether such elaboration was the case at the mission site was open to some speculation.<p> Therefore, these categories were assessed as providing the most accurate reflection of the domestic life of the mission households. It is believed that the presence and absence of specific ceramic waretypes and the identification of patterned sets will help illuminate this issue. It was hoped that, by using these categories to examine the domestic life of these middle-class Victorian Methodists a more accurate picture of the domestic life of the inhabitants of a mission on the northwest frontier of Canada could be developed.<p> However, it is with caution that I put forth my conclusions for the Morleyville Mission. Though the Archeological evidence does not support my initial objectives, this thesis has succeed in providing important information regarding the domestic lifestyle at the Morleyville Mission and indicates that other factors were active at the site.

No description available.

The nineteenth-century English middle class was strongly influenced by science, industry, and capitalist managerial techniques. These trends also made their way into the domestic space, where women negotiated their application, particularly in the kitchen. This thesis examines domestic life in the context of the popularization of science and the history of technology and management to come to a fuller understanding of how middle-class women ran their homes between about 1800 and 1880, a period of broad industrialisation and business growth. The values of fact, precision, rationality, and order influenced the practice of cookery, the physical technologies in the home, and the management of people, time, and money. The middle-class male workspace celebrated the same values; women were the domestic counterparts of their husbands. Although the prescriptive literature was not always slavishly followed, adherence to these values, both at work and at home, could help cement the familys social status. / History

No description available.

No description available.