Women and Religion in England: 1500-1720 (Christianity and Society in the Modern World) - Hardcover

Crawford, Patricia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0415016967 ISBN 13: 9780415016964

Publisher: Routledge, 1993

Synopsis

Patricia Crawford explores how the study of gender can enhance our understanding of religious history, in this study of women and their apprehensions of God in early modern England. The book has three broad themes: the role of women in the religious upheaval in the period from the Reformation to the Restoration; the significance of religion to contemporary women, focusing on the range of practices and beliefs; and the role of gender in the period. The author argues that religion in the early modern period cannot be understood without a perception of the gendered nature of its beliefs, institutions and language. Contemporary religious ideology reinforced women's inferior position, but, as the author shows, it was possible for some women to transcend these beliefs and profoundly influence history.

About this title

Review:

"[Crawford's] chapters are chock-full of excellent examples...." -"History of Religions ..."[the] concentration on synthesis makes this book an excellent teaching tool, especially for students who may be encountering English religious, political, or gender history for the first time." -"Anglican and Episcopal History, Sep 1998

Synopsis:

Patricia Crawford argues that religion in the early modern period cannot be understood without a perception of the gendered nature of its beliefs, institutions and language. The book focuses on women and their apprehensions of God in early modern England. Contemporary religious ideology reinforced the assumption that women were inferior to men but, as Patricia Crawford shows, it was possible for some women to transcend these beliefs and profoundly influence history within a social structure which was not of their making. The book is organized around three broad themes: the role of women in the religious upheaval of the Reformation, civil wars and Commonwealth; the significance of religion to contemporary women, and the range of their practices and beliefs; and the role of gender in the period.

About this edition

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0415016967
• ISBN 13: 9780415016964
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 280