Angela Carter's ‘The Sadeian Woman’ and Female Desire in England 1960–1975

In The Sadeian Woman (1979) Angela Carter suggested that the visions of free female sexuality created by the Marquis de Sade in his violent pornographic novels provided insight into existing female sexualities in her own—British—society. In this article the representation of female sexuality in novels set in contemporary British society, written by women, and published between 1960 and 1975, is examined in relation to Carter's exegesis of the good, virtuous Justine and the meretricious, sexually desirous Juliette, two contrasting characters from Sade's work. The limitations of the three other alternatives present in the novels are described; containment within long-term marriage, good-hearted promiscuity; and the rejection of emotional repression. Then Carter's own solution to women's sexual inequality is placed in the context of feminism in the late 1970s, and the role of the novels in contributing to change is acknowledged.     

The CPGB,the Connolly Association and Irish communism, 1945–1962

This article examines the relationship between the Communist Party of Great Britain and Irish communists in both Ireland and Britain in the post-war era. It argues that the British party’s strategic interest in Ireland gradually waned as it became apparent that Irish communism would remain divided by the border. The article also argues how, in Britain, competition between the nationalist Anti-Partition League and the communist dominated Connolly Association led the latter to abandon cold war sectarianism and to adopt a ‘broad strategy’ championing civil rights in Northern Ireland. The article draws out the key role played by Charles Desmond Greaves in this process, whilst noting the importance of factionalism and external factors, notably the Irish Republican Army’s Border Campaign.     

Women facing the state: Childcare policy process in Canada and Finland, 1960–90

The examination of women's influence on government policy is an integral part of comparative research into women and the welfare state. Focusing on the process of childcare policy development in Canada and Finland, this article suggests that the degree and nature of women's influence depend on the extent to which women's organizations representing different gender ideologies have established an effective presence in official politics. Furthermore, this study suggests that the political structure and process provide a material basis for the development of alliances and solidarity within the women's movement.     

International and Modern Ideals in Irish Female Medical Missionary Activity, 1937–1962

ABSTRACT

The Medical Missionaries of Mary are an Irish Catholic missionary congregation founded in 1937 by Marie Martin. From the outset the congregation embodied a new sense of optimism that was reflected in its aspirations of modernity and internationalism. This paper explores the development of the Medical Missionaries of Mary as an international missionary network. It argues that whilst in its vision and foundation the congregation projected its work as international and modern, the reality was more complex. The missionaries practised their own distinct brand of maternity medicine that incorporated Irish medical thought, Catholic social teachings, and the demands of the local women. This paper will consider how this unique blend of maternity medicine was projected from Ireland and refashioned within the context of the mission.     

‘Do not forget your bit wife’: love,marriage and the negotiation of patriarchy in Irish Presbyterian marriages,c. 1780–1850

Drawing on the marital correspondence of Isabella Marshall and William John Campbell Allen, an Ulster Presbyterian couple, alongside a number of other Presbyterian families, this article explores how patriarchy was negotiated within Irish Presbyterian marriages, c. 1780–1850. It begins by framing the Campbell Allens as a case-study, and examines how the couple negotiated three elements of the patriarchal marriage ideal: love, obedience and the control of economic resources. Next, it uses the family papers and personal correspondence of two other Presbyterian couples, and considers how typical their examples are of love, marriage and patriarchy. This article argues that patriarchy was not a fixed principle in marriage. Rather, it was subject to a constant process of negotiation and refinement during the course of marriage. The roles played by women and men in marriage were also fluid and elastic.     

Motherhood in the East–West Encounter: Pandita Ramabai's Negotiation of ‘Daughterhood’ and Motherhood

The female East–West encounter often pivoted upon the motherhood role played by the representatives of the empire. This article aims to explore the complexities of the construction and enactment of this role. The analysis focuses on a cameo of triangular interpersonal relationships formed by Pandita Ramabai, an Indian Brahmin scholar who converted to Christianity in 1883 during her stay in England for higher studies, her little daughter Manorama who was baptized at the same time and Ramabai's spiritual mother, the Anglican Sister Geraldine who was deeply and possessively attached to Manorama. After situating motherhood in its international discursive context, the article examines the two tension-filled sets of motherhood and daughterhood inherent in this triad, with the help of Ramabai's published letters and correspondence which were compiled and edited by Geraldine (who made Ramabai's maternal inadequacies her dominant subtext) and of Manorama's unpublished letters to Geraldine, her ‘grandmother’. The article argues that a British missionary nun's successful exercise of the motherhood role which she spon taneously assumed towards an Indian convert was contingent upon the convert's adherence to the racially and culturally inferior stereotype and unquestioning submission to the new faith as well as to colonial authority. Such conformity and acceptance alone allowed deep ‘maternal’ bonding (overlooking racial differences) which was too fragile to withstand any contestation or exercise of agency by the convert. The overarching patriarchal ethos of the Church, internalized by the missionary nun, was also a significant determinant of her treatment of the women converts in various ways.