Women's Worlds in Seventeenth Century England

Patricia Crawford is Professor of History at the University of Western Australia, and her books include Women in Early Modern England (Oxford University Press, 1998), with Sara Mendelson. Laura Gowing is Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Hertfordshire, and is author of Domestic Dangers: Women, Words, and Sex in Early Modern London (Oxford University Press, 1996).

'This is genuinely a treasure chest of resources for early modernists and historians of women.' - The Economic History Review

• List of documents -- List of illustrations -- Acknowledgements -- Permissions -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1 BODIES -- Conception and pregnancy; Parturition; Breasts and breastfeeding; Menstruation and reproductive health; Health and beauty -- 2 RELIGION, BELIEFS, SPIRITUALITY -- Spirituality: the journey of the Christian soul; The practice of faith; God and the nation; Popular beliefs -- 3 WORK -- Service; Getting a living; Professions; Running a household: domestic tasks -- 4 POVERTY AND PROPERTY -- Making shift; Poverty and relief; The world of goods -- 5 SEXUAL EXPERIENCES -- Sex and single women; Sex and marriage; Sex between women; Secrecy and adultery; Rape, assaults, and attempts -- 6 MARRIAGE -- Courtship; Wives and husbands; Remarriage -- 7 MATERNITY -- Lying-in; Being a mother; Childcare, health and advice; The maternal relationship -- 8 RELATIONSHIPS -- Neighbours; Families; Friends and lovers; Animals and spirits -- 9 POLITICS AND PROTESTS -- 10 MENTAL WORLDS -- Depression and despair; Fits and disorders; Dreams and visions; Prophesying the future -- Notes -- Further reading -- Glossary -- Index.