The Governesses: Letters From The Colonies 1862–1882
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: No markings
A richly detailed work of social history, The Governesses: Letters From The Colonies 1862–1882 chronicles the lives of educated British women who emigrated to Australia in the nineteenth century to seek employment as governesses in colonial households. Drawing on a remarkable collection of personal letters, Patricia Clarke presents an intimate and vivid portrait of women navigating the challenges of isolation, class tension, and cultural displacement in a rugged and unfamiliar land. The letters themselves serve as primary documents of extraordinary candor, illuminating the daily realities of colonial domestic life from the perspective of women who occupied an ambiguous social position — neither servant nor equal — within the households they served. Clarke's meticulous scholarship situates these individual voices within the broader context of Victorian gender roles, emigration policy, and the social fabric of colonial Australia. The result is a compelling and deeply human account that rescues these women from historical obscurity and affirms their significance in the shaping of Australian society.
Author: Patricia Clarke
Format: Hardback
Genre: Australian history
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: No markings
A richly detailed work of social history, The Governesses: Letters From The Colonies 1862–1882 chronicles the lives of educated British women who emigrated to Australia in the nineteenth century to seek employment as governesses in colonial households. Drawing on a remarkable collection of personal letters, Patricia Clarke presents an intimate and vivid portrait of women navigating the challenges of isolation, class tension, and cultural displacement in a rugged and unfamiliar land. The letters themselves serve as primary documents of extraordinary candor, illuminating the daily realities of colonial domestic life from the perspective of women who occupied an ambiguous social position — neither servant nor equal — within the households they served. Clarke's meticulous scholarship situates these individual voices within the broader context of Victorian gender roles, emigration policy, and the social fabric of colonial Australia. The result is a compelling and deeply human account that rescues these women from historical obscurity and affirms their significance in the shaping of Australian society.