The Flageolet: A Woodwind Instrument that Transcended Social Class and Gender in Nineteenth-Century England

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Douglas MacMillan
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Social Class ◽  
Societal Implications ◽  
Public Performance ◽  
Professional Musicians ◽  
Concert Hall ◽  
Music Making ◽  
Music Hall ◽  
And Gender

The flageolet – a woodwind instrument closely akin to the recorder – achieved considerably popularity in nineteenth-century England. It was predominantly an instrument of the amateur musician, and its story becomes a mirror of the musical society in which the instrument flourished. An account of the organology of the flageolet in both its English and French forms, and of its evolution into double, triple and transverse versions, precedes a study of pedagogical material and repertoire. The work of William Bainbridge, who modified the flageolet to simplify its technique and hence enhance its suitability for amateur players, is emphasized, along with his skill as an innovator of complex flageolets. The flageolet attracted a small number of professional exponents who tended to favour the French form of the instrument. The principal focus of the article is an examination of the role of the flageolet within the context of musical praxis in England and its societal implications during the long nineteenth century. After consideration of matters of finance, social class and gender, the article examines the use of the flageolet by amateur and professional musicians, particularly highlighting the importance of the instrument in domestic music-making as well as in amateur public performance. Professional use of the instrument within the context of the concert hall, the theatre, the ballroom and the music hall is explored and examples given of prominent players and ensembles, some of which were composed entirely of female musicians. Final paragraphs note the playing of the flageolet by itinerant and street musicians.

Blackface Minstrelsy and the Reception of Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 305-320
Author(s):  
Julia J. Chybowski
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
African American ◽  
Social Class ◽  
Gender Roles ◽  
Black Swan ◽  
Social Hierarchies ◽  
Race And Gender ◽  
Blackface Minstrelsy ◽  
And Gender

AbstractThis article explores blackface minstrelsy in the context of Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield's singing career of the 1850s–1870s. Although Greenfield performed a version of African American musicality that was distinct from minstrel caricatures, minstrelsy nonetheless impacted her reception. The ubiquity of minstrel tropes greatly influenced audience perceptions of Greenfield's creative and powerful transgressions of expected race and gender roles, as well as the alignment of race with mid-nineteenth-century notions of social class. Minstrel caricatures and stereotypes appeared in both praise and ridicule of Greenfield's performances from her debut onward, and after successful US and transatlantic tours established her notoriety, minstrel companies actually began staging parody versions of Greenfield, using her sobriquet, “Black Swan.” These “Black Swan” acts are evidence that Greenfield's achievements were perceived as threats to established social hierarchies.

Transitions to adulthood and psychological distress in young adults born 12 years apart: constraints on and resources for development

2009 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Sacker ◽  
N. Cable
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Social Class ◽  
Transition To Adulthood ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structural Constraints ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Adult Roles

BackgroundLater transitions to adult roles and responsibilities have been linked with better psychological well-being yet psychological distress has risen despite young people making the transition to adulthood at older ages over recent years.MethodWe examine the role of structural constraints and adolescent resources in the relationship between the timing of transitions and psychological distress in early adult life in the 1958 National Child Development Study and the 1970 British Cohort Study. Graphical chain models were used to examine the influences on timing of four key transitions and their relationship with psychological distress (Malaise Inventory). The role of structural factors at birth (gender, social class) and adolescent resources (psychosocial problems, exam grades) were modelled.ResultsAn earlier transition to adult roles was associated with an increased risk for psychological distress but so was failing to make some key transitions. Structural constraints had negative effects on successful development. Persistent social class and gender inequalities in psychological distress were evident in both cohorts. Social class constraints were mediated by educational resources whereas gender constraints were mediated by psychosocial resources. The influence of structural constraints on the timing of transitions to adult roles was more complex with evidence of positive and negative mediation and moderation effects.ConclusionsDelaying transition to adulthood promotes psychological health but failure of transition to independent living is associated with psychological distress. Life-course transitions are constrained by social origin and gender and possibly economic environment. Adolescent resources help young adults to make timely transitions to adult roles.

The Sexual Politics of Nature Writing and Lepidoptery: ‘The siren song of entomology’

2019 ◽  
pp. 126-153
Author(s):  
Danielle Sands
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Nature Writing ◽  
Vladimir Nabokov ◽  
Sex And Gender ◽  
Ethical Awareness ◽  
Objectification Of Women ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Politics Of Nature ◽  
The Relationship

Arguing that the discourse of insect collecting is one of objectification and domination, and that entomological classification and practices continue to reflect concerns about sex and gender which were present in its eighteenth- and nineteenth-century instantiations, this chapter aligns the objectification of women with that of insects. It interrogates the notion of aesthetic disinterestedness as licence for such objectification, asking whether aesthetic disinterestedness permits an empathetic disengagement which, at its worst, leads to a sociopathic lack of ethical awareness. The chapter has three parts, focusing on John Fowles’s The Collector, insects (particularly butterflies and moths) in contemporary nature writing and, finally, the role of lepidoptery in the fiction of Vladimir Nabokov. The closing section examines the relationship between ethics and aesthetics, appealing to the simultaneous necessity of both cross-species empathetic engagement and of a distancing that is alert to its own subjective positioning.

Introduction

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth Hellier
Keyword(s):  
Feminist Theory ◽  
Identity Politics ◽  
Life Story ◽  
Methodological Issues ◽  
Women's Music ◽  
Music Making ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Musical Genres

This introductory chapter discusses the conceptual and methodological issues regarding the study of women's music-making, including vocality, subjectivity, individuals, theorization, contextualization, feminist theory and politics, understandings of woman and gender, identity politics, and authoring. The analysis is varied in terms of musical genres, geographical areas, and the role of singing in the life of the singer. The chapter develops its ideas around the proposition that the current understandings of what and how music means could be expanded by more flexible and socially based notions of “selves” as locally articulated in specific contexts. In mapping these occurrences, the chapter encompasses major events, life markers, moments of decisions, and elements of vocality, all placed in a broadly chronological life-story framework.

The Role of Music in the Venetian Home in the Cinquecento

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
DEBORAH HOWARD
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Domestic Space ◽  
Class Identity ◽  
Professional Musicians ◽  
Music Making ◽  
Size Function ◽  
Theatrical Performance ◽  
Definition Of

This chapter considers the role of music and dance in the definition of identity by families and individuals in Renaissance Venice, with particular reference to the use of domestic space for music-making. The integration of music into its social and architectural context is discussed in terms of the class identity of different groups. The contexts range from domestic entertainment to family festivities such as marriages. The chapter goes on to explore the kinds of music-making in different spaces in the Venetian dwelling, in terms of the size and loudness of the instrument; the type of music performed; and the size, function and decoration of the room. During the sixteenth century, increasingly specialised rooms were created for music-making, often linked to theatrical performance and/or dance. In parallel, the employment of professional musicians by elite families began to supersede amateur participation on important festive occasions.

scholarly journals Social class and gender impacting change in bilingual settings: Spanish subject pronoun use in New York

2013 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 429-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Lapidus Shin ◽  
Ricardo Otheguy
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Social Class ◽  
Language Change ◽  
Linguistic Change ◽  
Subject Pronouns ◽  
The Us ◽  
Pronoun Use ◽  
Subject Pronoun ◽  
And Gender

AbstractThis study examines the role of social class and gender in an ongoing change in Spanish spoken in New York City (NYC). The change, which has to do with increasing use of Spanish subject pronouns, is correlated with increased exposure to life in NYC and to English. Our investigation of six different national-origin groups shows a connection between affluence and change: the most affluent Latino groups undergo the most increase in pronoun use, while the least affluent undergo no change. This pattern is explained as further indication that resistance to linguistic change is more pronounced in poorer communities as a result of denser social networks. In addition we find a women effect: immigrant women lead men in the increasing use of pronouns. We argue that the women effect in bilingual settings warrants a reevaluation of existing explanations of women as leaders of linguistic change. (Language change, social class, gender, bilingualism, Spanish in the US, pronouns)*

“And How Pretty They Are!”: Lawn Tennis, Tourism, and Gender Relations at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, 1880s-1920s

2021 ◽  
pp. 009614422098334
Author(s):  
Robert J. Lake
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Middle Class ◽  
Gender Relations ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
High Class ◽  
Role Of Women ◽  
Upper Middle Class ◽  
And Gender

In the four decades straddling the turn of the nineteenth century, the small Ontario town of Niagara-on-the-Lake experienced marked growth in its tourism industry. Catering predominantly to wealthy upper-middle-class Canadian and American visitors, the lake-side settlement offered numerous opportunities for polite recreation. Chief among them was lawn tennis, a sport that sat somewhat outside of the mainstream in terms of its high-class, mixed-sex participation demographic. While its players were imbued with a strong amateur philosophy, local boosters recognized the sport’s potential to generate tourism income through its two tournaments, but this hinged on the outward presentation among its players/guests of refined gentility—a reflection of both class and gender—both on and off the court. This article considers how lawn tennis tournaments fit into the town’s burgeoning tourism industry, and examines gender relations—particularly the role of women—in relation to this development.

Class and gender as a laughing matter? The case of Roseanne

2010 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandra Senzani
Keyword(s):  
Social Class ◽  
Working Class ◽  
Textual Analysis ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Persona ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Critical Humor

AbstractThe aim of this study is to investigate the role of humor in challenging hegemonic discourses on social class and gender, as they are reproduced in the popular sitcom format. Mindful of sitcoms' entrenched role in the audience's commodification process, the study explores whether a form of critical humor on social class and gender can emerge in the TV palimpsest. For this purpose, the study will look specifically at the sitcom Roseanne and at the public persona of Roseanne Barr. The study adopts a “multiperspectival approach” that considers all three elements of production, text and reception. First, Roseanne will be historically contextualized to understand the contradictions with which working-class representations are fraught. Secondly, a textual analysis will be performed to assess the extent to which class and gender are used as sources of humor and for which functions; finally, metatexts and viewers' responses will be analyzed considering the tensions between hegemonic and oppositional meanings attached to the sitcom. The case study of Roseanne will show that, in spite of obvious containment strategies—often through the secondary plotline and the metatexts, the sitcom provided its audience with critical humor to challenge hegemonic representations of class and gender.

Possible Selves Among Urban Youth

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (6) ◽  
pp. 544-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin C. Perry ◽  
Ryan Raeburn
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Gender Differences ◽  
Social Class ◽  
Urban Youth ◽  
Possible Selves ◽  
Developmental Differences ◽  
Expectation Gap ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Subjective Social Class

The present study investigated developmental differences and stability in possible selves within the educational and occupational domain among a diverse sample of urban youth ( N = 319). A secondary aim was to test the “aspiration–expectation gap” while exploring the role of subjective social class and gender differences. Results did not indicate any significant differences among possible selves between different grades in high school. Seniors evidenced the lowest levels of subjective social class, whereas freshmen had the highest levels. Subjective social class was significantly associated with the expected levels of education. In addition, girls aspired toward significantly higher levels of prestige than boys in terms of occupations they hoped to attain, while a substantial gap was found between hoped-for and expected education. Implications for practice, limitations, and directions for research are discussed.

scholarly journals The Hibernian Catch Club: Catch and Glee Culture in Georgian and Victorian Dublin

2018 ◽  
pp. 17-33
Author(s):  
Tríona O’Hanlon
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Religious Organizations ◽  
Professional Musicians ◽  
Musical Life ◽  
Social Divisions ◽  
Music Making ◽  
Cultural Life ◽  
The Social ◽  
Late Eighteenth ◽  
Cultural Connections

The Hibernian Catch Club was the leading Irish club of its kind, setting the standard in terms of performance. It gained status as Dublin’s longest-standing music society, and must be credited with pioneering catch and glee culture in Ireland. Its existence appears to pre-date the foundation of the most renowned London catch and glee clubs, emphasizing its significance within the wider context of catch and glee culture. This article examines the contribution that the Hibernian Catch Club made to musical life in Georgian and Victorian Dublin, contextualizing how the Club’s activities and membership reflect aspects of Dublin’s wider social, political and cultural life during this period.  The extent to which the Club reflects the traditions associated with the culture as established in England is evaluated, before the discussion turns to an exploration of the repertoire. The Hibernian Catch Club was part of a wide performing network, its singers possessing established connections with musical, social and religious organizations in Dublin, London and provincial England. The Hibernians engaged with and maintained the traditions associated with the culture (singing, dining and conviviality) while also representing the social and cultural partnership formed between Dublin’s amateur and professional musicians. Its singers, dominated by vicars choral, represent the religious and social divisions evident in private music-making circles in late-eighteenth and nineteenth-century Dublin. In fact, social, religious and musical exclusivity were inherent in its profile and are reflected by the overall lack of change in its aims and outlook. The Club’s activities and repertoire are comparable with those of the London and provincial English catch and glee clubs, illustrating the strong cultural connections between Britain and Ireland.  

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