Meanings of Manhood in Early Modern England (Oxford Studies in Social History)

This path-breaking study explores the diverse and varied meanings of manhood in early modern England and their complex, and often contested, relationship with patriarchal principles. Using social, political and medical commentary, alongside evidence of social practice derived from court records, Dr Shepard argues that patriarchal ideology contained numerous contradictions, and that, while males were its primary beneficiaries, it was undermined and opposed by men as well as women. "This study explores the diverse and varied meanings of manhood in early modern England and their complex, and often contested, relationship with patriarchal principles. Using social, political, and medical commentary, alongside evidence of social practice derived from court records, Dr. Shepard argues that patriarchal ideology contained numerous contradictions, and that, while males were its primary beneficiaries, it was undermined and opposed by men as well as women. Patriarchal concepts of manhood existed in tension both with anti-patriarchal forms of resistance and with alternative codes of manhood which were sometimes primarily defined independently of patriarchal imperatives. As a result the differences within each sex, as well as between them, were intrinsic to the practice of patriarchy and the social distribution of its dividends in early modern England."--Jacket Frontmatter List of Figures (page xi) List of Tables (page xi) Conventions and Abbreviations (page xii) Introduction (page 1) Part I: Modelling Manhood I. The Constant Age (page 21) 2. The Imagined Body of 'Man's Estate' (page 47) 3. Models of Manhood (page 70) Part II: The Social Practice of Manhood 4. Youthful Excess and Fraternal Bonding (page 93) 5. The Violence of Manhood (page 127) 6. Respectability, Sex, and Status (page 152) 7. Credit, Provision, and Worth (page 186) 8. The 'Ancienter Sort' (page 214) Conclusion: Manhood, Patriarchy, and Gender in Early Modern England (page 246) Bibliography (page 254) Index (page 277) The Constant Age -- The Imagined Body Of 'man's Estate' -- Models Of Manhood -- Youthful Excess And Fraternal Bonding -- The Violence Of Manhood -- Respectability, Sex And Status -- Credit, Provision, And Worth -- The 'ancienter Sort' -- Conclusion : Manhood, Patriarchy, And Gender In Early Modern England. Alexandra Shepard. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [254]-276) And Index.