PARTS OF WOMEN'S HISTORY

I AM reading a book called Dolls' Houses (from the V&A Museum of Childhood) by Halina Pasierbska and am learning the most fascinating information about dolls' houses! Apparently, dolls' houses were used for teaching girls and young women all about housekeeping and house furnishing!

Often the doll's house is associated with female oppression. Who can forget Ibsen's The Doll's House? Though I am not 100% sure that Nora's husband was so bad, nonetheless, she felt oppressed, and thus she had to go. 

In Charles Dickens's David Copperfield, David argues that Dora is a bad housewife by saying that she seemed to think herself in charge of a play house. I totally disagree with David's treatment of Dora, and have in fact published an article about it!

Still, dolls' houses have a lot to say about the history of humankind in general and the history of womankind in particular. Today, the house and home are studied as valid parts of women's history. Without overlooking the oppression, women studies scholars like myself read the home as a space full of female knowledge and experience.

When I was small I had a plain doll's house, which my child's imagination had furnished with all the accoutrements of a luxury home. I was refused the glittering Barbie house for being too expensive. If I ever have a daughter, the Barbie house will be a top present, and then we will play together! ;-)