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Fantastiska fröknar. Studier av lärarinnegestalter i svensk skönlitteratur

Ursing, Anna Maria LU (2004)
Abstract
This dissertation deals with women teachers in Swedish fiction by both male and female authors in the period from 1830 to 2003. It presents and discusses life narratives of individual fictional teachers in 127 texts. The study is organised chronologically and thematically and includes the historical and cultural framework. It should be seen as a contribution to the debate about the value of using ficiton as a historical and sociological source. The chapters are:



"Educating girls in the home" is about governesses, often fatherless and unmarried daughters of the middle class. Socially precariously balanced between the master family upstairs and the servant downstairs, a stranger who lives with the family and observes its... (More)
This dissertation deals with women teachers in Swedish fiction by both male and female authors in the period from 1830 to 2003. It presents and discusses life narratives of individual fictional teachers in 127 texts. The study is organised chronologically and thematically and includes the historical and cultural framework. It should be seen as a contribution to the debate about the value of using ficiton as a historical and sociological source. The chapters are:



"Educating girls in the home" is about governesses, often fatherless and unmarried daughters of the middle class. Socially precariously balanced between the master family upstairs and the servant downstairs, a stranger who lives with the family and observes its doings, the governess is well suited to be the narrator of a literary text.



"Educating girls for their husbands’ needs" deals with headmistresses of 19th century girls’ boarding schools. These women were often presented negatively in fiction – for disparate reasons, as the study finds. On the one hand they offered a superficial and fragmentary education; on the other they were targets of polemics against a class of women who were economically independent of men and had considerable influence in shaping the views of their pupils.



"Educating girls for their own needs" studies education aimed at liberating young women, especially through natural sciences and through reading and discussing literature.



"Educating girls for the home and the profession" looks at teachers in girls’ schools. Some of these fight for female suffrage; others are confronted with social isolation or financial and romantic plights.



"Educating the children of the people" deals with teachers in the ”paupers’ schools” and the public schools after 1842. They are often portrayed as dutiful, self-sacrificing and terrifyingly exposed. Many of them live under miserable conditions in remote, isolated schoolhouses, often with low pay under the jurisdiction of the local pastor. Those who are not attacked and raped still live in constant fear of what might happen.



"The woman teacher as lover, mother and wife" focuses on the emotional life of women teachers. Male authors tend to present them with a strong unsatisfied sexuality, while female authors talk about them as longing for close relationships and a family of their own.



"Women teachers and their pupils" deals with attraction and aggression between teacher and pupiland talks about pedagogic ideas and teaching methods including corporal punishment. In fiction women teachers and pupils who are sexually attracted to one another is a subject at the turn of the century 2000. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Popular Abstract in Swedish

Giftaslystna guvernanter, profitinriktade pensionföreståndarinnor, flickskolelärarinnor som arbetar för rösträtt, småskollärarinnor som blir överfallna i ensliga skolor på landet, folkskollärarinnor som blir med barn och gymnasielärarinnor som älskar sina elever - i Fantastiska fröknar presenteras en rad olika kvinnoöden, alltifrån Emma Rönnqvist i Fredrika Bremers Presidentens döttrar till Greta Ribe i Björn Ranelids Kvinnan är första könet.



Lärarinnan är en kvinna som tidigt träder ut i offentligheten och försörjer sig genom sin kunskap - men hon får lida för det. Omgivningen står främmande inför denna nya kvinnoroll, och resultatet blir att lärarinnan oftast isoleras från... (More)
Popular Abstract in Swedish

Giftaslystna guvernanter, profitinriktade pensionföreståndarinnor, flickskolelärarinnor som arbetar för rösträtt, småskollärarinnor som blir överfallna i ensliga skolor på landet, folkskollärarinnor som blir med barn och gymnasielärarinnor som älskar sina elever - i Fantastiska fröknar presenteras en rad olika kvinnoöden, alltifrån Emma Rönnqvist i Fredrika Bremers Presidentens döttrar till Greta Ribe i Björn Ranelids Kvinnan är första könet.



Lärarinnan är en kvinna som tidigt träder ut i offentligheten och försörjer sig genom sin kunskap - men hon får lida för det. Omgivningen står främmande inför denna nya kvinnoroll, och resultatet blir att lärarinnan oftast isoleras från det sociala samlivet. Hon får förtroendet att undervisa barn, men inte tillåtelse att ha egna. Hon bör vara socialt välanpassad, men släpps inte in i gemenskapen. Hon ska vara kunnig, men får ändå inte uppmuntra sina kvinnliga elever till vidare studier. Den ensamboende folkskollärarinnan på landet lever ofta i skräck och utsätts för överfall och våldtäkt.



I studien av en rad skönlitterära verk finns porträtt av olika lärarinnor, såsom Katederpersonen i Sara Lidmans Hjortronlandet, Eva Örn i Ester Lindins Tänk, om jag gifter mig med prästen! och Carl Jonas Love Almqvists Amalia Hillner, kvinnor som är värda ett bättre öde än att falla i glömska. I dessa skönlitterära texter kan vi skönja de faktiska problem som de fantastiska fröknarna kämpade med, deras förändrade självbild och skolväsendets framväxt.



Fantastiska fröknar är en kulturhistorisk exposé av lärarinnans roll i kvinnans frigörelseprocess, sådan den skildras i svensk skönlitteratur 1830-2003 (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
supervisor
opponent
  • Docent Erixon, Per Olof, Umeå universitet
organization
publishing date
type
Thesis
publication status
published
subject
keywords
literary theory, literature criticism, Women teachers, Swedish ficiton, love, gender, governess, headmistress, girl’s schools, high schools, education history, cultural history, women’s history, General and comparative literature, Fredrika Bremer., Allmän och jämförande litteratur, litteraturkritik, litteraturteori
pages
256 pages
publisher
Brutus Östlings Bokförlag Symposion
defense location
Sal 122, Lärarutbildningen, Munkhättegatan 3, Malmö
defense date
2004-10-01 10:15:00
ISBN
91-7139-682-9
language
Swedish
LU publication?
yes
id
94a65170-859a-4e71-b53e-5db6efefd19d (old id 27798)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 10:17:22
date last changed
2018-11-21 20:57:55
@phdthesis{94a65170-859a-4e71-b53e-5db6efefd19d,
  abstract     = {{This dissertation deals with women teachers in Swedish fiction by both male and female authors in the period from 1830 to 2003. It presents and discusses life narratives of individual fictional teachers in 127 texts. The study is organised chronologically and thematically and includes the historical and cultural framework. It should be seen as a contribution to the debate about the value of using ficiton as a historical and sociological source. The chapters are:<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"Educating girls in the home" is about governesses, often fatherless and unmarried daughters of the middle class. Socially precariously balanced between the master family upstairs and the servant downstairs, a stranger who lives with the family and observes its doings, the governess is well suited to be the narrator of a literary text.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"Educating girls for their husbands’ needs" deals with headmistresses of 19th century girls’ boarding schools. These women were often presented negatively in fiction – for disparate reasons, as the study finds. On the one hand they offered a superficial and fragmentary education; on the other they were targets of polemics against a class of women who were economically independent of men and had considerable influence in shaping the views of their pupils.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"Educating girls for their own needs" studies education aimed at liberating young women, especially through natural sciences and through reading and discussing literature.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"Educating girls for the home and the profession" looks at teachers in girls’ schools. Some of these fight for female suffrage; others are confronted with social isolation or financial and romantic plights.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"Educating the children of the people" deals with teachers in the ”paupers’ schools” and the public schools after 1842. They are often portrayed as dutiful, self-sacrificing and terrifyingly exposed. Many of them live under miserable conditions in remote, isolated schoolhouses, often with low pay under the jurisdiction of the local pastor. Those who are not attacked and raped still live in constant fear of what might happen.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"The woman teacher as lover, mother and wife" focuses on the emotional life of women teachers. Male authors tend to present them with a strong unsatisfied sexuality, while female authors talk about them as longing for close relationships and a family of their own.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
"Women teachers and their pupils" deals with attraction and aggression between teacher and pupiland talks about pedagogic ideas and teaching methods including corporal punishment. In fiction women teachers and pupils who are sexually attracted to one another is a subject at the turn of the century 2000.}},
  author       = {{Ursing, Anna Maria}},
  isbn         = {{91-7139-682-9}},
  keywords     = {{literary theory; literature criticism; Women teachers; Swedish ficiton; love; gender; governess; headmistress; girl’s schools; high schools; education history; cultural history; women’s history; General and comparative literature; Fredrika Bremer.; Allmän och jämförande litteratur; litteraturkritik; litteraturteori}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  publisher    = {{Brutus Östlings Bokförlag Symposion}},
  school       = {{Lund University}},
  title        = {{Fantastiska fröknar. Studier av lärarinnegestalter i svensk skönlitteratur}},
  year         = {{2004}},
}