History in schools and the problem of 'the nation'

The article examines the enduring popularity of a form of school history which is based predominantly on the idea that the transmission of a positive story about the national past will inculcate in young people a sense of loyalty to the state; a reassuring and positive sense of identity and belonging; and a sense of social solidarity with fellow citizens. England is one of the countries which has to at least some extent moved away from this model of school history; but the past few years have seen suggestions for a move back to a history curriculum which focuses predominantly on the transmission of ‘Our Island Story’; and which presents a positive rendering of that story. The history curriculum in England is currently under review; and public pronouncements by politicians; academic historians and newspaper editorials suggest strong pressures towards a restoration of what is often termed ‘traditional’ school history; which was prevalent in English schools before the advent of what has been termed ‘New history’ in the 1970s. The paper questions some of the arguments which have been put forward in order to justify a return to a history curriculum based on a positive and unproblematic narrative of the national story and suggests that such a course of action is based on some unexamined assumptions and a limited understanding of pedagogy and learning. The final section of the paper outlines several weaknesses and flaws in the arguments for reverting to a traditional (i.e. ‘nation-based’ and celebratory) form of school history; and some of the dangers inherent in such a project

Leading Ladies: A Study of Queenship and Identity through Conquest

The study of medieval women is often viewed with a qualitative purpose. Scholars seek to define the medieval woman as either empowered or oppressed, and within the medieval timeframe, as either more or less so than their predecessors. The year 1066 is seen as a turning point by many for the female narrative; it was the year of the Norman Conquest, which brought with it new schools of thought and manners of life. Rather than attempting to qualify the lives of women as either good or back, the question of medieval women can be approached by asking how they were able to navigate their lives and the changing world around them. This is best examined through the lives of queens because they are the most visible from an historical standpoint. Conquest mentality from the point of view of the conquered forced queens to become more active in the shaping of their identities for political survival and success. Through the lens of conquest, which reveals and sharpens this pattern, Queens Emma, Edith, and Mathilda II were all able to shape their own identities, but because of the uncertainty of conquest, their identities were also shaped for them by others

Formulaic women?: The disparity between the 12th century reality of noblewomen in England and the 12th century chronicles\u27 depiction of English noblewomen

This thesis seeks to examine the degree to which 12th century chronicles do or do not accurately represent the position of 12th century noblewomen in England. Since the chroniclers partly based their women on what had been written before, the extent to which the 12th century chronicles follow the two borrowed motifs of women as intellectuals and warriors from their sources will also be discussed. The works of Geoffrey of Monmouth, William of Malmesbury, Orderic Vitalis, and William of Newburgh represent the 12th century chronicles. This thesis will also look at the chroniclers’ Latin sources, specifically Bede, Virgil, and Ovid. Ultimately, the male authors of the 12th century chronicles both depended on earlier sources and also crafted their women to conform to contemporary ideas of female acceptability. They made them more plausible for their era by altering the two motifs in four main ways: by an emphasis on familial ties, by the inclusion of all noblewomen, by acknowledgement of the current political situation, and by the addition of contemporary details

WRITING AND LITERARY ACTIVITY IN THE VERNACULAR IN ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND

У статті розглянуто процес виникнення і функціонування різних форм текстової фіксації на англійських територіальних діалектах давнього періоду розвитку англійської мови як наслідок розвитку суспільних функцій мови та розширення сфер функціонування її писемної форми в період формування англосаксонського суспільства. В історичній перспективі простежено становлення основних текстових категорій і видів текстів давньоанглійської писемності на основі функціональної класифікації писемних пам’яток давнього періоду. Описано формування англійської писемної традиції в соціолінгвістичному контексті та зазначено основні рукописні тексти-джерела деяких давньоанглійських писемних пам’яток

‘Elizabeth’s Ghost: The afterlife of the Queen in Stuart England’

Toward the end of James I’s reign John Reynolds’ 1624 pamphlet, Vox Coeli, or News from Heaven, presents Queen Elizabeth I discussing England’s contemporary events with her father, her siblings, Anne of Denmark and Prince Henry. The heavenly Elizabeth supports a strong and militaristic England and is critical of the current king. In the latter part of the seventeenth century Elizabeth was presented as a Protestant heroine in contrast to the Catholic James, Duke of York, later James II. But there is one Stuart successor who is connected positively to Elizabeth. In 1706 in the reign of the last Stuartmonarch Elizabeth made another appearance in “Queen Elizabeths Ghost: or A Dream.” Unlike the earlier Elizabeth, this one praises Queen Anne, rather King James as her wor- thy successor. This paper examines a range of sources to further understand the impact Elizabeth I’s afterlife had in the century after her death both in terms of politics and religion, and the perceptions of powerful women

Portraits of Queen Elizabeth I of England: Representations of Gender, Influence, and Power

This research project focuses on portraits of Queen Elizabeth I of England, specifically, portraits commissioned after she inherited the throne in 1558 at the age of twenty-five. Elizabeth I is one of the most remarkable women in history, she was not only a successful queen (no easy task in a patriarchal society), but she overcame a lifetime of obstacles to become one of the most powerful, beloved, and significant monarchs in world history. My project sought to understand how she was portrayed and to what extent that portrayal was self-fashioned. I argue that a great deal of Elizabeth’s portrayal was controlled by Elizabeth herself and that her need to self-fashion was driven by the fact that she was a woman acting in a strictly male role in a dominantly patriarchal society. It was not just her image and policies which were influenced by her gender; decisions and circumstances of Elizabeth I’s life were colored by the fact that she was a woman. During the Renaissance, gender roles were precise and inflexible, separating men and women both physically and psychologically. Through her self-fashioning, both visual and rhetoric, Elizabeth I executed the balancing act she was forced to maintain between woman and monarch and it was that life-long navigation which allowed her to become one of England’s most important and powerful rulers and opened the doors to the prosperous era which took her name

Mother, Wife, Temptress, Virgin and Tyrant: Defining Images of Feminine Power in Medieval Queenship and Modern Politics

The Queens of Anglo-Saxon England were restricted and defined by traditional gender expectations and images. Though these ideals are less rigid, gender roles and images of femininity still restrict women. Standards have changed over time, but women continue to be defined by their position as wives and mothers which in turn can restrict actions in the public sphere. The sexual state of a woman is still intimately linked to personal quality. Motherhood was and is currently seen as a state of superior development for women. Women are defined by motherhood and the social obligations and expectations such as emotionality and nurturance that accompany this position. These are not necessarily negative images, but the mother is still expected to have the more dominant role in a child\u27s life. Similarly, in modern society wives are expected to perform most of the domestic duties in the home. Traditional social expectations which restrict women to the private sphere, or the household, have made it difficult for women to participate in matter outside of domestic duties. Though progress is being made and women are working in professions that would have traditionally been limited to men, Patrice DiQuinzio argues that the \u27male\u27 comes to stand for the mind, the social, and the public, and the female for the body, the natural, and the private. In this way, gender expectations restrict the way modern women can behave and participate in public and these same characteristics that Patrice DiQuinzio recognizes as modern images of femininity also characterize medieval interpretations