Vol. 19 (1987)
Articles

Women's History and Working-Class History

Bettina Bradbury
Université de Montréal

Published 1987-01-01

How to Cite

Bradbury, B. (1987). Women’s History and Working-Class History. Labour Le Travail, 19, 23–44. Retrieved from https://www.lltjournal.ca/index.php/llt/article/view/2395

Abstract

THIS PAPER SEEKS to examine the extent to which the writing of the history of both women and of the Canadian working class has converged over the last ten years, to suggest other ways in which integration of the two could be sought, and also to suggest some basic conflicts between the paradigms of each which point to areas where integration seems unlikely. It argues that if the goal of writing a history of the totality of the working class is a shared one, areas of intersection between the two fields must be consciously sought out. New ways of integrating the history of women and of the working class must be sought. For a start, this requires a reconceptualization of the way we define the working class and work, examination of the processes of class reproduction, and acknowledgement of the importance of examining how gender definitions are transmitted, shaped and reshaped. CETTE ARTICLE CHERCHE à examiner jusqu'à quel point l'historiographie des femmes et de la classe ouvrière au Canada ont convergé depuis dix ans, à suggérer d'autres façons de les intégrer tout en indiquant quelques conflits fondamentales dans les paradigmes de chaque champ d'histoire qui suggèrent des aires où l'intégration semble improbable. Il faut chercher consciemment les points de rencontre, d'intersection entre les deux champs et essayer de les intégrer si on veut écrire une histoire de toute la classe ouvrière. Au départ, il faut reconceptualiser notre façon de définir la classe ouvrière ainsi que le travail, examiner comment les classe ouvrière ainsi que le travail, examiner comment les classes se reproduisent et reconnaître l'importance de la transmission, de la formulation et la reformulation des definitions de genre.