Skip to main content

Coming of Age as a Worker



Many working women of the 19th century (including  
Jane Eyre herself) felt trapped, like a caged bird.
From The Sick Room by Emma Brownlow, photographed in the Foundling Museum

Foundlings were stripped of their individuality, put in 
uniforms, and raised to all pursue the same professions.
Photographed at the Foundling Museum

Poor children and orphans could only expect to become servants or soldiers,
both respectable jobs which nevertheless involved hard work and little pay.
Taking Leave by Emma Brownlow, photographed at the Foundling Museum

A governess may be as well educated as a women of class,but that does not 
mean she receives the same benefits, luxuries, or esteem as the woman of class.
Photographed at the Geffrye Museum

Some working women appreciated that, unlike the women they served, 
they were able to experience the accomplishment of a day of hard work.
Photographed in the Geffrye Museum


After their pupils were educated and their job was done, governesses
often found themselves jobless, poor, and at the mercy of charity.
The Family Governess by Joseph Kenny Meadows, photographed at the Geffrye Museum

Comments

  1. Professor SteeleJuly 7, 2017 at 8:31 AM

    What a fantastic first week's blog. I love how carefully you curated (and composed) your images and also how your captions crisply described the connections of image to theme. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownJuly 7, 2017 at 3:35 PM

      I appreciate the alliteration in your comment.

      Delete
  2. UnknownJuly 8, 2017 at 8:48 AM

    I really like the detail that your images capture and show-case key elements. Your descriptions really helped give deeper context beyond just what the pictures present.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownJuly 8, 2017 at 10:22 AM

    These pictures are great! I love the first picture that captures the detail of the caged bird... I have never noticed how frequently the "caged bird" analogy appears when depicting women of this era.

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownJuly 9, 2017 at 3:19 AM

    I love the formatting you used for your entry! Likewise, I really appreciate how you captured the obscure bird reference, and were able to compare it to both growing up as a worker and to Jane Eyre, despite it being found in the Foundling Museum, where one might think there are no bird analogies. Great work!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Alexis MooreJuly 10, 2017 at 6:04 AM

    Great captions! I really like the focus of your pictures, especially the one with the caged bird. They perfectly capture the idea of coming of age as a worker.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Coming of Age as a Londoner

Our final project for our class was to make a film summing up everything we learned about being global citizens since we came to London. TCU's mission statement is so important to the things we do as TCU students, so Rachel and I kept it in mind throughout the process of creating this film. You can find the film  here . Enjoy! Given more time and resources we would have planned this out more. Rachel and I were partners in this, but we didn't know that would be the case until week four. If we had, we may have been able to come up with an idea early and create a film that tells a story or one that interviews museum docents. I believe we both would have filmed a ton more footage and it would have been very nice to have had a professional camera to use as well as professional audio-recording equipment. However, I am very pleased with the film as it is and I think it adequately shows what we learned and what we did during our five weeks here. Thank you, London, for showing m
Post a Comment
Read more

Coming of Age as a Global Citizen

Brixton is primarily occupied by people of color and is known to be a rough neighborhood; however, it's wonderful to take the time to appreciate the rich and colorful culture in Brixton created by people who are important members of the global community. London Landscape , James Fitton, 1948 Photographed in Museum of London This shirt (unfortunately obscured by other outfits) features the logo of the punk band Crass. The logo incorporates a cross, a Union Jack, a Celtic snake, an anarchy symbol, and a swastika. Cross was not unlike Charlie's band The Condemned in the Buddha of Suburbia, which was a symptom of a large cultural change occurring in the '70s and '80s in London. Photographed at Museum of London By the 1970s, gay pride was a movement where members of the global community fought for equal rights and respect. Of course, this is still and issue today, closely related to the women's rights movements. Photographed at Museum of London Zabr
Post a Comment
Read more