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Description:
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Veronica Franco (1546 -1591 ) was one of the most distinguished courtesans , citizen , and writer of the early modern period . An examination of Franco's works reveals a pointed attempt to defend women's place and advancement in society , thereby establishing an early and vital voice of experience about women from the Italian Renaissance .
This thesis is a recovery project that attempts to show how Franco's profession as a cortigiana onesta , as well as her writings , challenged traditional patriarchal gender constructs . Franco's writings also reflect protofeminist concepts of equality and liberation of women , concepts more familiarly brought to light by Anglo -American first -wave feminists , like Mary Wollstonecraft , Mary Hays , Elizabeth Cady Stanton , and Charlotte Perkins Gilman .
This examination will advance feminist scholars' understanding of the history , meaning , and consequences of early modern feminism . The study will also contribute to a greater understanding of a liberal feminism that extends beyond Anglo -American boundaries that differs from and complements the ways current popular culture understands what Western civilization has coined "feminist ." |