Gender, Sex and the Shaping of Modern Europe: A History from the French Revolution to the Present Day - Hardcover

'A very readable book.'Times Higher Education'A worthwhile addition to upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses in the history of modern Europe.'Choice'This important book is organized around a key idea so obvious yet so often forgotten: that sexual difference has a history. There is a contingency, even arbitrariness in our concepts of masculinity, femininity, the body, sexuality, identity and even society, and these categories have changed dramatically over the two centuries or more covered by this book. But to understand that, and so much more in European history, we need to understand the complex history of gender. By exploring, in a readable and sophisticated way, key moments in the gender transformations since the 18th century, the authors have made an important contribution to our understanding of the history of sexual difference.'Professor Jeffrey Weeks, London South Bank University'This highly original and engaging interpretation of modern European history uses

Gender, Sex and the Shaping of Modern Europe explores the key transformations of sexual identities and sexuality in Europe from the French Revolution to the present day. Crucially, its focus is on gender, as it is impossible to understand masculinity or femininity in isolation. The book is designed to introduce students to the major issues surrounding gender and sexuality in modern European history. It is divided into five thematic chapters representing the critical moments in gender history: The Age of Revolution and Enlightenment; Capitalism and the Industrial Revolution; Imperialism/Colonialism; Total War in the Twentieth Century; and the Long Sexual Revolution The authors provide an overview of how gender roles were socially constructed and how they influenced political and economic developments. Throughout, Gender, Sex and the Shaping of Modern Europe presents complex narratives and introduces theoretical perspectives in language accessible to students.