A
Treatise on Domestic Economy, for the Use of Mothers and Housewives
(1848),
by
Josefa Acevedo de Gómez
Translated
by Sarah Sanchez, with an Introduction by Catherine Davies
Year of Publication: 2007
What advice does Josefa Acevedo (1803-1861) give to middle-class Colombian housewives of the 1840s? To get up at dawn, take exercise, educate their children, and civilise their men – men who sleep on the sofa and spit on the carpet – but above all, to save time and money. The model they should emulate is the thrifty English housewife, a true paragon of self-reliance and industriousness in a modern society. This is the first and only translation into English of any of Acevedo’s works. Sarah Sanchez has translated the first edition of the Treatise (1848) with accuracy and flair. In so doing she has made it possible for non-Spanish speakers interested in women’s domestic culture to read and appreciate this rare Colombian example of nineteenth-century conduct literature. Catherine Davies’ Introduction provides the reader with a snapshot of Acevedo’s life and places the book in its literary and social context.
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ISBN
978-1-905510-08
(Paperback,
142 pages)
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Josefa Acevedo’s Treatise is not only a fascinating example of mid-nineteenth century Colombian conduct literature, it also offers us a valuable insight into the female liberal imagination’s projection of an orderly and modern society at a time of instability and radical change in Latin America. Beautifully translated, this new edition also offers an excellent introduction that contextualizes the material and sensitively uncovers its deeper significance. Philip Swanson, Professor of Hispanic Studies, University of Sheffield
Catherine Davies is Professor of Hispanic and Latin American Studies at the University of Nottingham, where she specializes in modern Spanish and Spanish American literature. Her books include A Place in the Sun? Women's Writing in Twentieth-century Cuba (1997) and South American Independence: Gender, Politics, Text (2006), with C. Brewster and H. Owen.