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Linda Gordon, Heroes of Their Own Lives: The Politics and History of Family Violence (1988) Gordon examines trends in family violence in Boston between 1870 to 1960. She argues that family violence is historically and politically constructed (as evidenced from her choice of subtitle.) Further, she states that the definitions of unacceptable family violence developed…

Mary Odem, Delinquent Daughters: Protecting and Policing Adolescent Female Sexuality in the United States, 1885-1920 (1995) Odem analyzes reform and control over young women’s sexuality between 1885 and 1920 through an in-depth study of age-of-consent law reform and the institutions put into place to enforce these new laws at the local level. Through her study…

James Trent, Inventing the Feeble Mind: A History of Mental Retardation in the United States, 1994 Trent provides an excellent synthesis and analysis of the history of mental retardation in the United States between the Revolution and 1970. He argues that depending on the time period, the construction of mental deficiency has evolved from a…

Joan Hoff, Law, Gender, and Injustice: A Legal History of U.S. Women, (1991) Hoff offers a comprehensive history of women in the United States and their struggle for the full rights and protection under the law. She traces this history by using the theme that women are second-class citizens under the law. She argues that…

To begin my readings on gender, society, and law in America, we’re going to use the first week to ground the rest of the list using works of feminist theory. Patricia Hill Collins, Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment (2nd ed), Through her specific focus on Black feminist thought, Collins actually…