Homage to Education: Women, Disease, and Print Culture in Restoration Spain, 1880-1923

Ruth Oropeza, History Department, Baylor University

By the late nineteenth century, the Spanish government had reached some stability after years of political turmoil on the peninsula. Napoleon’s invasion and the question of legitimacy that had plagued Isabella II’s reign along with the subsequent Carlist Wars, Glorious Revolution, monarchy under Amadeo of Savoy, and the First Republic failed to create a political consensus that could strengthen the government. In addition to this political turmoil, Spain faced another threat in the nineteenth century: disease. Epidemic outbreaks of typhus, cholera, tuberculosis, and other sanitary concerns added yet another challenge to governance. But by the Regency of Maria Christina, Spain had produced an important weapon against this social turmoil in the form of advice literature. By analyzing pamphlets, broadsides, and other literature cheaply produced to teach the middle class, women, and the lower classes about the dangers of disease, this paper analyzes the construction of an educational program that emerged outside of institutionalized schooling. I argue that Spanish conceptions of health that developed in the nineteenth century relied on a practical approach to sanitation that included a sophisticated educational program specifically targeted toward women. By analyzing the content of this advice literature, authorship, and accessibility, this paper will illustrate the importance of education in securing sanitation and the role of women in this important process.

No extended abstract or paper available

 Presented in Session 48. Halloween: Creepy, Scary, Sexy? Evil clowns can be creepy, witches can be scary, but Halloween can also be sexy.