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Våp eller nucka? Kvinnors högre studier och genusdiskursen 1930-1970

Author

  • Lina Carls Lindberg

Summary, in English

This dissertation’s overall purpose has been to achieve an increased understanding of why women’s integration into universities has progressed so slowly. Through the analysis of the debates on women in higher education I have wanted to see if the main figures reproduce or contradict the discourse. I have had the aim of not only to show how the genus discourse was possibly repeated but also how in different ways the dichotomy between men and women has been protested against. My main issues have therefore dealt with how gender is constructed in relationship to the term student and in connection to the discussion of women’s higher studies in Sweden under the period 1930-1970, both at societal level and locally in the university towns of Lund and Uppsala. When opening the universities to female students, the academic culture had for nearly 800 years been characterised entirely by the needs and norms of men. Once women were allowed at the Swedish universities, the opposition caused by their presence nevertheless came to remain. The law entitling women to more advanced studies were questioned, especially in times of unemployment amongst people with an academic degree. It also became apparent that many people at the universities and in the society at large could not easily cope with uniting the traditional image of femininity with being a student, traditionally adopted as a male role, leading to women often being portrayed as silly and keen on getting married or as old maids. This dissertation also illustrates the persistency of the constructions. Above all, the image of the female student as silly and keen on getting married remained until around 1970, although some people made attempts to refute the conception of women engaged in advanced academic studies as being unsuccessful as women, wives and mothers. These people instead emphasized an image of the female student as intelligent and feminine.

Department/s

Publishing year

2004

Language

Swedish

Document type

Dissertation

Publisher

Nordic Academic Press

Topic

  • History

Keywords

  • Contemporary history (since 1914)
  • Gender and Academia
  • Gender History Female students
  • University History
  • Nutidshistoria (från 1914)

Status

Published

Supervisor

  • [unknown] [unknown]

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISBN: 91-89116-65-8
  • ISRN: LUHFDA/HFHI-2004/1119-SE+448

Defence date

6 March 2004

Defence time

10:15

Defence place

Sal 3, Historiska institutionen, Magle Stora Kyrkogata 12 A, Lund

Opponent

  • Christina Florin (Professor)