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The paper concerns itself in critiquing Judith Butler's theory as posited in her book Gender Trouble in which she not only makes a distinction between 'sex' and 'gender' but also brings about a new notion of the performance of gender roles . The contention of my paper is that in Gender Trouble, Butler talks about femininity and the subversion of the male/female binary but completely ignores masculinity as a gender. She only mentions masculinity in oppositional relation to femininity or in its queer form. She evades mentioning normative masculinity and its challenges, thus implying obliquely as if masculinity were a gender limited only in long-standing constructs of that of the oppressor in gender politics which needed to be out-powered sans the nuances that are associated within the different aspects of Masculinity.

What's Queer about Europe? examines how queer theory helps us initiate disorienting conjunctions and counterintuitive encounters for imagining historical and contemporary Europe. This book queers Europe and Europeanizes queer, forcing a reconsideration of both. Its contributors study Europe relationally, asking not so much what Europe is but what we do when we attempt to define it. The topics discussed include: gay marriage in Renaissance Rome, Russian anarchism and gender politics in early-twentieth-century Switzerland, colonialism and sexuality in Italy, queer masculinities in European popular culture, queer national identities in French cinema, and gender theories and activism. What these apparently disparate topics have in common is the urgency of the political, legal, and cultural issues they tackle. Asking what is queer about Europe means probing the blind spots that continue to structure the long and discrepant process of Europeanization.

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.

This dissertation consists out of an introduction and one book chapter and three journal articles that are based on extensive field research in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and northern Uganda. The three overarching themes of this dissertation are gender, armed conflict and transitional justice. What binds the four publications is that they all offer critical reflections on hegemonic discourses about the conflicts in these two regions, either by criticizing the underlying assumptions, or by amplifying the voices of victim/survivor groups whose voices are neglected in the dominant narratives. The first two publications are about gender dynamics in eastern DRC and they specifically look at shifts in masculinities, which is often neglected in the study of gender. The last two articles give voice to two neglected survivor groups in post-conflict northern Uganda. They examine how two groups of people are confronted with the legacies of armed violence on a daily basis and the relevance of these groups' experiences, challenges, needs and aspirations for transitional justice debates and practices in Uganda.

This dissertation on professional politicians' masculinities in a context of parity aims atadressing the question of convertibility of masculine properties into political capitalwhile occuring in a context of criticism towards the masculine ways of assuming arepresentative role. Such masculinities are diverse. Their productions and uses dependupon the social, political and sexual properties of those who embody them. Above all,these masculine identities can be adapted to meet the legitimacy criteria related to theemerging second individualism - yet symbolically linked to femininity. They thencontribute to the legitimization of professional politicians in general and to thelegitimization of those who are members of the political establishment in particular. Inits conservative-progressive version, the use of masculinity still participates to thelegitimization of the political, social and sexual orders as a whole. This type ofmasculinity is an hegemonic masculinity in the strongest understanding of the term. ; Ce travail de thèse sur les masculinités du métier politique au temps de la paritéentend répondre à la question de la convertibilité des propriétés masculines en capitalpolitique, question d'autant plus intéressante à poser que ces masculinités sontproduites dans un contexte marqué par les critiques des manières masculinesd'endosser les rôles de représentant. Ces masculinités sont diverses. Leursproductions et leurs usages dépendent des propriétés sociales, politiques et sexuellesde ceux qui les incarnent. Surtout, ces identités masculines peuvent faire l'objet d'uneadaptation aux critères de légitimité liés à l'émergence d'un second individualisme –pourtant symboliquement associé au féminin. Elles contribuent alors à la légitimationdu personnel politique en général et des établis du champ politique en particulier. Danssa variante conservatrice-progressiste, le registre de la masculinité participe encore àla légitimation des ordres politique, social et sexuel dans leur ensemble ; il s'agit donclà d'une ...

The novel Epifanía de una sombra (2000), by Mauricio Wacquez, constitutes a starting point for a new reading of two well-known Chilean intellectuals: Benjamín Subercaseaux and Luis Oyarzún. Just like these latter, Wacquez represents the childhood as a space of existential discovery and possibly, a critical perspective of the family scheme. Similarly to the young characters of Daniel. Niño de lluvia (1938), by Subercaseaux, and La infancia (1940) y Los días ocultos (1955), by Oyarzún, Santiago, the main character of Epifanía, offers a way of reading the formation of masculinity during the first half of the XXth Century in Chile, by proposing subversive aesthetic and gender/sexual imaginations that differ from the normalizing discourses constructed by political and social institutions. ; La novela Epifanía de una sombra (2000), de mauricio Wacquez, es el punto de partida para una relectura de dos conocidos intelectuales chilenos: Benjamín Subercaseaux y Luis Oyarzún. Como ellos, Wacquez representa la infancia como espacio de descubrimiento existencial y posible perspectiva crítica del tramado familiar. Junto a los pequeños protagonistas de Daniel. Niño de lluvia (1938), de Subercaseaux, y La infancia (1940) y Los días ocultos (1955), de Oyarzún, Santiago, personaje principal de Epifanía, indica un modo de leer la formación de la masculinidad a lo largo de la primera mitad del siglo XX en Chile, proponiendo imaginarios estéticos y genérico-sexuales subversivos respecto de los discursos normalizadores erigidos por las instituciones políticas y sociales.

In order to reach the main goal of the paper, the identification of the impact and effectiveness of strategies and measures which promote gender equality not only in connection to women but also men, an overview of institutionalised practices, men's involvement in gender equality strategies like gender mainstreaming, as well as men's participation in international and national networks, organisations and groups are presented. The identification of specific forms of institutionalised and non-institutionalised practices and politics is based on the theoretical model proposed by Michael Messner (2000) and concerns the situation in the European Union. ; Con el propósito de alcanzar el objetivo principal de este artículo, se presenta el análisis de cómo se han identificado los efectos y la eficacia de las estrategias y medidas que promuevan la igualdad de género, no sólo en relación a las mujeres sino también con los hombres. A la vez también se presenta una visión general de las prácticas institucionalizadas relacionadas con la participación de los hombres en la igualdad de género, como por ejemplo la integración de la perspectiva transveral de género, la participación de los hombres en redes nacionales e internacionales. Dicha identificación de formas específicas de política institucionalizada y no institucionalizada tienen su fundamento en el modelo teórico propuesto por Michael Messner (2000), el cual se refiere a la situación en la Unión Europea.

The adolescent clubhouse, the fraternity and the military are all critical spaces that frame and nurture the normative masculine gender script, and therefore the assumption and replication of a hegemonic masculinity. Because hegemonic masculinities are so intricately woven into the fibers of the United States military and the American fraternity, these organizations and the rich traditions that compose their histories and inform their practices and ideologies, are the focus of this study. I argue that these two spaces normalize, sustain, promote and replicate rape culture by requiring members' performance of hegemonic masculinity. Members' performance of a hegemonic masculinity contributes to their subscription to a culture of rape. Both groups are structured, historically and currently, through the lens of brotherhood and the tie of the fraternal bond. Each organization places intense value on group dynamics and unified identities, which, in turn, limit members' ability to express views or masculinities that are non-normative or that differ from those of the group or organization at large.

En este artículo se aborda el estudio del diseño y la gestión de las políticas sociales desde una perspectiva de las masculinidades. Se llevan a cabo revisiones provenientes de diversas fuentes -culturales, académicas, educativas, técnico-metodológicas- con el objeto de ampliar las perspectivas desde las que se ha venido considerando la participación y la responsabilidad del varón. Finalmente, se presentan aportes válidos y construidos formalmente para apoyar el diseño y la gestión de políticas públicas orientadas a la equidad de género con y desde los varones en tanto que es importante propiciar el desarrollo de varios modelos de masculinidad alternativos para lograr superar la violencia, la desigualdad, la intolerancia, la discriminación y la inequidad a través de opciones políticas, sociales y educativas. ; The purpose of this work is to examine the design and management of social policies from a perspective of masculinities. Various sources are reviewed –cultural, academic, educational, technical methodological– in order to broaden the standpoints from which male participation and responsibility have been considered. Finally, the study offers a series of valid and formally assembled findings to support the design and management of public policies oriented to gender equity with and from males, as it is of chief importance to promote the development of different male alternative patterns in view of overcoming violence, inequality, intolerance, discrimination, and inequity by means of political, social, and educational options.

This article examines bisexual men's experiences of coming out across three age cohorts, and documents generational differences in the reception from friends and family regarding this disclosure. Drawing on in-depth interviews with an ethnically diverse sample of 60 openly bisexual men from the United States, we find that the oldest cohort of bisexual men encountered the most stereotypical views and prejudiced behaviour, while those of the youngest cohort expressed predominantly positive coming out stories. We attribute the cohort differences in these experiences to a decrease in cultural homophobia, alongside changes in the social organisation of masculinities.

Masculinity studies are fairly new and young churchgoers are an under-researched group in the current Congolese church context. In response to this knowledge gap, this paper attempts to explore discourses of young churchgoers from deprived areas of Kinshasa regarding masculinity and sexuality in the era of HIV. A series of 16 semi-structured interviews were conducted with unmarried young churchgoers from the Salvation Army, Protestant and Revival churches. The interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using discourse analysis. Five main discourses emerged: 'we are aware of the church message on sex', 'young men need sex', 'young women need money', 'to use or not to use condoms' and 'we trust in the church message'. Although all informants knew and heard church messages against premarital sex, many of them were sexually active. The perception was that young men were engaged in sexual activities with multiple partners as a result of sexual motivations surrounding masculinity and sexual potency, while young women sought multiple partners through transactional and intergenerational sex for economic reasons. These sexual practices of young people conflicted with church messages on sexual abstinence and faithfulness. However, a small number of participants challenged current gender norms and suggested alternative ways of being a man or a woman. To elucidate these alternatives, we suggest that church youths and church leaders might take concrete actions to deconstruct misconceptions about being men. In this way, they can possibly enhance a frank and fruitful dialogue on sex, sexuality and gender to promote positive masculinities and constructive partnerships to prevent HIV.

This paper focuses on teaching boys, male teachers and the question of gendered pedagogies in neoliberal and postfeminist times of the proliferation of new forms of capitalism, multi-mediated technologies and the influence of globalization. It illustrates how a politics of re-masculinization and its reconstitution needs to be understood as set against changing economic and social conditions in which gender equity comes to be re-focused on boys as the 'new disadvantaged'. This re-framing of gender equity, it is argued, has been fuelled by both a media-inspired backlash discourse about 'failing boys' and a neo-positivist emphasis on numbers derived primarily from standardized testing regimes at both global and national levels. A media-focused analysis of the proliferation of discourses about 'failing boys' vis-a-vis the problem of encroaching feminization in the school system is provided to illuminate how certain truths about the influence of male teachers come to define how the terms of ensuring gender equity are delimited and reduced to a question of gendered pedagogies as grounded in sexed bodies. Historical accounts of the feminization of teaching in the North American context are also provided as a basis for building a more informed understanding of the present, particularly as it relates to the contextualization of policy articulation and enactment regarding the problem of teaching boys. In light of such historically informed and critical media analysis, it is argued that what is needed is a more informed, evidenced based policy articulation of the problem of teaching boys and a more gender sensitive reflection on the politics of masculinities in postfeminist times. (DIPF/Orig.) ; Der einführende Beitrag [.] zum Themenschwerpunkt diskutiert die Frage nach Männlichkeitskonstruktionen in pädagogischen Institutionen vor dem Hintergrund der Diagnose grundlegender Transformationen von Geschlechterverhältnissen und Bildungssystemen im Zuge neoliberaler Ökonomisierung. In seinem Essay beschäftigt sich der Autor mit Remaskulinisierungen im Bildungssystem, die er sowohl mit dem Diskurs über 'Failing boys' als auch mit dem Hype um die aktuellen internationalen Vergleichsstudien in Verbindung bringt. Beide Diskurse fallen zusammen in der Forderung nach mehr männlichen Lehrpersonen, wie der Beitrag anhand internationaler Beispiele aufzeigt. Dabei verknüpfen sich neokonservative und neoliberale Positionen in einer Kritik an der Feminisierung von Schule, die zu dem schlechten Abschneiden von Jungen maßgeblich beitrage. Der Autor allerdings zeigt anhand international vergleichender und historischer Bezüge auf, dass nicht die Feminisierung der Schule, sondern problematische Männlichkeitskonzepte die Ursache des Problems ist und eine Remaskulinisierung genau diesem Vorschub leisten würde. (DIPF/Orig.)

Màster Oficial en Construcció i Representació d'Identitats Culturals (CRIC), Facultat de Filologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Any: 2014, Director: Dra. Cristina Alsina Rísquez ; In "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" the well-acclaimed Dominican-American writer Junot Díaz portrays the harrowing story of the de León family. A family, indeed, who manages to scrape out an existence in the United States after leaving the Dominican Republic as a direct consequence of a series of untimely tragedies, namely Trujillo's dictatorship or the fukú that both cursed and haunted the whole family –Beli's inability to feel love and her writhing in intense pain, Oscar's clumsiness at seducing women or Lola's aimless life attest for it. Thus, the de León family embodies the diasporic experience and the need to reshape their notion of Dominicanness accordingly. This consideration implies not only challenging the monolithic representation of Dominican identity, but also, and more importantly, coming to terms with the transcultural discourse of modernity. In such process roots and routes grapple with each other in an attempt at constructing a hyphenated identity. The analysis of diasporic identities in the novel includes, but is not limited to, political regeneration and agency, exploration of (diasporic) masculinity, sexual identity and cultural dissidence. Furthermore, the novel highlights the key role that political and sexual agency plays in this (re)construction of Dominicanness in that the accomplishment of the former enhances the achievement of the latter. So much so that the representation of the diaspora in the text succeeds in constituting itself as a tangible and alternative bodypolitics to former constraints, thus developing effective strategies of resistance so as to recover from the conflict that Trujillo's dictatorship entails. Memories of the Trujillato cannot get dimmer with each passing year and it is through fiction that a healing process comes true. This research aims to intertwine theories of postcoloniality and strategies of identity deconstruction with topics ranging from politics to diaspora or contesting – nearly subversive – masculinities in order to explore the so-called hyphenated identities and 'on the way' cultures in greater detail.

Contents: Preface: Older Men Learning in the Community – European Snapshots; Chapter 1: Introduction - Marvin Formosa, António Fragoso, Sabina Jelenc Krašovec, and Tiina Tambaum; Chapter 2: Older Men as Learners in the Community: Theoretical Issues - Marvin Formosa, António Fragoso, and Sabina Jelenc Krašovec; Chapter 3: Passing on Skills and Knowledge as Part of Learning for Older Men: Readiness and Obstacles among Older Men in the Municipality of Tartu - Tiina Tambaum and Helina Kuusk; Chapter 4: Older Men Learning Through Religious and Political Membership: Case Studies from Malta - Roberta Chetcuti Galea and Rosette Farrugia-Bonello; Chapter 5: Learning in Informal Spaces in the Community: A Case Study from Southern Portugal - Rute Ricardo, Nélia Tavares, Aurora Coelho, Hugo Lopes, and António Fragoso; Chapter 6: Older Men Learning in Urban and Rural Municipalities in Slovenia - Sabina Jelenc Krašovec, Marko Radovan, Špela Močilnikar, and Sabina Šegula; Chapter 7: Discussion and Conclusion - António Fragoso and Marvin Formosa; About the authors; Index of Authors; Subject Index. ; Preface: Older Men Learning in the Community – European Snapshots I am truly delighted to be asked to contribute this preface to what I regard as a very important and timely European contribution to the broad field of research on older men's learning in community settings. As an oft-quoted source in the field, it has seriously concerned me that more colleagues were not working in the field internationally to provide the critically important refutation, qualification, or validation of what many older men were reporting, and that my research was turning up in Australia half a world away. As Australian community men's sheds have taken root in culturally similar fertile ground in Ireland and the UK, I have wondered if things will turn out to be similar or different in the possible application of the same principles in more diverse and different cultural contexts in mainland Europe. This research provides some of the answers to this and many other important questions about men learning later in life. This set of excellently edited and carefully researched case studies by highly regarded researchers from Estonia, Malta, Portugal, and Slovenia, which they have modestly called 'snapshots,' is in fact a very important advance. By absolute coincidence, in our 'Discussion and Conclusion' (Chapter 16) in Men Learning through Life (Golding, Mark, and Foley (2014, p. 252), we also remarked that our seven 'national chapters are at best a partial snapshot and are far from representative of men's learning worldwide'. This work significantly widens the lens, both culturally and theoretically. The great value in this European book, excellently theorised and written in English, lies in part in the diverse backgrounds and theoretical depth of the 13 researchers who contribute chapters from countries whose national languages are not English. I first met and was enthused by the passion and expertise of Sabina Krašovec (from Slovenia) and António Fragoso (from Portugal) and other researchers from nations whose first language is not English at the 2009 ESREA (European Society for Research on the Education of Adults 'Education and Learning of Older Adults' (ELOA)) network meeting in Munich, Germany. I remain humbled by their linguistic dexterity, something most people like me, born in Australia (with the exception of Aboriginal Australians), do not share. Doing field research, writing, and assembling this painstakingly carefully researched book in English across four widely separated European nations, languages, and cultures is a notable achievement. Having access to literature and older men's cultural insights in at least five main languages (Slovenian, Portuguese, Estonian, and Maltese/English) expands our collective, recent 'snapshots' of men's learning to a very diverse and fascinating three dimensional, coloured picture. Veronica McGivney, a pioneer in the field on men's learning in England from two decades ago, remarked (in the preface of our Men Learning through Life) that this relatively unexplored field of research was a theoretical minefield, mainly because it raises questions about existing gender biases, not only in adult education practice, but also in terms of what constitutes an acceptable set of theoretical perspectives to bring to this much neglected field. It is gratifying, in a world increasingly plagued by narrowing, increasingly instrumental, neoliberal views about the highly desirable, emancipatory ideal of lifelong and lifewide learning, to find researchers bold enough to collectively declare at the outset that 'the neglect of masculinities in older adult learning can never be overstated.' ELOA ambitiously aims on its website 'to bring together research activities in this field [of older learning] on a European scale and to establish a regular interchange of researchers who work on these topics. By continuous exchange via internet and periodical network meetings the European collaboration in this field of educational research should be strengthened and common research projects and publications should be initiated.' 5 This research and book ably meet this laudable aim. The range of European contexts in which learning is examined in this book's national chapters and case studies further broaden the scope and cultural reach of research in this relatively new, interdisciplinary field. The Estonian and Slovenian examination of sharing knowledge, skills, and learning by older rural men has important resonances with some of our Australian research. The examination of politics and religion as vehicles for older men's learning in Malta breaks new and important ground, as does the nuanced examination of informal learning by older men in informal spaces in southern Portugal. The strongly stated theoretical issues and the carefully nuanced findings neatly bookend the volume that I highly recommend to those researchers, policy makers, professional and practitioners worldwide who interact with older men. I hope others take up the challenge of extending this thinking, research, and action into Asia, Africa, and the Americas, as well as into the diverse, other cultural 'nooks and crannies' across Europe. Finally, I am delighted, not because this gives recognition to the researchers, though this is warmly welcomed, but because excellent research like this can and does make a positive difference in the way we think about and treat older men. Research, in turn, can make huge differences in people's lives, as demonstrated by the men's sheds movement. There is a case for expanding this European snapshot of learning by older men in this volume to other groups similarly disadvantaged in accessing learning: by history, life circumstances, gender, income, language, culture, religion, or disability. It is a sobering reminder that we have to be very careful as academics, professionals, and practitioners not to get trapped into the dominant and potentially patronising discourse of clients, customers, patients, or students, particularly from ageist and deficit models of service provision which deny people agency. Older men are people with much knowledge and wisdom to share. Even from a narrow, economic-rationalist perspective, it makes sense to help all people to keep learning and looking after themselves, their families, children, and grandchildren for as long as they can. Professor Barry Golding, 2 April 2014 Faculty of Education and Arts, Federation University Australia Ballarat, Australia www.barrygoanna.com b.golding@federation.edu.au ; N/A

Käsityöläisten yrittäjäkulttuuri Itämeren alueen kaupungeissa 1350-1620 Väitöskirjassani tutkin käsityöläisten yrittäjäkulttuuria Itämeren alueen kaupungeissa myöhäiskeskiajalla ja uuden ajan alussa. Käsityötuotanto tapahtui kodin yhteydessä olevassa verstaassa ja se oli yleensä perheen yhteinen bisnes. Käsityöläiset olivat järjestäytyneet ammattialoittain ammattikuntiin, joilla jokaisella oli omat sääntönsä. Käsityöläisammattikunnat läpäisivät elämän jokaisen osa-alueen: ne hallitsivat työmarkkinoita, järjestivät ammatillista koulutusta, osallistuivat kaupungin sotilaalliseen puolustukseen, huolehtivat osaltaan oikeudenhoidosta ja monista hallinnollisista asioista, ylläpitivät kaupunkirauhaa, järjestivät köyhäinhoitoa, tarjosivat jäsenilleen sosiaalista yhdessäoloa sekä jopa mahdollisuuden uskonnollisen hartauden osoittamiseen pitämällä yllä alttareita kirkoissa. Ammattikuntien merkitys jokapäiväiselle elämälle oli kiistaton. Tutkimuksessa selvitän, mitkä olivat yrittäjäkulttuurin keskeisimmät elementit, arvot ja toimintatavat. Yrittäjäkulttuuria tarkastelen käsityöläisleskien kautta: mitkä olivat käsityöläisleskien mahdollisuudet jatkaa ammatissaan miehensä kuoltua ja käyttivätkö he näitä mahdollisuuksia hyödykseen. Tutkimus keskittyy Tukholman, Tallinnan, Riian ja Lyypekin kaupunkeihin noin vuosina 1350−1620. Aiemmassa tutkimuksessa tuon ajan yrittäjäkulttuuri ja ammattikuntalaitosjärjestelmä on nähty staattisena rakennelmana, joka ei pystynyt sopeutumaan muutoksiin ja joka vahvisti patriarkaalista yhteiskuntajärjestystä sekä pyrki rajoittamaan naisten työntekoa. Tutkimukseni haastaa tämän näkemyksen ja tarjoaa uudenlaisen tulkinnan. Sen mukaan ammattikunnat tarjosivat leskille useita mahdollisuuksia jatkaa perheyrityksen pyörittämistä miesmestarin kuoltua. Yleisin ammattikunnan tarjoamista mahdollisuuksista oli vuoden ja päivän aikaraja, jonka umpeuduttua lesken olisi luovuttava ammatistaan tai siirrettävä mestarinoikeudet pojalleen tai uudelle aviomiehelle. Monet lesket jatkoivat kuitenkin ammatissaan vuosia piittaamatta virallisista säädöksistä. Tämä todistaa, että lesket olivat kiinteä osa tuon ajan kaupunkien yrittäjäkulttuuria, eikä naisjohtoisia käsityöläisverstaita pidetty mitenkään outoina. Tutkimukseni myös paljasti, että oman edun tavoittelu meni usein ammattikunnan edun edelle, vaikka aikakausi on mielletty kollektiivisuuden ajaksi. Käsityöläisten yrittäjäkulttuuri olikin täynnä ristiriitoja: toisaalta pyrittiin takaamaan samat edut ja ammatinharjoittamisen edellytykset kaikille ammattikunnan jäsenille, mutta silti sosiaaliset erot ammattikunnan sisällä saattoivat olla suuret. Ammattikunnat harjoittivat myös voimakasta suojelupolitiikkaa, protektionismia, turvatakseen yhteiset edut. Toisaalta ne loivat hyvin joustavia käytäntöjä ja sääntöjä, jotka tarjosivat pelivaraa ja mahdollistivat kilpailun ammattikunnan sisällä. Kaikki nämä toimet tähtäsivät tuotannon jatkuvuuteen; mestarin sukupuoli oli toissijaista. Tutkimukseni tuo ilmi, että näinkin kaukainen yrittäjäkulttuuri piti sisällään paljon sellaisia elementtejä, jotka yleensä yhdistetään nykypäivän markkinatalousyhteiskuntiin eikä myöhäiskeskiajan ja uuden ajan alun talousjärjestelmiin. Väitöskirjani tarjoaa ensimmäistä kertaa laajan vertailevan tutkimuksen Itämeren alueen kaupunkien käsityöläiskulttuurista ja lesken asemasta. Lisäksi se yhdistää eri näkökulmia uudella tavalla, sillä hansakaupunkien käsityöläisiä ei aiemmin ole tarkasteltu yrittäjyyden, taloushistorian ja sukupuolihistorian näkökulmista. Tutkimukseni tarjoaa täysin uuden lähestymistavan hansa-alueen kaupunkihistoriaan, sillä aiempi hansatutkimus on keskittynyt lähinnä tarkastelemaan hansaliittoa taloudellisena ja poliittisena mahtina tai käsitellyt kauppiaita ja heidän verkostojaan. ; In this dissertation I study craft trade culture in late medieval and early modern cities bordering the Baltic Sea. Research focuses on four urban communities, namely on Stockholm, Tallinn, Riga, and Lübeck. In all these cities craftsfolk formed one fourth of the inhabitants as well as the so-called middle class of the citizens. Additionally, craft organizations penetrated all spehers of life in urban settlements: they dominated labour market, influenced town topography, organized military troops, took care of juridical and administrative tasks, organized professional training, and together with merchants governed the economic sector. In addition, crafts organized poor relief, free time, and some crafts even took care of religious and devotional activities. In this research craft trade is studied from economic and gender history viewpoints. Special emphasis is on the possibilities of artisan widows to continue their trade after their husband had died. This study provides for the first time an extensive comparison of craft trade culture in four Baltic Sea cities. Furthermore, it combines two perspectives, rarely applied together in the field of craft and guild studies. In addition, the study covers the time period of circa 1350−1620, hence transcending the usual boundaries between medieval and early modern era in historical research. The essential elements of craft trade culture are traced from three different angles. Firstly, the various urban organizations are examined, differentiated, and categorized. My hypothesis is that the possibilities of widows to carry on depended on the organization type. In previous research the various urban organizations, guilds, crafts, and devotional guilds or confraternities have not always been differentiated, which has led to misinterpretations about the position of women within these organizations. The categorization is based on my own innovation called tripartite classification. The tripartite classification is both a method of the study as well as a result of a wide-range comparison of the ordinances and statutes of the three organization types. Secondly, the opportunities of artisan widows and the meaning of widowhood in the context of craft trade are examined. Here the viewpoint changes from the organizations to the point of view of the craftsfolk and particularly of artisan widows. By adopting different roles, as mothers and managers of household workshops, widows challenged traditional gender roles. Thus, the widow perspective is fruitful because it helps us to examine how gender relationships were constructed in craft trade culture and what role gender played in it. The normative side is discussed by studying craft ordinances: what options and possibilities did craft ordinances give to widows to continue their trade. In previous research widows' rights articles have been seen as mere restrictions against women's work. I challenge previous research by arguing that widows' rights articles must be seen as opportunities, and hence widows' rights articles ensured legal protection for widows. Thirdly, craft trade culture is studied by taking a closer look at Lübeck. The everyday practice of craftsfolk is examined, with the help of narrative source material. In particular I ask how widows' right articles were applied in practice and what dispute situations can be observed. In addition, the work identity of craftswomen and craftsmen is examined. It is my hypothesis that in previous research gender hierarchies and the masculinity of artisanal world has been overemphasized. Using Lübeck as a case study I shall also examine the interaction between the city council, the crafts, and individual craft members. This is significant because it helps us to detect the dynamics within craft trade culture and how various actors negotiated on norms, rules, values, and their goals. In this study I use both normative source material, craft ordinances and records of the city council, as well as narrative sources, Lübeck petition letters. I have analysed all the preserved craft ordinances from the four cities which stem from the time period of 1350−1620. These 178 craft ordinances built the core of the study, thus they set the framework within which the narrative letters are analysed. The detailed Appendices at the end of the study list all the used craft ordinances, their editions, repository places, and archival signums. This combination of sources offers a good basis to study widows' opportunities in principle and in practice. Moreover, craft ordinances build the context in which the petition letters are analysed. Furthermore, the letters enable a deeper study of contemporary values and mentalities than the craft ordinances. Throughout the study quantitative, qualitative, and linguistic methods are used together with comparison, a case study, and tripartite classification mentioned above. The concept of craft trade culture is understood broadly meaning the system how handicraft production was organized; how various artisans within the same profession were organized into crafts; how craft ordinances regulated various aspects of production and the everyday life of the artisans. In addition, I consider craft trade culture to include a set of norms, values, and practices that guided individual craft members. Gender is understood as a cultural and social construction, which encompasses more than just the physical differences between biological sexes. Biological differences form the base but cultural and social norms and practices that define female and male work, duties, rights, and obligations are more important. An essential element of this social gender is that its definitions vary and change according to time and space. What is feminine and what is masculine can be defined differently in various geographical areas, cultures, social contexts, and religious confessions as well as in various times. Masculinities and femininities also vary according to other categories and attributes such as profession, social status, age, personal character, and marital status, and so forth. Work and particularly work conditions were one of the factors that created, enforced, or diminished gender roles. This study finds that craft trade culture in late medieval and early modern cities bordering the Baltic Sea was flexible and aimed for the continuation of production at several different levels. At the same time craft trade culture was a strongly protectionist culture. Furthermore, within this protectionism there existed elements, which are often used to characterize modern market economies – individual profit seeking and competition. Hence, the study reveals that craft trade culture was full of contradictions. Additionally, within craft trade culture other categories and aims outweighed the gender aspect. It was more important to ensure the continuation of production than fret over the gender of the master. Consequently, widows' rights articles in the craft ordinances were not means to restrict widows' and respectively women's work. Instead, widows' rights articles strove to secure the continuity of production and to protect craft trade production which was based on household workshops. Moreover, as we must abandon the bipolar notion of gender, we must also reject the dichotomy of comparing 'traditional societies' to societies with (free) market economy. The investigation conducted here reveals that craft trade culture was at the same time affected by the aims of the crafts to ensure equal premises and resources for all their members and a common well-being of its members as well as by the competition between craft members and self-interest. The majority of gender and economic historians have underlined the inflexibility of craft organizations arguing that this rigid system hindered the development of market and dynamic economy. However, the current study proves that craft trade culture was a flexible system that adapted to changing conditions and left room for negotiation. In this study I introduce a new approach and classification to urban organization called tripartite classification. According to it, three different organization types existed in late medieval and early modern towns bordering the Baltic Sea: professional crafts, composite artisan guilds and merchant guilds, and devotional organizations, which I call devotional guilds. The analysis in this study demonstrates that the organization type clearly affected not only female membership and widows' possibilities but other questions like political participation, military, and defence as well as religious participation. Craft ordinances granted widows five different possibilities to continue their trade. In previous research particularly the supporters of subordination theory have considered these widows' rights as restrictions. However, the findings of the current study do not support these notions. Widows took advantage of these possibilities and were aware of the rights granted to them in the craft ordinances. Despite the questions that widowhood raised among contemporaries, widows could run their workshops independently and/or with the help of their children and/or hired workforce. Some crafts considered widows capable of training apprentices and at least in some crafts widows participated in craft assemblies and festivities. Furthermore, the analysis of Lübeck petition letters exposes that some widows exceeded the customary time limit granted to them in craft ordinances and continued their trade for several years, even 19. This demonstrates that widows were an integral part of craft trade culture. Moreover, the main aim of craft organizations was not to restrict women's work but to ensure the continuity of craft production and economic welfare of its members.