The Unwritten Rules of History

Tag: gender

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Jewish Tradition on Rosh Hashanah

image of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Simmie Knox, under commission of the United States Supreme Court / Public domain

I was originally planning to write a blog post sharing the new interview that I did with Samantha Cutrara, on my research on Jewish women and cultural traditions, especially around food (more on this below). But I’ve also been troubled by the news coverage and responses to death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. So I ended up writing a Twitter thread, about it, and I decided to share what I wrote over here. Also because, for reasons(?), it got all out of order on Twitter.

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Teaching in Comfort and Style in Post-Secondary Education

Image of a wooden vintage shoe stretcher on a weathered dresser.

Special thanks to all of the people who took the time to answer my questions, including David Dolff, Samantha Cutrara, Tina Adcock, Sarah Van Vugt, Danielle Lorenz, Catherine Ulmer, Michelle-Kelly Hogan, Tarisa Dawn Little, Gillian Leitch, Krista McCracken, Claire Campbell, Maddie Knickerbocker, Wendy McElroy, Carol Lynn, Crystal Fraser, Ling Ling Ang, Anne Dance, Krystl Raven, Danielle Robinson, Vanessa McLeod, Shannon Stettner, Anne Marie Lane Jonah, Tarah Brookfield, Erin Millions, Aisha Wynter, Michelle Desveaux, Anne Janhunen, Mary Chaktsiris, Stephanie Pettigrew, Beth A. Robertson, Shirley Tillotson, Janis Thiessen, Linda Steer, Tracey Kinney, Blair Stein, Christine Corcos, Kesia Kvill, Jenny Leigh Smith, Katy Kole de Peralta, Elise Chenier, Caroline Durand, Laura Ishiguro, and Jennifer Hoyt. Extra special thanks to Sarah Van Vugt, Krystl Raven, Erin Millions, Kesia Kvill, Laura Ishiguro, Caroline Durand, and Krista McCracken for feedback on an earlier draft of this paper!

I recently put out a call on my Facebook page asking for recommendations for comfortable black dress shoes for someone who hates heels. Long story short, my old reliable black flats were dead, and the cobbler said they were too decrepit to even repair. Since I was going to be in Ottawa soon (more on this later), however, I needed to find something. I received a ton of awesome recommendations from friends of mine. They were so good in fact that I thought they deserved their own blog post.

When many of us first start teaching, clothing can be a fraught issue. We struggle to look professional while also still being comfortable. Lecturing involves a great deal more physical activity than many of us realize – standing on your feet for one to three hours takes its toll. Most classes also tend to be taught in older buildings, which don’t necessarily have air conditioning or heating, or even windows that open. So, in today’s blog post, I’m going to give you some great recommendations for teaching in comfort and style, from me and an awesome group of other educators. This isn’t necessarily a very original idea,  and there have even been some great blogs on the subject (RIP Academichic). However, most of these are American, and don’t really help us Canadians. Not only do we have different stores here, but Canadian classrooms have their own norms regarding dress. One important note: while most blog posts of this nature target women specifically (something I’ll deal with further on), I wanted to make sure that this specific post was inclusive of any and all genders. That is why I have divided it into clothing categories, rather than breaking things down by gender. And most importantly, while these are just some recommendations, I think it’s important to emphasize that you should wear what makes YOU feel comfortable and stylish. Enjoy!

As usual, one quick caveat: There continue to be significant variations by field and by country in what is considered appropriate dress. In my experience, Canada tends to be much more casual than the United States, particularly in the Humanities and Social Sciences. I can’t remember ever seeing a professor wearing a suit to class. For the most part, people tend to go with variations on business casual. Those in Fine Arts tend to have more leeway in terms of creativity, while those in Law tend to dress more conservatively in suits or dresses. However, this will of course vary from institution to institution, and depend to a large extent on campus culture.

Finally, as one commentator noted, in the vast majority of cases, it is important to remember that it is never ok to talk about another person’s body, appearance, or clothing choices, no matter the circumstances. Even well-intentioned and seemingly-innocent remarks can be problematic, misread, and can make folks feel uncomfortable. It is equally important not to police other people’s clothing choices according to what you feel is acceptable. We could all use a little more kindness in our world, and it’s always ok to compliment someone on a nice outfit. But it is also our responsibility to do the work necessary to make everyone feel included and safe. Or, in the immortal words of Etsy, be kind, be brave, and be strong.

 

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Guest Post: Rosie the Riveter and Ronnie the Bren Gun Girl: Exploring the Historical Roots of a Gendered Visual Symbol

Note from Andrea: Today we have our second of two special guest posts, and this week’s author should be familiar: Sarah Van Vugt! You may remember her from her interview in a previous edition of Historians’ Histories.  Enjoy!

 


On Rosies, Past and Present

Rose Lip Balm

Image from author.

When it comes to North American symbols of feminism, few outrank Rosie the Riveter in ubiquity and popularity. Although Rosie imagery dates from the Second World War, it’s still extremely potent and recognizable. Today, when you mention Rosie, most people think of artist J. Howard Miller’s “We Can Do It!” poster, designed to hang briefly in Westinghouse factories, and featuring a beautiful woman in a uniform, sleeves rolled up, arm raised, fist clenched. There’s ample evidence that this particular Rosie image is both familiar and constantly being reinvented. For example, on any given day, check out #wecandoit on Instagram, and you’re guaranteed to see many examples of people posing as Rosie, dressed up as Rosie, taking her iconic stance or wearing something that evokes Rosie, like her signature red and white polka dot bandana. There are also many consumer products featuring the image, like this lip balm I recently received as a gift.

 

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What’s in my Kitchen: Montreal Jewish Cookbooks, 1950-1970

My mother's meatball recipe.

My mother’s meatball recipe.

When most people think about Jewish holidays, the first one that often comes to mind is Chanukah. Which is kind of funny since it’s actually a really minor holiday that has been blown out of proportion to keep up with Christmas (there are few things as depressing as being Jewish during Christmas). However, the most important Jewish religious holiday is actually Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Since Rosh Hashanah starts on October 2nd, and my research concentrates on the history of Jews in Montreal, I though this was a great opportunity to do another edition of “What’s in My…” featuring the most ubiquitous Jewish-Canadian cookbook of all time, A Treasure for my Daughter. Strap yourselves in – it’s going to be a wild ride.

 

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What’s in My Book Bag: Rural Schools in Saskatchewan 1941-1943

What's in my Bag: Rural Schools, Saskatchewan, 1941-1943

Welcome back to another edition of “What’s in My ____?,” the series that uses material culture to take a snapshot of a moment in time. Find out about the inspiration behind the series and read the first blog post by going here.

Today’s blog post was inspired by the picture you see at the top of the page, which is an image of a child’s book bag from the early 1940s. The photo comes from the Virtual Museum exhibit on rural schools created by the Assiniboia and District Museum, located in southern Saskatchewan. As soon as I saw this picture, I knew that I had to write a blog post about it!

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