Live and Let Live; or Domestic Service Illustrated
by [Sedgwick, Catharine Maria]
- Used
- near fine
- first
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Seller
-
Pasadena, California, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Harper & Brothers, 1837. First edition. Near Fine. BAL second state, without the period following the word Illustrated on the title page. Original green publisher's cloth binding with gilt to spine. Some rubbing to extremities and boards. In all square and sound. Small stains to front endpapers. Early ownership signature to header of title. With less foxing than typical. Collating viii, 9-216, 16: complete, retaining publisher's catalogue to rear. With one appearance at auction in the last 45 years and no other copies on the market, this important work depicting the experiences of American working-class women has become quite scarce.
"As the United States was finding a national identity, writers of the time were creating a distinctive American literature. Catherine Maria Sedgwick was a novelist who contributed greatly to the new American writing of this age" (Wolfanger). Unafraid of using her platform for social reform, Sedgwick tackled uncomfortable questions about the U.S.' founding principles; and her work exposed how the problematic systems these principles perpetuated affected women. In Live and Let Live, Sedgwick is particularly concerned about the unethical, dangerous, and inhumane conditions often faced by working women. Following the protagonist Lucy as she enters domestic service, readers witness practices not unfamiliar today -- the manipulation of immigrant workers, the demand for additional labor without additional pay, the exposure to harassment. What Lucy witnesses and experiences is more than a simple critique of the system. It is a call to action for readers, and female readers specifically, to make positive change in their own behaviors. After all, Sedgwick recognized that the majority of her readers would be women, and that her task was to get them to sympathize with the working class and not the elite characters. "To my young Countrywomen -- The future ministers of the charities of home, this volume is dedicated," she begins the book. Continuing, "the writer of the following pages begs her readers will have the kindness to remember that her business has been to illustrate the failures of one party in the contract between employers and employed...I shall be satisfied if it rouses more active minds than mine to reflect upon the duties and capabilities of mistresses of families; if it quicken some sleeping consciences; if it make any feel their duties and obligations to their 'inferiors in position.'"
BAL17373. Feminist Companion 962. Near Fine.
"As the United States was finding a national identity, writers of the time were creating a distinctive American literature. Catherine Maria Sedgwick was a novelist who contributed greatly to the new American writing of this age" (Wolfanger). Unafraid of using her platform for social reform, Sedgwick tackled uncomfortable questions about the U.S.' founding principles; and her work exposed how the problematic systems these principles perpetuated affected women. In Live and Let Live, Sedgwick is particularly concerned about the unethical, dangerous, and inhumane conditions often faced by working women. Following the protagonist Lucy as she enters domestic service, readers witness practices not unfamiliar today -- the manipulation of immigrant workers, the demand for additional labor without additional pay, the exposure to harassment. What Lucy witnesses and experiences is more than a simple critique of the system. It is a call to action for readers, and female readers specifically, to make positive change in their own behaviors. After all, Sedgwick recognized that the majority of her readers would be women, and that her task was to get them to sympathize with the working class and not the elite characters. "To my young Countrywomen -- The future ministers of the charities of home, this volume is dedicated," she begins the book. Continuing, "the writer of the following pages begs her readers will have the kindness to remember that her business has been to illustrate the failures of one party in the contract between employers and employed...I shall be satisfied if it rouses more active minds than mine to reflect upon the duties and capabilities of mistresses of families; if it quicken some sleeping consciences; if it make any feel their duties and obligations to their 'inferiors in position.'"
BAL17373. Feminist Companion 962. Near Fine.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Whitmore Rare Books (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 3944
- Title
- Live and Let Live; or Domestic Service Illustrated
- Author
- [Sedgwick, Catharine Maria]
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First edition
- Publisher
- Harper & Brothers
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1837
Terms of Sale
Whitmore Rare Books
15 day return guarantee, with full refund if an item arrives damaged or not matching the description.
About the Seller
Whitmore Rare Books
Biblio member since 2009
Pasadena, California
About Whitmore Rare Books
We operate a retail shop in "Old Town" Pasadena open normal business hours Tuesday through Saturday.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Second State
- used in book collecting to refer to a first edition, but after some change has been made in the printing, such as a correction,...
- Title Page
- A page at the front of a book which may contain the title of the book, any subtitles, the authors, contributors, editors, the...
- Rubbing
- Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Publisher's cloth
- A hardcover book comprised of cloth over hard pasteboard boards. ...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- BAL
- Bibliography of American Literature (commonly abbreviated as BAL in descriptions) is the quintessential reference work for any...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...