Routledge - Gender and the Garden in Early Modern Literature

Explore how gardening practices in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century England transformed social structures and gender roles. This study by Routledge examines the radical changes in how gardens were used, moving from a practical means of feeding a family to an aesthetic object used to signal status. While previous research has looked at how middle-class men used gardens for social mobility, this book fills a gap by looking at the gendering of the garden. It investigates the tensions that arose as gardening shifted from a domestic necessity to a tool for social advancement. This work provides a new perspective on the social functions of the garden and the opportunities it created for both men and women during the early modern period.