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Swiss Maid corrects the omission of women from historical narratives of Switzerland. Women helped with herculean effort in the formation of the small but extraordinary nation, known for its political neutrality and stability, fierce independency, multiculturalism, successful economy, and innovation. The author's investigation and analysis of women's work in Switzerland correlates women's contributions with the country's sociopolitical and economic successes. Women have made historic change in religious institutions, domestic life, artisanry and trade, education, care work, the military, politics, industry and business, and service sectors. Chapters present the qualitative and quantitative data necessary to establish socioeconomic arguments. Women have indirectly contributed to the GNP but more importantly to social progress and the well-being of the nation. Stories of exemplary, pioneering women are highlighted, but silent and silenced common women are also featured and finally recognized. Although Judeo-Christian traditions placed women in subservient positions, they developed their own strength and contributed to the national economy. However, women's work was not sufficiently recognized and valued because of inadequate accounting and productivity models. Gender-specific education, division of labor, and gendered social structures of previous centuries are discussed in relation to women's productivity and social changes in more recent times. Multifactor productivity concepts and social progress measurements shed light on the value of women's work and care. Portraits of historical and contemporary women attest to their intrepid courage and extraordinary yield, without which the "Swiss brand" and the image of Switzerland could not flourish.
List of contents
List of Illustrations - List of Abbreviations - Acknowledgments - Foreword - Preface - In Search of Women in Swiss History - Women and Religion: Serving God and His/Her People - The Power and Strength of the Swiss Domestic Realm - The Work of Wives of Farmers and Artisans - The Education of Swiss Women and Women in Education - Women in Early Swiss Industries - Women Serving in the Swiss Army-"The Women's Auxiliary Service" - The Politics of Women Leading to Women in Politics - Caring for the Sick and Healing the Nation - Women in the Modern Service Sectors - Female Entrepreneurs and Modern CEOs - Swiss Feminist Economics - Conclusion - Appendix - Bibliography
About the author
Margrit V. Zinggeler (PhD, University of Minnesota) is a professor of German at Eastern Michigan University (EMU). She has published four books related to Switzerland as well as textbooks on German grammar and phonology. Her research has been supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation and EMU. She has received several awards for excellence in teaching.
Report
«[The authors] weaves this unique perspective of growing up in a small rural town in Switzerland and eventually living in the US throughout her new book, Swiss Maid: The Untold Story of Women's Contributions to Switzerland's Success. Swiss Maid tells the stories of the invisible, silent, and silenced women [...].»
(Jessica Davis Plüss, www.swissinfo.ch)
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