Sport and the Physical Emancipation of English Women

First published in 1988. This study can be situated within the history of women, women's education, women's rights, sport, leisure and recreation. Its aim is not to establish or submit to review what is known or thought to be known about the Victorian world-view and woman's place within it, but rather to investigate reactions against this view and the emergence of a counter-view through sport and exercise. An attempt is made to rescue the English sportswoman from the obscuring mists of the past, to discuss her as a transitional figure between opposing views of womanhood and to place her within the context of the general movement for the emancipation of women as an important effect and cause - without necessarily assuming what women's status in sport and in society should have been.

Preface 1. Introduction 2. The 'Lady Blue': Sport and Exercise at Oxbridge Women's Colleges 3. Sport, Exercise and the Public Schools Phenomenon 4. The Rise of the Physical Training Mistress 5. For the Sake of the Team: Hockey, Lacrosse and Cricket 6. Individual Sports: Lawn Tennis, Golf and Cycling 7. The Medical and Scientific Debate on Women's Sport 8. Women's Sport and Dress Reform 9. The Literature of Women's Sport 10. Conclusion