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ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8020-610X
Date of Graduation
5-7-2020
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Department of History
Advisor(s)
Evan Friss
Kevin Borg
Rebecca Brannon
Abstract
The historical analysis of poverty has lain silent for nearly two decades, with only recent authors, such as Nancy Isenberg and Kerri Leigh Merritt, broaching the topic. While several others have taken a deep dive into understanding the causes and effects of contemporary poverty, it seems to me a great deal has yet to be written on the identity of those impoverished and their active endeavors to define themselves in economic circumstances largely beyond their control. Until we truly explore the complexity of economic dearth and its relation to collective identity, we cannot fully understand the topic of “poverty.”
In this way, poverty is a very complex topic, as it cannot ever truly be reduced to a discussion of those immediately affected by want and its causes. It requires one to understand perceptions of the impoverished, how these perceptions informed the identity of the poor, and how the poor interacted with members outside and within their immediate social group. In reality, poverty is a messy subject, but one that deserves attention. Thus, through this analysis of poverty in antebellum Rockingham County, I hope to illustrate the many indivisible connections of race, class, and gender in the construction of perceptions and responses to poverty.
Recommended Citation
Heslin, Kayla, "Perceptions and identity: Poverty in 19th century Rockingham County" (2020). Masters Theses, 2020-current. 1.
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/masters202029/1
Included in
African American Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, Genealogy Commons, History of Gender Commons, Labor History Commons, Other History Commons, Public History Commons
