Search

In 1895 nine American heiresses travelled across the Atlantic and bagged themselves husbands and titles. Though this phenomena had been happening for many years, 1895 was undoubtedly the most successful one for the unofficial marriage brokers Lady Minnie Paget and Consuelo Yzanga, Duchess of Windsor. For the English gentlemen the girls married it was a way to sustain their land, houses and all of the trappings of aristocracy. For the girls, who came from new money and were therefore not part of the American social elite, marriage was a means to obtaining the social prestige they craved. The Transatlantic Marriage Bureau will romp through the year to tell the story of these nine women – the seasons, the parties, the money and the titles - always with one eye on the remarkable women who made it happen behind the scenes.

Der Inselstaat Samoa, die »Perle der Südsee«, ruft Assoziationen vom »Mythos Südsee« und paradiesischen Inselwelten hervor. Dabei war die Inselgruppe im Südpazifik an der Wende vom 19. zum 20. Jahrhundert ein hochpolitischer Schauplatz: Gleich drei Kolonialmächte erhoben Ansprüche auf die Inseln. Wie gestaltete sich in diesem Spannungsfeld der Diskurs in zeitgenössischen Reiseberichten? Welche Argumentationslinien zeichnen sich ab? Und welche Funktionen hatten diese? In ihrer historischen Diskursanalyse zieht Gabriele Förderer erstmals Reiseberichte deutscher, englischer und US-amerikanischer Akteur_innen heran und skizziert so ein differenziertes und hoch ambivalentes Bild der Darstellungen Samoas.

This comprehensive and beautifully illustrated collection of essays conveys a vivid picture of a fascinating and hugely significant period in history, the Fin de Siècle. Featuring contributions from over forty international scholars, this book takes a thematic approach to a period of huge upheaval across all walks of life, and is truly innovative in examining the Fin de Siècle from a global perspective. The volume includes pathbreaking essays on how the period was experienced not only in Europe and North America, but also in China, Japan, the Middle East, Latin America, Africa, India, and elsewhere across the globe. Thematic topics covered include new concepts of time and space, globalization, the city, and new political movements including nationalism, the'New Liberalism', and socialism and communism. The volume also looks at the development of mass media over this period and emerging trends in culture, such as advertising and consumption, film and publishing, as well as the technological and scientific changes that shaped the world at the turn of the nineteenth century, such as the invention of the telephone, new transport systems, eugenics and physics. The Fin-de-Siècle World also considers issues such as selfhood through chapters looking at gender, sexuality, adolescence, race and class, and considers the importance of different religions, both old and new, at the turn of the century. Finally the volume examines significant and emerging trends in art, music and literature alongside movements such as realism and aestheticism. This volume conveys a vivid picture of how politics, religion, popular and artistic culture, social practices and scientific endeavours fitted together in an exciting world of change. It will be invaluable reading for all students and scholars of the Fin-de-Siècle period.