Seeking papers that address early modern women’s sense of political identity. In Sociable Letters (1664), Margaret Cavendish proposes that if women “be not Citizens in the Commonwealth, I know no reason we should be Subjects to the Commonwealth.” This panel addresses the question of the conditions of early modern women’s political allegiance. Under what conditions did early modern women self-identify as political subjects of a nation? How does the allegiance to family and kinship networks intersect with the political for early modern women? To what extent do transnational interests conflict with (or intersect or override) national or familial determinants of identity and allegiance? We are interested in papers that address early modern women’s political identity from a range of perspectives and representations, including, but not limited to art, literature, autobiographical writings, and historical records pertaining to the early modern period (1500 to 1700).

This panel is being proposed for the annual conference of the Canadian Society for Renaissance Studies / Société Canadienne d’études de la Renaissance to be held in Calgary, Alberta, May 28, 29, and 30, 2016. Please submit proposals (about 150-200 words in length) together with a brief bio to both organizers: Margaret Reeves at margaret.reeves@ubc.ca and Joanne Wright at jwright@unb.ca by December 15, 2015.