Browsing by Author "Posel, Rosalind."

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Entering the teaching profession as a woman : some student perceptions.
(1992) Shepherd, Maryna Bell.; Moller, Valerie.; Morrell, Robert Graham.; Posel, Rosalind.
The overall aim of this research is to probe, and attempt an understanding of, women student teachers' choice of teaching as a career. Because of various limitations, this research is no more than an exploratory study, which, hopefully may contribute to a deeper appreciation of teaching as a worthy career. This researcher's own feminist perspective has determined the questions asked in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative research was undertaken, in order to answer the central question of this research: How do some women students at Edgewood College of Education perceive the teaching profession and their role in it? It became obvious that teaching is perceived by too many as a short term job, rather than as a long-term career; but when circumstances governing teachers' employment, coupled with the influences of a patriarchal society are considered, this perception is perhaps not unexpected. Some tentative recommendations are offered to counter this negative perception of teaching as a convenient, but temporary job for women.
Gender and the political economy of health and health care of women with reference to African women in the Natal/Zululand region.
(1990) Dyer, Claire.; Posel, Rosalind.
The purpose of this thesis is two-fold: it attempts to develop a feminist theory of health and health care of women and moves beyond the political economy theory of health and health care grounded in Marxist principles. Secondly, it attempts to apply these feminist theoretical principles, incorporating the methodology of historical materialism, to a specific historical situation - that of African women in Natal/Zululand in the nineteenth century. The thesis is divided into three parts. The first provides an overview of the political economy of health and the Marxist theory on which it is based. The second section deals specifically with feminist theoretical concerns: particularly the need to incorporate the concept of gender and the sexual division of labour into analysis of the position of women in society. In addition, it focusses on women's particular health needs and attempts to incorporate these into a feminist theory of health and health care. The third part examines the health and health care of African women in pre-colonial Natal/Zululand by focussing on their role in procreation and production, and changing health patterns and health care under colonial rule.
The idea of a hermeneutic of history.
(1982) Posel, Rosalind.; Horton, Weldon J.; Stofberg, J. A.
Constantly confronted by history, man has what may be termed a natural impulse to make sense of the past. And indeed, the past cannot be understood without also understanding the present. Thus that fundamental historical impulse is profoundly philosophical in the Socratic sense. It is because hermeneutics explicitly identifies itself with the Socratic tradition, that my attempt to elucidate the nature of written history as an academic discipline has been located within a hermeneutic point of view. In the course of this thesis I refer to several major debates in social theory. However, I make no pretense at covering these debates fully. They are cited insofar as they bear on issues arising in the development of the idea of a hermeneutic of history.
Ideal, reality and opposition : white women in Durban, 1900- 1920.
(1991) Noble, Kerryn.; Posel, Rosalind.
In 1900 Durban's white' society closely resembled its British counterpart. As in Britain an ideal of womanhood encompassed various generalisations concerning woman's true nature and purpose. Women were upheld as pure, chaste nurturers, and homemakers. In order that they might remain so fufil their destiny as wives and mothers, women were expected to remain in the private sphere, protected and supported by bread-winning husbands and fathers. Reality did not conform to the ideal Not all women were happy or satisfied by marriage and motherhood Large numbers of women were neither supported nor protected but forced to enter the public sphere, finding employment to secure a livelihood. They faced discrimination within an ideology which admitted them to the labour force under sufferance Women's work' was poorly paid, of low status and offered little opportunity for advancement. For these and other reasons some women became prostitutes . The prostitution issue was extremely controversial in the period under discussion. Ambiguities and contradictions inherent in the ideology of sexuality were revealed, as were various attempts to cope with these issues. Prostitutes were exploited sexually but this exploitation was at least lucrative. Continental womed probably earned more money in a year than a housewife, cleaner or factory 'drudge' ever saw in thei r lives . Many women therefore chose to go beyond the pale of society . Women resisted constraints placed upon them in a number of ways: they refused offers of marriage (supposedly their highest attainment); they left their husbands; they attempted to learn about and obtain forms of contraception, in direct opposition to the ideology of motherhood; they risked abortion despite the possibiIity of death, injury, prosecution or societal ostracism. Women attempted to improve their wages, working conditions and status. During the Great War' some of their ambi tions were real ised though most concessions gained were lost by 1920. Most of Durban women's organisations (all middle-class) accepted and were reflective of the ideals held by society. The Women's Enfranchisement League however, though working within the ideology of the time, challenged women's relegation to the private sphere.
Indian women in politics from 1946 to 1963 : a focus on the Transvaal.
(1996) Goolab, Champa.; Posel, Rosalind.
No abstract available.
An investigation of gender discrimination against South African women educators of Indian descent.
(1991) Pahliney, Kethamonie.; Posel, Rosalind.; Morrell, Robert Graham.
Claims of gender discrimination by women educators in South Africa were investigated through an examination of specific issues surrounding the employment of women educators of Indian descent. These include maternity leave, housing subsidy, pension scheme, medical aid, salaries, merit awards and promotions. The study is located within the context of the general oppression of all women in society. The analysis used the sexual division of labour as its central focus. Since the subjects under investigation were members of a minority ethnic group, factors such as their cultural heritage, race, and class difference were considered an integral part of the analysis. The study assessed the validity of each of the claims of discrimination through an examination of official documentation such as the Principal's Handbook and staff circulars relating to teachers' conditions of service, regulations and occupational incentives. Wherever possible, the claims were empirically examined through an analysis of the responses obtained from a sample of educators. Cross-tabulations and Chi-square analyses were used to test the claims statistically. Participation in a union as a possible organising strategy for women educators in their challenge of gender discrimination is suggested. A list of recommendations for the amelioration of gender discrimination against women educators is presented at the end of the study.
Man's end in Aristotle’s ethics.
(1975) Posel, Rosalind.; Conradie, A. L.
Abstract available in PDF.
We are so poor : an investigation into the lives of ten women living in an informal area in the Durban Functional Region with particular reference to the role of domestic fuels.
(1992) Annecke, Wendy Jill.; Posel, Rosalind.
This dissertation explores the texture of women's lives in an urban informal area, with the particular aim of highlighting their use of domestic energies in the absence of their access to electricity. The investigation into domestic fuel usage is situated within the context of other basic needs: shelter, water and food and the acquisition of these. Each is separately explored. The domestic fuel sources used by the women were primarily paraffin and candles. The dissertation argues that there is no simple equation between household income and fuel purchase but that the acquisition of food and fuel are mutually dependent and contingent upon a complex set of variables which include the perceived physical and emotional well-being of the woman and her household. Furthermore the dissertation argues that given the extent of informal settlements and poverty nationally, candles and paraffin are likely to continue to be extensively used in the future. despite their disadvantages and the desirability of electricity. The dissertation submits that the reasons for this pertain to the accessibility and relative affordability of paraffin to households whose buying power is constrained as much by the form in which their income is derived as by its inadequacy. These arguments are elucidated through case studies of ten women who live in non-electrified homes in Canaan. The women concerned monitored their consumption of and expenditure on water, food, and fuel for a month, and met once a week as a group while they were doing so. Finally the dissertation suggests that national energy planners should take into account the manner in which women perceive and manage their housekeeping roles, particularly cooking, as well as the form in which household income is derived in order to determine strategies and energy policies which would would be women-friendly and support the needs of the extensive numbers of impoverished households in South Africa.