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Selling love
Descriptive
TypeOfResource
Text
TitleInfo
(ID = T-1)
Title
Selling love
SubTitle
the commercialization of intimacy in America, 1860s-1900s
Identifier
ETD_2974
Identifier
(type = hdl)
http://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.1/rucore10001600001.ETD.000056319
Language
LanguageTerm
(authority = ISO639-2);
(type = code)
eng
Genre
(authority = marcgt)
theses
Subject
(ID = SBJ-1);
(authority = RUETD)
Topic
History
Subject
(ID = SBJ-2);
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Personals--United States--History--19th century
Subject
(ID = SBJ-3);
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Personals--Illinois--Chicago--History--19th century--Case studies
Subject
(ID = SBJ-4);
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Personals--New York (State)--New York--History--19th century--Case studies
Subject
(ID = SBJ-5);
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Intimacy (Psychology)
Subject
(ID = SBJ-6);
(authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Man-woman relationships--United States--History--19th century
Abstract
(type = abstract)
This dissertation uses nineteenth-century personal advertisements to analyze how people created connections in an era of rapid urbanization and commercialization. It analyzes the effect of the market economy, urban growth on intimate relationships, as
well as the integration of personal lives into broader society. It centers around the idea of “public intimacy”; that is, the process through which certain Americans – mostly the urban middle class – forged private relationships within the public eye. Doing so allows
insight on nineteenth- and early-twentieth century attitudes toward love, marriage, and sexuality in an increasingly anonymous, urban world. Personal columns at first held the promise of an almost utopian space, in which strangers could experiment with creating new personas, determining their own value, and forming and maintaining relationships. The ads offered freedom, but at the same time, forced users to perform their lives in front of an eager and engaged newspaper audience. The ads gave insight into the lives of neighbors, helping people better understand and adapt to large, anonymous cities. After the turn of the century, however, personals were co-opted by entrepreneurs who used the ads for their own gain. Ads from fraudulent matrimonial agencies offered easy wealth through marriage, while at the same time brothels and prostitutes began using the columns, cloaking their ads under the guise of massage parlors and matrimonials. Personals fell victim to commercialization; what had been a place that catered to individuals seeking connections in the market became a venue for people selling love, money, and sex. Until now, personal advertisements have been an entirely unexplored set of sources. This dissertation draws upon thousands of ads from papers all over the country, especially in New York City. In addition, it uses case studies in Chicago and New York to analyze the themes in this project more closely. In the process, it has traced some of the evolutions in American beliefs about the divide between public and private, the
institution of marriage, and how the growing market economy affected these ideas. Finally, it moves forward to compare the early history of personals to the growth of
online dating today.
well as the integration of personal lives into broader society. It centers around the idea of “public intimacy”; that is, the process through which certain Americans – mostly the urban middle class – forged private relationships within the public eye. Doing so allows
insight on nineteenth- and early-twentieth century attitudes toward love, marriage, and sexuality in an increasingly anonymous, urban world. Personal columns at first held the promise of an almost utopian space, in which strangers could experiment with creating new personas, determining their own value, and forming and maintaining relationships. The ads offered freedom, but at the same time, forced users to perform their lives in front of an eager and engaged newspaper audience. The ads gave insight into the lives of neighbors, helping people better understand and adapt to large, anonymous cities. After the turn of the century, however, personals were co-opted by entrepreneurs who used the ads for their own gain. Ads from fraudulent matrimonial agencies offered easy wealth through marriage, while at the same time brothels and prostitutes began using the columns, cloaking their ads under the guise of massage parlors and matrimonials. Personals fell victim to commercialization; what had been a place that catered to individuals seeking connections in the market became a venue for people selling love, money, and sex. Until now, personal advertisements have been an entirely unexplored set of sources. This dissertation draws upon thousands of ads from papers all over the country, especially in New York City. In addition, it uses case studies in Chicago and New York to analyze the themes in this project more closely. In the process, it has traced some of the evolutions in American beliefs about the divide between public and private, the
institution of marriage, and how the growing market economy affected these ideas. Finally, it moves forward to compare the early history of personals to the growth of
online dating today.
PhysicalDescription
Form
(authority = gmd)
electronic resource
Extent
vi, 213 p.
InternetMediaType
application/pdf
InternetMediaType
text/xml
Note
Supplementary File: Title and Abstract
Note
(type = degree)
Ph.D.
Note
(type = bibliography)
Includes bibliographical references
Note
(type = vita)
Includes vita
Note
(type = statement of responsibility)
by Pamela Ilyse Epstein
Name
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(type = family)
Epstein
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Pamela Ilyse
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1977-
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author
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Pamela Epstein
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Lears
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T.J. Jackson
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chair
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Advisory Committee
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T.J. Jackson Lears
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(type = personal)
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(type = family)
Fabian
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Ann
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internal member
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Advisory Committee
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Ann Fabian
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Isenberg
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Alison
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internal member
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Alison Isenberg
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Bailey
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Beth
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outside member
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Advisory Committee
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Beth Bailey
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NamePart
Rutgers University
Role
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degree grantor
Name
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Graduate School - New Brunswick
Role
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(authority = RULIB)
school
OriginInfo
DateCreated
(qualifier = exact)
2010
DateOther
(qualifier = exact);
(type = degree)
2010-10
Place
PlaceTerm
(type = code)
xx
RelatedItem
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TitleInfo
Title
Rutgers University Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Identifier
(type = RULIB)
ETD
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(type = host)
TitleInfo
Title
Graduate School - New Brunswick Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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rucore19991600001
Location
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(displayLabel = Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey)
NjNbRU
Identifier
(type = doi)
doi:10.7282/T3251HZK
Genre
(authority = ExL-Esploro)
ETD doctoral
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Rights
RightsDeclaration
(AUTHORITY = GS);
(ID = rulibRdec0006)
The author owns the copyright to this work.
Copyright
Status
Copyright protected
Availability
Status
Open
Reason
Permission or license
RightsHolder
(ID = PRH-1);
(type = personal)
Name
FamilyName
Epstein
GivenName
Pamela
Role
Copyright Holder
RightsEvent
(ID = RE-1);
(AUTHORITY = rulib)
Type
Permission or license
DateTime
2010-09-30 20:59:34
AssociatedEntity
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(AUTHORITY = rulib)
Role
Copyright holder
Name
Pamela Epstein
Affiliation
Rutgers University. Graduate School - New Brunswick
AssociatedObject
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(AUTHORITY = rulib)
Type
License
Name
Author Agreement License
Detail
I hereby grant to the Rutgers University Libraries and to my school the non-exclusive right to archive, reproduce and distribute my thesis or dissertation, in whole or in part, and/or my abstract, in whole or in part, in and from an electronic format, subject to the release date subsequently stipulated in this submittal form and approved by my school. I represent and stipulate that the thesis or dissertation and its abstract are my original work, that they do not infringe or violate any rights of others, and that I make these grants as the sole owner of the rights to my thesis or dissertation and its abstract. I represent that I have obtained written permissions, when necessary, from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis or dissertation and will supply copies of such upon request by my school. I acknowledge that RU ETD and my school will not distribute my thesis or dissertation or its abstract if, in their reasonable judgment, they believe all such rights have not been secured. I acknowledge that I retain ownership rights to the copyright of my work. I also retain the right to use all or part of this thesis or dissertation in future works, such as articles or books.
RightsEvent
(ID = RE-2);
(AUTHORITY = rulib)
Type
Embargo
DateTime
2010-10-31
Detail
Access to this PDF has been restricted at the author's request. It will be publicly available after October 31st, 2011.
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