Viktorya Dönemi İngiltere'sinde Kadın Bedeni Politikaları ve Kadınların Spora Katılımı

Viktorya Dönemi İngilteresi adını döneme veren Kraliçe Viktoryanın büyük etkisiyle kadın-merkezlidir. Kadın bedeni kavramı sadece İncilin öğretileri doğrultusunda değil kraliçenin kendisiyle de alakalı olarak gelişmiş ve tartışılmıştır. Önemi İncilde vurgulanan bekâret kavramı ile birlikte dönem süresince, özellikle kraliçenin kendisinin anne olmasıyla birlikte düşünülen, kadına atfedilen eş ve anne olma rolleri muhafazakâr ve katı cinsiyet rollerine dayanan kadın bedeni kavramının gelişmesine yol açmıştır. Bu kadınlık kavramı esasen kökleri Hıristiyanlık kaidelerine dayanan Ortaçağa ait kadınlık anlayışından gelmektedir. Bu bağlamda, bu makale Ortaçağda kadın bedeni kavramının oluşmaya başlamasını ve Viktorya Dönemi İngilteresinde beden politikasına dönüşmesini incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Tartışma, sözü edilen dönemdeki kadın bedeni kavramının daha iyi anlaşılabilmesi amacıyla, Viktorya Döneminde kadınların katılımının kabul gördüğü çeşitli spor aktivitilerinin incelenmesi ile genişletilmiştir.

Women Body Politics and Women Sport Participation in Victorian England

Victorian England was a female-oriented period under the great influence of Queen Victoria who gave her name to the whole period. The concept of female body was developed and discussed not only in relation to the teachings of the Bible but also the Queen herself. The idea of virginity, the significance of which had been highlighted in the Bible, in addition to the wifely and the maternal roles attributed to the women during the period especially due to Queen Victoria s own maternity, led to the development of a female body concept which was conservative, bound to strict gender roles. This concept of womanhood has its roots in medieval understanding of femininity, which was depending mainly on the Christian dogmas. Accordingly, this atricle intends to examine how the concept of female body originated in the Middle Ages and developed into the body politics in Victorian England. For a better understanding of the female body concept in the mentioned era, the discussion is expanded to the analysis of various sport activities which the women in the Victorian Period were accepted to involve in.

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