Welcome to join ELBOW Talks, Talk 2 / Season 3!
The theme of the third season (autumn 2025) of ELBOW Talks is ”Electricity and Science”. The season will have four excellent talks around the theme, covered by our very own ELBOW Team and one special guest.
Our ELBOW team member, University Researcher Stefan Schröder (University of Helsinki) will be our second speaker in this season of ELBOW Talks series. He will give us a talk about ”Patient, Object of Desire, Invisible Assistant: Women in 18th-Century Discourses about Electricity”.
Abstract:
The aim of this talk is to present findings from German sources that reflect how electricity was used to manifest gender roles in the eighteenth century. Women seemingly played a passive role; they were used as subjects in electrical experiments and treated for various ailments. They became objects of desire, exemplified by the concept of the Venus electrificata, and formed an audience to be captivated during electrical demonstrations. Additionally, they were recipients of letters in which learned men explained electricity to them. However, there is at least one rare instance in which a woman was assigned a more active role as an assistant, although this was (and could) only be mentioned in sources outside the specialist literature on electricity.
Tapahtuma-ajat
- Alkaa:
- 28.10.2025 13:00
- Loppuu:
- 28.10.2025 14:00
- Tapahtumapaikka:
- Zoom
- Etätapahtuma nimi:
- ELBOW Talks Season 3 / Talk 2 – Patient, Object of Desire, Invisible Assistant: Women in 18th-Century Discourses about Electricity
- Etätapahtuma osoite:
- Avaa verkkosivut
Tapahtuman muut tiedot
- Tapahtuman tyyppi:
- Esitelmät ja keskustelutilaisuudet
- Verkkosivut:
- Avaa verkkosivut
- Yhteyshenkilö:
- Lotta Vuorio
- Sähköpostiosoite: