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American Infidelity : The Gilded Age Battle over Freethought, Free Love, and Feminism.

Oxford Scholarship Online: History Available online

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Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Green, Steven K., Author.
Language:
English
Physical Description:
1 online resource (332 pages)
Edition:
1st ed.
Place of Publication:
New York : Oxford University Press, Incorporated, 2026.
Summary:
American Infidelity uncovers a forgotten cultural battle at the heart of the Gilded Age--a fierce clash between evangelical moralism and the radical movements for freethought, feminism, and sexual freedom. Historian Steven K. Green brings this explosive era to life, revealing how the tensions that defined the late 19th century still shape American debates today.
Contents:
Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
1 The Freethought Impulse
The Dominance and Dilemma of Protestantism
The Foundations of Gilded Age Freethought
The Moderate Freethought Impulse
Spiritualism
2 The Emergence of Gilded Age Freethought
The Significance of Robert G. Ingersoll
Moderate Freethought
The Liberal Agenda
3 The Battle Over Free Love and Obscenity
The Notorious Victoria Woodhull
Enter Anthony Comstock
Comstock's War On Obscenity and Freethought
Comstock Versus Cupid
The Liberal League and Obscenity
4 Freethought Under Fire
"My Special Enemies"
The Great Agnostic
The "Golden Age"
Blasphemers
Freethought On the Defensive
5 Women's Rights and Religion
The Antebellum Religious Origins of the Women's Rights Movement
The Religious Evolution of Elizabeth Cady Stanton
The Postwar Controversy Over Women's Rights and Marriage Reform
"Divorce Mania"
The Woman's Christian Temperance Union and the Limits to Reform
Collaboration and Compromise
Final Radicalization
The Woman's Bible
Reaction
6 "This Is a Christian Nation"
The School Question
Sunday Enforcement and the National Sabbath Law
Chicago World's Fair
Comstock and the Exposition
The "Christian Nation" Decision
Comstock's Final Crusades
Conclusion
Anthony Comstock's Legacy
The Christian Nation Debate
Index.
Notes:
Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.
ISBN:
0-19-782229-0
0-19-782228-2
0-19-782227-4
9780197822272
OCLC:
1565404331

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