Debates on Household Consumption and Production in the Patriotic Societies in Denmark-Norway (C
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Debates on Household Consumption and Production in the Patriotic Societies in Denmark-Norway (c. 1780-1814) Maria Halle Thesis submitted for assessment with a view to obtaining the degree of Doctor of History and Civilization of the European University Institute Florence, 26 February 2016. European University Institute Department of History and Civilization Debates on Household Consumption and Production in the Patriotic Societies in Denmark-Norway (c. 1780-1814) Maria Halle Thesis submitted for assessment with a view to obtaining the degree of Doctor of History and Civilization of the European University Institute Examining Board Prof. Bartolomé Yun-Casalilla, EUI and Universidad Pablo de Olavide (supervisor) Prof. Hilde Sandvik, University of Oslo (external supervisor) Prof. Luca Molà, EUI Prof. Pia Lundqvist, University of Gothenburg © Maria Halle, 2016 No part of this thesis may be copied, reproduced or transmitted without prior permission of the author Abstract During the eighteenth century, most families in Northwestern Europe and Colonial America bought more and different goods, such as coffee, tobacco, new types of furniture and clothes. Simultaneously, the family members changed the way they worked. In order to buy the commodities available, many of them prioritised to produce more goods for the market. The families’ changing behaviour receives much attention from historians studying the changes from an economic perspective. This thesis, however, focuses on how a part of the Danish and Norwegian middle class, members of “patriotic societies,” experienced and debated the economic changes (c. 1780 -1814). Patriotic societies were local voluntary organisations that wanted to improve the “welfare” of the inhabitants. They wrote many economic and moral writings in which the changing economy was discussed. The thesis points to other middle class views on the changing economy than detected in previous research. Firstly, it shows that patriotism and intellectuals’ concerns about the changing economy influenced the middle class’ views on commodity consumption. Secondly, the thesis shows that the members found it important to improve the consumer behaviour in Denmark-Norway. They did not only support the sumptuary laws, as previous studies centre on, they also focused on childrearing in the family. Mainly Lutheran childrearing methods influenced their suggestions on how to teach children patriotic consumerism and the roles of the mother and the father on this issue. Thirdly, the thesis reveals more positive attitudes to women’s economic behaviour than detected in European gender studies. The common misogynist view of women as unable to resist “luxury” was present mostly in the societies’ philosophical texts. A systematic study of the members’ economic evaluations of rural communities shows that they did not attack women’s consumerism more than men’s. They also praised women’s commodity production and viewed it as vital for the country’s progress. Lastly, the thesis focused on norms on household planning and spending. It revealed, as recent British studies also show, that the middle class valued a gender division when the household spending was decided in the family At the same time, the husband and wife should cooperate close. Moreover, the housefathers had a great interest in the women’s part of the management since household consumption was closely connected to their patriotic image. 5 6 Acknowledgements First of all, I would like to thank my supervisor, Bartolomé Yun Casalilla, for his guidance throughout my years as a PhD researcher. Through our discussions, he managed to put some “critical glasses” on me that I cannot take off whether I read the newspaper or engage in academic activities. Thank you, I am very grateful for them! I also appreciate your suggestions and comments on the thesis. Hilde Sandvik deserves many thanks as well. When I was a bachelor student, she managed to make me fall in love in the subject of history by showing me how meaningful, exciting and innovative the discipline can be. Also her encouragement and advice on the thesis has been of great value to me. Thank you to Luca Molà and to Pia Lundqvist for taking time to be a part of the thesis committee. To my colleagues and friends at The University of Oslo, The European University Institute and in Warsaw: Katherine Meier, thank you so much for using your weekend and evenings on correcting my thesis. Serina Johansson, you used much time on interpreting some difficult handwriting from the 1780s for me. Thank you! Pernille Dehli and Marion Godager Tveter deserve thanks as well as they read early drafts of the thesis. Marie Lund Alveberg, Marthe Glad-Munch Møller, Hanne Østhus, Sandra Hagman, Joonas Korhonen, Sarah Verhaegen, Johan Christensen, Marii Väljataga, Koshi and all the other wonderful people I have met in different parts of the world: You have been a source of academic inspiration and/or showed me that a PhD is not only about work, but also about enjoying the possibilities that Tuscany, Warsaw and Oslo offer. My other friends and my sister Therese, you all know now that writing a dissertation can be a long and tiresome process thanks to my detailed descriptions of it. Thank you for listening, supporting me and for believing in me in times when I had stopped believing in myself. Piotrek, thank you for pushing me to finally finish, for your non- stop support and for taking care of our son while I were staring into the computer day after day. Moreover, you have also been an invaluable discussion partner and read draft after draft without any complaints. Aleksander (8 months) thank you for your smiles, laughter, all the funny things you do and for not caring about my PhD at all. My parents who always did everything for me: The thesis is dedicated to you. 7 8 1. Introduction: Research questions, historiographical overview, methodology and historical context 13 1.1. The changes in economy and culture in Denmark-Norway, 1780-1814 14 Changing consumption patterns, c. 1770-1800 16 Changing working patterns, c. 1770-1800 19 During the Napoleonic Wars, 1807-1814 20 A household economy 21 1.2. Historiography 22 Previous research on the discourses of commodity consumption 22 Previous research on the discourses of commodity production 26 1.3 Research questions 28 1.4. Sources and methodology 30 1.5 The structure of the thesis 33 2. The Patriotic Societies 35 2.1 The rise of European patriotic societies 35 The societies in Denmark-Norway 38 2.2 Organisational structure 40 2.3 Members 41 The lack of female members 45 The members from the aristocracy and the lower classes 46 2.4 Aims and activities 48 State patriotism 48 Working for the “common good” 49 Activities 50 2.5 Why did people join the patriotic societies? 54 2.6. Summary 56 3. The Meanings of Frugality in the Patriotic Societies 59 3.1. Presenting The Society for Civic Virtue. 60 Members and organisational structure. 62 3.2. The Meaning of Frugality in the Society for Civic Virtue 63 3.3. Why were these attitudes present in The Society for Civic Virtue? 71 The sumptuary law from 1783 71 Cameralism 78 Pietism 81 Healthcare 83 9 3.4. The protests to the consumer rules in The Society for Civic Virtue 89 3.5 The other patriotic societies: Thinking about patriotism and commodity consumption, 1780-1814 91 3.6 Contact between societies and foreign examples? 96 3.7 Summary 98 4. Teaching Children the Right Consumer Behaviour in the Family 101 4.1 Lauritz Hasse (1785-1786): The Commoners’ Teacher [Allmuens Lærer] 101 4.2 The importance of teaching children a “frugal lifestyle.” 104 4.3. The pedagogical methods. 107 Thinking about the innocence of the child 109 New ideas on childrearing? 111 4.4 Thinking about the role of the mother and the father 112 4.5 Why the focus on the family? 115 The relationship between the sumptuary laws and childrearing 116 The parents and the schools 118 4.6. Summary 121 5. Men, Women and their Consumer Desires. The Views in the Patriotic Societies. 123 5.1. Christian Sommerfelt (1772): Women’s care for unnecessary things. 124 5.2. Topographic descriptions: Men, women and their different consumer desires 126 5.3. The members’ attempts to explain women’s textile consumption. 131 Women’s “attachment” to textiles 131 Peder Holm (1791): The lack of female beauty 133 J.L Tommesen (1810): Women’s compassionate nature 135 The greedy and cheating pedlar 137 5.4 The members attempts to explain men’s tobacco and alcohol consumption 138 Male sociability 138 The perceptions of women’s tobacco and alcohol use. 140 5.5. Summary 142 6. Buying for the Home: The Norms and Practices on Gendered Patterns of Spending in the Patriotic Societies. 145 6.1 Presenting Peter Høegh’s book on household advices to Danish farmers (1794) 146 6.2 The housemother’s household spending 148 The mother of the food [madmoderen] 151 Furniture for the storstue [reception room] 154 The husbands’ involvement in the women’s “decision-making” 156 10 6.3 Views on husbands’ consumer responsibilities. 158 6.4 Summary 162 7. Commodity Production and Gender: The Debates in the Patriotic Societies. 165 7.1 Presenting the topographic descriptions of agricultural households 165 7.2 Viewing women’s work in agricultural households 168 The “feminine” industries versus the “masculine” industries 168 Viewing women’s working capacities and skills 171 Why the valuation of the women working in agricultural households? 174 7.3 Views on upper class women’s commodity production in the patriotic societies 175 Presenting The Shop for Female Works of a Nicer Kind 176 Family interests. 177 Expanding the domestic industries 179 Improving the “taste” of Danish products. 181 Being good examples to lower-rank women 182 The store – a war phenomenon? 184 7.4 Widening the scope of time and space 185 8.