Science as a Career in Enlightenment Italy: The Strategies of Laura Bassi Author(s): Paula Findlen Source: Isis, Vol. 84, No. 3 (Sep., 1993), pp. 441-469 Published by: The University of Chicago Press on behalf of The History of Science Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/235642 . Accessed: 20/03/2013 19:41 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact
[email protected]. The University of Chicago Press and The History of Science Society are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Isis. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 149.31.21.88 on Wed, 20 Mar 2013 19:41:48 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Science as a Career in Enlightenment Italy The Strategies of Laura Bassi By Paula Findlen* When Man wears dresses And waits to fall in love Then Womanshould take a degree.' IN 1732 LAURA BASSI (1711-1778) became the second woman to receive a university degree and the first to be offered an official teaching position at any university in Europe. While many other women were known for their erudition, none received the institutional legitimation accorded Bassi, a graduate of and lecturer at the University of Bologna and a member of the Academy of the Institute for Sciences (Istituto delle Scienze), where she held the chair in experimental physics from 1776 until her death in 1778.