Marriage as a Trade

Marriage as a Trade by Cicely Hamilton, first published in 1909. Cicely Mary Hamilton (1872–1952), was an English actress, writer, journalist, suffragist, lesbian and feminist. She is now best known for the play Diana of Dobson's, with a setting in an Edwardian department store. The only excuse for this book is the lack of books on the subject with which it deals – the trade aspect of marriage. That is to say, wifehood and motherhood considered as a means of livelihood for women. I shall not deny for an instant that there are aspects of matrimony other than the trade aspect; but upon these there is no lack of a very plentiful literature – the love of man and woman has been written about since humanity acquired the art of writing. The love of man and woman is, no doubt, a thing of infinite importance; but also of infinite importance is the manner in which woman earns her bread and the economic conditions under which she enters the family and propagates the race.