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Chapter 7-Gender Inequality: Economic and Political Aspects

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. What are social roles?


a. They are the ways people behave that violate social norms.
b. They are behaviours defined by people’s sex, biology, and genetics.
c. They are roles distinctly and solely defined by gender stereotypes.
d. They are behaviours expected of people in particular social positions.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 157 BLM: Remember

2. When Anita was born, her parents looked at her and said, “There is the face of a future prime
minister.” Fifty years ago people may have been surprised by that statement. Today, however,
the fact that a baby girl might be considered a future leader of the country reflects a
development in our society. What is it?
a. increasing gendered optimism
b. changing gender roles
c. changing professional profiles
d. increasing political feminism
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 157 BLM: Higher Order

3. A young woman working at a minimum-wage job has trouble paying her rent, and sells some
of her possessions; later her power is shut off, and eventually she gets evicted and lives on the
street. What component of her life is the core of her disadvantage?
a. resource deprivation
b. social inequality
c. material well-being
d. worker exploitation
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 159 | p. 180
BLM: Higher Order

4. Many magazine photographs and advertisements show teenage girls grooming


themselves—such as putting on makeup, trying on half a dozen outfits—and generally
worrying about their appearance, but very few show teenage boys doing these things. What
term is given to this depiction of female and male behaviour?
a. role expectations
b. gender stereotypes
c. primary sex characteristics
d. biological values
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 158 | p. 180
BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-1


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

5. Broverman et al. (1972) report that images of masculinity and femininity were often
polarized, emphasizing opposites. Which of the following was a trait associated with women?
a. Women are very competitive.
b. Women are very illogical.
c. Women are very independent.
d. Women are very aggressive.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 159 BLM: Remember

6. Which term matches the following definition: “an internalized sense of being a man or a
woman”?
a. It is a person’s biological sex.
b. It is a person’s sexual identity.
c. It is a person’s self-concept.
d. It is a person’s gender identity.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 158 BLM: Remember

7. The television show “The Simpsons” features Lisa (the intelligent and well-behaved daughter)
and Bart (the naughty and playful son) as children of Marge the homemaker and Homer the
breadwinner. What is this television show reinforcing?
a. traditional family values
b. gender equity
c. biological determinism
d. gender-based stereotypes
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 158 | p. 180
BLM: Higher Order

8. Ana is a stay-at-home mother and is very embarrassed in social settings when the inevitable
“What do you do?” question arises. What reason could be given to explain her distress?
a. Ana has forgotten how to socialize with adults.
b. Ana is feeling guilty for enjoying herself while the children are at home with a
babysitter.
c. Ana knows that her job as a stay-at-home mom is awarded little prestige by
society.
d. Ana is more comfortable asking questions then answering them.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 159 BLM: Higher Order

9. A young woman becomes emotionally distraught upon being told the family pet has died. She
gets teary-eyed and her boyfriend defends her emotionality to his teasing male friends as “part
of being a woman.” Which of the following terms best characterizes his statement?
a. male chivalry
b. gender socialization
c. gender stereotyping
d. polar opposites
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 158 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-2


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

10. According to sociologists, which of the following statements explains the fact that women in
our culture, on average, have long hair, wear makeup, wear skirts, and adorn themselves with
jewellery?
a. These things naturally make women more attractive to men.
b. Most women are mindful of what it is to appear feminine in our culture.
c. Innate tendencies produce natural differences in appearance.
d. These differences are socially constructed notions of femininity.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 158 BLM: Higher Order

11. Gail, a female public school teacher, has the same experience and credentials as a male
counterpart and the two compete for a principal’s job. The male teacher gets the job, and Gail
notices that most of the schools in her district have male principals, whereas most of the
school board’s employees are female. According to sociologists, what does this indicate?
a. prejudice
b. systemic discrimination
c. sexism
d. gender inequalities
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 158-159 BLM: Higher Order

12. According to the text, which of the following is an important source of material well-being?
a. work-related earnings/wealth
b. prestige or social standing
c. being in line for an inheritance
d. power or control of others
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 159 BLM: Remember

13. A high-school class is debating social inequality, and a female student declares herself a
feminist and states, “The root of inequality between men and women is male domination.”
Which feminist perspective does this statement echo?
a. radical feminism
b. liberal feminism
c. multiracial feminism
d. socialist feminism
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Higher Order

14. A stylish feminist on a blind date is told that she is very feminine and delicate, and her date
couldn’t imagine her in a male-dominated occupation. On their next date, he is humbled when
she shows up in her police uniform, and she tells him, “It’s those kinds of misconceptions that
keep women down.” What kind of feminist is the policewoman?
a. radical feminist
b. Marxist feminist
c. multiracial feminist
d. liberal feminist
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 159-160 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-3


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

15. When measuring social inequality between groups, one must take into account the
asymmetrical distribution of one of the following factors. Which one is it?
a. prestige
b. numbers
c. ethnicity
d. intelligence
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 159 BLM: Remember

16. Mark identifies as a feminist and believes that women are disadvantaged in the public sphere.
He is very involved with rally groups aimed at pressuring the government to fund more
subsidized daycare centres. Which feminist perspective has Mark adopted?
a. multiracial feminist
b. socialist feminist
c. radical feminist
d. liberal feminist
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Higher Order

17. What term is used to refer to the cause and nature of women’s disadvantages and
subordination in society?
a. socialism
b. feminism
c. patriarchy
d. liberalism
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Remember

18. Mathew came home stressed and exhausted after a long day at the office. His wife cooked him
dinner and helped him reduce his stress so he could get a good night’s sleep. The next
morning he was ready to face the day. What feminist theory could use this example as the
basis to argue women’s unequal position in our society?
a. Marxist feminism
b. liberal feminism
c. conservative feminism
d. democratic feminism
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Higher Order

19. What view of society is reflected in the statement, “Women should be home raising the
children”?
a. a humanist view
b. a patriarchal view
c. a domestic view
d. a womanist view
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-4


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

20. According to the text, which of the following is listed as a dimension of inequality?
a. power
b. intelligence
c. egalitarianism
d. equality
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 159 BLM: Remember

21. According to the text, which of the following is an explanation of gender inequality in
earnings for women?
a. It is a result of our society’s higher valuation of men and men’s roles.
b. There are differences in the types of work performed by each gender.
c. Earnings reflect the productivity of male versus female workers.
d. It reflects biological determinants such as muscle mass, height, and weight.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 168-170 BLM: Remember

22. According to the text, which of the following is a factor relating to sexual harassment?
a. It involves equalizing the balance of power between men and women.
b. It is usually employed women making sexual overtures toward men.
c. It results from a general societal belief that men are superior to women.
d. It has become more accepted in society based on biological differences.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 161 BLM: Remember

23. For women who are members of minority groups and foreign-born women, inequality issues
also include gender, race, and immigrant status—something that has been referred to as a
“matrix of domination.” Which concept are these concerns are consistent with?
a. total discrimination
b. Aboriginal exploitation
c. multiracial feminism
d. visible minority feminism
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Higher Order

24. Consider the gendered experience of social stratification. For example, a lower-class black
woman, a member of the working poor, experiences racial taunts and harassment at work.
According to sociologists, what is the term that most aptly describes her position?
a. taunts with prejudice
b. multiple discrimination
c. racial discrimination
d. matrix of domination
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 160 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-5


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

25. A female junior executive in a company, working closely with a male vice-president, receives
a quid-pro-quo proposition: you do sexual favours for me and I’ll see to it that one day you
get my job. Which term best identifies this woman’s experience?
a. workplace harassment
b. sexual discrimination
c. sexual harassment
d. abuse of authority
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 161 BLM: Higher Order

26. In a traditional division of labour, with the separation of the public sphere for men and the
private sphere for women, what can be concluded about the roles of women?
a. They are not widely noticed and are unpaid.
b. They are highly valued and widely recognized.
c. They require little effort, skill, or energy.
d. They are done in the presence of others.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 162 BLM: Remember

27. Sara is an excellent mother because she knows how to comfort her children when they are in
distress using hugs, smiles, and stories to distract them from whatever problem made them cry
in the first place. However, she receives no rewards or accolades for her efforts. Why does
this situation exist in our society?
a. Her actions are seen as a biological trait.
b. Her skills are recognized as valuable only in certain spheres.
c. Her family duties do not deserve recognition.
d. She became a mother, so she chose this life.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 162 BLM: Higher Order

28. If Janine stays home to raise her children and her husband works, Janine will have limited
power outside the home. What is the primary reason behind this situation?
a. Housework has value only in the private sphere.
b. Power is located only in the public sphere.
c. As a mother, she lets her husband speak on her behalf.
d. Economic dependency reduces her power.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 162 BLM: Higher Order

29. Milena just started a new job at a prestigious law firm as lead council of the immigration
division. However, her family still expects her to come home and fix dinner every night. With
all of the success that the women’s movement has achieved, which of the following explains
this situation?
a. Women still have to meet their mothering responsibilities.
b. The double day is the price women have to pay for liberation.
c. The right to paid work does not mean liberation from unpaid work.
d. Women will always put their children’s needs first.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 162 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-6


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

30. Prior to World War II, many school districts banned women from teaching if they were
married. But in the years following the war, school districts eliminated their policies
restricting the employment of married women teachers. What would explain this reversal of
policy?
a. School boards came to believe that married women were better teachers than
single women.
b. The government enacted antidiscrimination legislation.
c. The baby boom following the war necessitated a greater need for teachers due to
the increased number of students.
d. School boards took the view that “spinster” school teachers were highly likely to
be lesbians.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 163 BLM: Higher Order

31. Yvonne decided to work outside the home just after World War II ended. Which of the
following factors did NOT play a role in her ability to be accepted into the workforce?
a. the reduction of the preferred source of labour
b. the rise of a new service-based economy
c. the level of education of women
d. the desire to minimize wage costs
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 163 BLM: Higher Order

32. According to the text, which of the following has been a factor in female workforce
participation?
a. More men were attending postsecondary schools which opened up positions for
women in the workforce.
b. After World War II, women’s paid labour became a needed source of family
income.
c. Female labour force participation rates for women with very young children
declined.
d. Female workers, as part of the war effort, changed the perception and expectations
of women.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 163 BLM: Remember

33. According to the text, which of the following factors has affected the labour force
participation rate of Canadian women?
a. There is less demand for service workers.
b. There is a rising number of out-of-wedlock single mothers.
c. There is an economic need for increased family income.
d. There is a rising rate of female fertility.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 163 BLM: Remember

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-7


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

34. Judith is a 45-year old-woman with three teenaged children and an ailing 75-year-old mother.
Her days are filled with her full-time job, and chauffeuring her mom to doctor appointments
and the grocery store and her kids to sports activities and social functions. Consequently, she
is experiencing insomnia, chronic fatigue, and a number of other health issues. Which of the
following most aptly explains Judith’s situation?
a. Judith is a member of the boomerang generation.
b. Judith has failed to set proper boundaries for herself.
c. Judith is a member of the sandwich generation.
d. Judith is experiencing a midlife crisis.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 164 BLM: Higher Order

35. Which of the following is an activity that women spend less time doing than men?
a. eldercare
b. watching TV
c. housecare
d. childcare
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 164 BLM: Remember

36. Which of the following do women working full-time at paid work still spend more time on
than men?
a. commuting
b. recreating
c. volunteering
d. housework
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 164 BLM: Remember

37. Which of the following terms refers to an occupational structure where men and women are
numerically concentrated in different occupations?
a. sex segregated
b. nonstandardized
c. sexually standardized
d. sex typed
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Remember

38. In which of the following occupations does the predominance of women exemplify sex
typing?
a. blue-collar work
b. caregiver jobs
c. self-employment
d. supervisory positions
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Remember

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-8


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

39. Which term is often used to describe the concentration of men in some occupations and
women in others?
a. sex typing of men and women
b. sex segregation of occupations
c. sex labelling of men and women
d. sex-based, work reservations
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Remember

40. Which phrase describes the greater amount of time women spend doing unpaid work?
a. double employment
b. extra duty day
c. the double day
d. double jeopardy
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 164 BLM: Remember

41. What is the alternate term for sex labelling?


a. sex segregation
b. occupational bias
c. sex stereotyping
d. sex typing
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Remember

42. A young mother works all day as a schoolteacher, and comes home to assume the bulk of
chores related to child care and housework, with occasional help from her husband. What
term is used by sociologists to describe this woman’s workday?
a. double shift
b. woman’s work
c. double day
d. domestic overtime
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 164 BLM: Higher Order

43. A woman who is a nurse has three daughters, and her daughters are, respectively, a social
worker, a schoolteacher, and a hair-salon manager. Which term from the text best identifies
the type of work performed by all four women?
a. sex-based occupations
b. gender-typed occupations
c. female-dominated occupations
d. sex-segregated occupations
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-9


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

44. A father is advising his teenaged daughter as to which kind of career path to seek, with the
following “appropriate” recommendations: nurse, teacher, social worker. What is this father
doing by framing these as appropriate occupations for his daughter?
a. feminine typing
b. sex typing
c. female typing
d. gender typing
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Higher Order

45. Jason met with his high school guidance counsellor to discuss what courses he should be
taking in order to be accepted into the nursing program at university. His counsellor told him
that if he wanted to go into the medical profession he should be a doctor. What is the
sociological term for the assumptions made in this statement?
a. job segregation
b. sex segregation
c. occupational patriarchy
d. opportunistic patriarchy
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Higher Order

46. In addition to looking after her two young children and working full time, every evening
Olimpia has to stop by her father’s apartment to make him dinner, clean, and make sure he
takes his medication. What group in our society is Olimpia part of?
a. the caretaking generation
b. the sandwich generation
c. the working generation
d. the senior generation
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 164 BLM: Higher Order

47. Danielle and her twin brother both graduated the same year. One got a job as a secretary and
the other as a mechanic. The entire family assumed that Danielle was the secretary and her
brother was the mechanic. What is the sociological term for the assumptions made in this
situation?
a. occupational hierarchy
b. presumptive gender
c. sex typing
d. sex casting
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-10


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

48. Zelda is a doctor, but she is often mistaken for a nurse by patients in the hospital. This makes
her angry, because such an assumption not only ignores her education, but also ties her to
feminist problems still being fought against today. Which of the following is the assumption
tied to?
a. Women’s professions are still sex typed.
b. Women can’t be doctors.
c. Women are mothers first, and their careers come second.
d. Women lack the intelligence to be doctors.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 165 BLM: Higher Order

49. Sarah Mitchell has worked for the ABC Corporation for more than 20 years. She has
continuously received glowing work reviews and for the past 10 years has been the manager
of the accounting department. When a new VP of finance was selected last week, ABC
executives announced that John Martin, a 12-year employee from the public relations
department, was given the position. In view of this, what was Sally Jones a victim of?
a. the double shift
b. sexual harassment
c. the glass ceiling
d. sexual discrimination
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 166 BLM: Higher Order

50. Which term describes the invisible barriers women face to attaining high-level organizational
roles?
a. mommy-track syndrome
b. invisible sexism
c. skill-evaluation bias
d. glass-ceiling effect
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 166 BLM: Remember

51. A competent female lawyer is passed over for a promotion that is given to an underperforming
male. She notices that most of the law firm’s senior partners are male, despite the fact that 30
percent of the firm’s lawyers are women. What term do sociologists use to describe this
circumstance?
a. only boys allowed
b. men only syndrome
c. glass ceiling effect
d. old boys’ network
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 166 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-11


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

52. Justin has recently graduated with a PhD in sociology and has spent the past several months
looking for an academic position. He has managed to secure teaching employment in
sociology classes on three different university campuses. According to the text, what is
Justin’s employment situation called?
a. non-standard
b. flexible labour
c. standard
d. independent contract
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Higher Order

53. According to the text, which of the following accounts for why women earn less than men?
a. Skills in jobs where women predominate are undervalued.
b. Women are included in male-dominated networks.
c. Unions have valued the interests of their female workers.
d. Many women are primary income earners for their families.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 167 BLM: Remember

54. According to the text, which of the following is an alternate term for the concept of
nonstandard work?
a. permanent employment
b. precarious employment
c. commissioned employment
d. full-time employment
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

55. What does standard work include?


a. full-time work
b. part-time work
c. multiple job holding
d. self-employment
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

56. According to the text, which of the following is considered an employment ghetto for women?
a. part-time work
b. home work/housekeeping
c. self-employment
d. service sector jobs
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-12


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

57. Fernanda could not find a job, so she set up her own cleaning business. She has eight clients
who call on her; some call regularly, others only call occasionally. She has little security and
no benefits, but she is happy that she has at least some work. What kind of employment
situation does she have?
a. creative work
b. nonstandard work
c. anti-welfare employment
d. earnings employment
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Higher Order

58. According to the text, overall, what is concluded about nonstandard work?
a. It generally provides less job security, lower pay, and fewer fringe benefits.
b. It employs more men because there are, overall, more men in the workforce.
c. It is largely composed of under-the-table activity and a bartering economy.
d. It is becoming less common as more conscientious employers hire full-time
workers.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

59. Which of the following do most sociologists believe is reflected in the gender gap in earnings?
a. It reflects a process of self-selection by women to aspire to jobs that feature lower
pay.
b. It reflects a lack of initiative by women to work in traditionally male-dominated
jobs.
c. It reflects lower productivity levels by women resulting from less skills and
education.
d. It reflects the existence of discrimination and the devaluation of work performed
by women.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

60. According to the text, which of the following is NOT true in regards to nonstandard work?
a. Nonstandard jobs generally provide greater pay, benefits and job security.
b. Women in the labour force are much more likely than men to be nonstandard
workers.
c. Nonstandard work is becoming more common, especially among younger people.
d. Nonstandard employment implies a marginalized workforce.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

61. What trend is evident in the ratio of Canadian women’s earnings to Canadian men’s earnings?
a. The ratio measure shows no emerging trend.
b. The ratio difference has been improving.
c. The ratio has remained about the same.
d. The ratio difference has been worsening.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 168-169 BLM: Remember

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-13


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

62. According to the text, what explains the wage gap between men and women?
a. Women are genetically endowed with less physical strength.
b. Women have less interest in occupations that pay more.
c. Women are discriminated against, and their work is devalued.
d. Women have lower levels of educational attainment.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 168 BLM: Remember

63. In 2008 women earned, on average, about 65 cents for every dollar earned by men. Henry
argues that the lower wages of women is due to their lower educational attainment and the
numerous labour-force interruptions due to their maternity leaves. In essence, what is Henry
saying?
a. Women’s lower earnings are a reflection of their productivity.
b. Women’s lower wages are a result of their concentration in occupations that are
low paying.
c. The gender earnings gap reflects the general devaluation of “women’s work.”
d. Employers statistically discriminate against women.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 169 BLM: Higher Order

64. According to the text, which of the following is a justification used for paying women less
than men?
a. Women are paid according to how many children they have, or for being single
moms.
b. Women are paid less on the basis of special gendered skill requirements.
c. Women are paid less on the assumption they already have a male breadwinner at
home.
d. Women are considered unsuitable in emerging service sector jobs due to lack of
education.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 169 BLM: Remember

65. A busy, profit-focused accounting firm interviews many qualified female accountants;
however, senior managers favour hiring males, as they are less likely to be absent from work
for things such as child-care issues. What term is best applied to this kind of hiring practice?
a. statistical discrimination
b. gender discrimination
c. sexual discrimination
d. familial discrimination
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 169 | p. 181
BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-14


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

66. After graduating from university, Mary took a job at a daycare centre, while her friend Paul
took a job as a landscaper. Mary was shocked at how much more Paul was paid, given their
similar education level. According to the text, what is one explanation for this pay difference
in our society?
a. Women encounter the glass ceiling immediately after university.
b. Men are better at negotiating a high salary.
c. Paul needed more skills and this was reflected in his salary.
d. The skill set commonly associated with women (e.g., nurturing) is undervalued.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 169 BLM: Higher Order

67. Alyssa is very proud of the fact that her great-grandmother took part in a social movement
that resulted in women being granted the right to vote in Canada. Which social movement is
Alyssa referring to?
a. the suffrage movement
b. the temperance movement
c. the emancipation movement
d. the civil rights movement
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 172 BLM: Higher Order

68. According to the text, which of the following has a limiting effect on women’s groups in
politics?
a. a reliance on a consensus-building approach
b. a lack of diversity between women’s groups
c. a reliance on private funding sources
d. an inability of women to mobilize politically
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 169 BLM: Remember

69. According to the text, what was the focus of the women’s movement immediately after
women were granted the right to vote?
a. legislation addressing spousal and child abuse
b. addressing the rights of Aboriginal and visible minority women
c. gender equality in employment opportunities and earnings
d. improving the quality of life for women and children in the home
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 171 BLM: Remember

70. Which of the following were the last to be given the right to vote in Canada?
a. male and female Inuit and registered Indians living on reserves
b. people documented to be mentally challenged or insane
c. women who were British subjects and served in the military
d. people of Chinese, East Indian, and Japanese ancestry
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 172 BLM: Remember

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-15


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

71. In Canada today, what proportion of women vote in elections, compared to men?
a. a lower proportion of women vote than men
b. approximately the same proportion as men
c. about seven women vote for every three men
d. a higher proportion of women vote than men
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 173 BLM: Remember

72. Which of the following groups was given the right to vote in 1960?
a. visible minority women
b. registered, reserve Indians
c. Inuit men and women
d. landed immigrants
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 172 BLM: Remember

73. According to McCormack, in political matters, women are most likely to focus on which of
the following?
a. moral and community-based social/political issues
b. issues pertaining to the acquisition or exercise of power
c. policies that reduce their isolation because of home-based work
d. trivial issues because of their political naiveté
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 173 BLM: Remember

74. Which of the following has been the only woman to hold the office of prime minister in
Canada?
a. Belinda Stronach
b. Condoleezza Rice
c. Kim Campbell
d. Agnes Macphail
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 173-174 BLM: Remember

75. A female politician was dating a man 10 years younger than her, and the media portrayed her
as a “sex-starved cougar on the prowl.” A male politician was photographed with his date,
who was 12 years younger than him, and no similar comment was made about his sex life. In
this example, the media contributed to which explanation for the underrepresentation of
women in politics?
a. They were acting as gatekeepers of political culture.
b. They were reinforcing sex-role stereotypes of who should participate in political
culture.
c. They were creating hostility toward women in political culture.
d. They were belittling the skills necessary to participate in political culture.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 175-176 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-16


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

76. According to the text, which of the following stands as an explanation of the
underrepresentation of women in Canadian politics?
a. Women’s child-rearing responsibilities keep them at home rather than in politics.
b. There are fiscal advantages for political women with wealthy husbands to support
them.
c. Political parties control gender composition through the nomination process.
d. The culture of politics is supportive to the participation of women.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 176 BLM: Remember

77. By which of the following actions do the media fail to evaluate women’s political competence
fairly?
a. by emphasizing women’s records of community involvement
b. by recognizing women’s past political activities/contributions
c. by using the term feminist as a negative personal characteristic
d. by associating female politicians with broad social issues/concerns
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 175 BLM: Remember

78. According to the text, which of the following is NOT a criticism launched against the
Employment Equity Act of 1995?
a. The act covers only public service, federally regulated employers and companies
with 100 or more employees that are doing business with the government.
b. Failure to comply with the legislation carries very light penalties.
c. Public service workers cannot access the court system to obtain settlements in
pay-equity cases.
d. Employment equity puts an unfair burden on taxpayers.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 177-178 BLM: Remember

79. In the Correctional Service of Canada, male correctional officers make up the bulk of
membership on institutional emergency response teams. However, female correctional
officers still get the same compensation as males. What principle is reflected in this division
of labour at the same time as overall parity in pay for the classification of correctional
officers?
a. equal opportunity employment
b. gender-blind division of labour
c. pay equity regardless of function
d. equal pay for work of equal value
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 177 | p. 180
BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-17


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

80. For many years, Jocelyn has been a member of Canada’s Royal Canadian Mounted Police,
where there are many more males than females. When a deputy commissioner position
became open, she applied and was awarded the job, even though there were many other
equally qualified male applicants. What kind of practice does this represent?
a. gender equity
b. affirmative action
c. gender balance
d. job equity
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 177 | p. 180
BLM: Higher Order

81. A progressive company’s directors instruct the human resources department to make every
reasonable effort to hire socially representative numbers of women, ethnic minorities, and
people with mental and physical disabilities. What term best describes these hiring policies?
a. equal employment
b. unbiased hiring
c. pay equity
d. employment equity
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 177 | p. 180
BLM: Higher Order

82. What have many feminists said about current forms of employment and pay equity?
a. The legislation to address this issue does not apply to a large part of the
population.
b. The legislation has solved most of women’s problems of pay equity in the labour
market.
c. The legislation has repaired all of the wrongs from past decades around paid labour
issues.
d. The legislation is dealing unfairly with men’s paid labour market conditions and
equity issues.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 178 BLM: Remember

83. Claudia works for a company where only women are employed. She realizes that they are all
underpaid, considering the numerous skills they bring to their jobs. Why is it UNLIKELY that
the equal-pay-for-work-of-equal-value policies can help her and her fellow workers get their
wages raised?
a. Women’s skills are undervalued regardless of policies.
b. Policies compare men and women within the same firm.
c. Cross-industry analysis won’t change gender bias in pay scale.
d. The owners are men and won’t respect the policies.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 178 BLM: Higher Order

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-18


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

84. Samantha has worked for over 10 years with four coworkers in a video game development
company. She recently discovered that she and her coworker Jessica were making less than
Tom, Justin, and Anthony. Why is it UNLIKELY that the equal-pay-for-work-of-equal-value
policies can help her and Jessica to get their wages raised to match those of Tom, Justin, and
Anthony?
a. Equal-pay-for-work-of-equal-value policies apply to only government jobs.
b. Video game development is a male-dominated industry, with males setting the
rules.
c. Many equal-pay-for-work-of-equal-value policies do not apply to small firms.
d. It can be demonstrated that males are more proficient in video game design.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 178 BLM: Higher Order

85. In which type of electoral system are attempts to increase the number of women holding
office the most effective?
a. in electoral systems where the emphasis is on gender parity and woman
empowerment
b. in electoral systems where decision making about nominations and party
representation occurs at levels higher than the local riding
c. in electoral systems where nominations occur within the local riding
d. in electoral systems found in larger cities as opposed to small towns
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 179 BLM: Remember

TRUE/FALSE

1. Social scientists usually refer to inequalities between men and women as gender inequalities
since the term refers to the social meanings associated with being a man or a woman.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 158

2. Gender identities are congruent with the sex assigned to individuals at birth.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 158

3. In its analysis of gender inequality the liberal feminist perspective combines the exploitation
of women by capitalism with patriarchy in the home.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 159-160

4. Even when they are in the paid labour force, married women continue to spend more time
than married men do on housework and child care.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 164

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-19


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

5. The sandwich generation refers to a generation of men and women who care for their aging
parents while supporting their own children.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 164

6. The concentration of men in some occupations and women in others is called “occupational
inequality.”

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 165

7. The notion that a given occupation is more appropriate for one sex than the other is referred to
as the “sex typing of occupations.”

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 165

8. By 1925, all women in Canada had been granted the right to vote.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 172

9. Research shows that women are just as likely as men are to oppose free markets and military
spending.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 173

10. The media uses the term feminism or feminist to connote positive personal characteristics of
female politicians.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 175

11. Men who enter politics tend to come from a law or business background and women
candidates tend to come from a career in social work or education.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 176

12. There is no government policy in Canada that targets gender inequality in politics.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 178

13. Systemic barriers refers to deliberate and conscious decisions to discriminate.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: p. 177

14. Public policy refers to the statements made and the actions taken (or not taken) by
governments with respect to a given problem or set of problems.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 177

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-20


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

15. In 2009, the federal government passed an act that prevents public servants from filing
complaints with the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: p. 178

SHORT ANSWER

1. What are the three implications of the fact that gender is learned and its content is continually
renewed and altered through social interaction?

ANS:
Gender identity and behaviour are not fixed; gender identity and sex need not be congruent;
gender identities are not binary opposites.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 158

2. In what three ways does multiracial feminism contribute to our understanding of gender
inequality?

ANS:
Highlights different experiences of women, highlights how some women have power over
other women; emphasizes solutions that vary according to the location of women in the matrix
of domination.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 160

3. List the three main reasons that explain the increase of female participation in the labour
force.

ANS:
Canada’s changing economy, fertility decline and labour supply, family finances.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 163

4. Define sex segregation and sex typing of occupations and utilize examples given in the text in
your explanation.

ANS:
For women, the 10 most frequent jobs include secretary, registered nurse, elementary school
teacher, babysitter, and receptionist. For men, the ten most frequent jobs include truck driver,
janitor, retail trade manager, farmer, and carpenter.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 164-166

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-21


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

5. What are the four major explanations of women’s lower pay? Which ones do sociologists
emphasize and why?

ANS:
Gender difference in the characteristics that influence pay rates, gender differences in the type
of work performed, discrimination, societal devaluation of women’s work. Sociologists
emphasize the last two.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 168-170

6. After the May 2011 federal election, 25 percent of Canada’s MPs (members of parliament)
were women, even though women represent more than half of Canada’s electorate. What are
the four major explanations given in the text to account for this underrepresentation of women
in Canadian politics?

ANS:
Sex-role stereotypes (culture of politics is “male”), the negative consequences of public life
for women, gatekeeping, insufficient resources. Students may include “the clash between
political and family life influences the participation of some women in politics” which is
given in the text on p. 176.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 175-176

7. “Representation by women is not the same as representation for women” is a statement used
when critiquing research that focused primarily on the number of women holding political
office. What does this assertion mean?

ANS:
Even though women are elected, the great majority are white, middle class, heterosexual, and
well educated. Do they understand, stand for, and speak for other women, including
Aboriginal women, women of colour, immigrant women, senior women, poor women, and so
on?

PTS: 1 REF: p. 176

8. What are the two areas of policy development that relate to inequality in the workplace? How
are they the same?

ANS:
Employment equity (including affirmative action) and pay equity (equal pay for work of equal
value). Both seek to correct inequalities by removing barriers that handicap certain groups,
including women.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 177

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-22


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

ESSAY

1. The popular opinion today is that men and women are equal in our society. However, women
are often equated with “care giving.” Describe and explain how the construction of gender
roles impacts women in the creation of sex segregation in occupations and the creation of the
double day of labour.

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 158 | p. 164-167

2. Why is it argued that demands on women to provide unpaid care work will likely increase in
the early twenty-first century? Most young men and women say they expect to share domestic
responsibilities equally. Given what you now know from reading the text, discuss what the
likely reality for these young couples will be and why.

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 163-164

3. Most feminists treat men and women as homogeneous group categories. Are there any
conditions under which differences within the category “women” (e.g., class or ethnic
background) lead to differences in levels and degrees of exploitation and oppression by men
and/or other women, especially in terms of economic and political power?

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 164-176

4. The invention of the typewriter was believed to lower the skill level required in clerical work.
Discuss how our socially constructed definitions of “skill” impact women and the work
women do.

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 163 | p. 166–167

5. What are the effects of social policies such as affirmative action, and employment and pay
equity, on the lives of women? Who benefits? Who doesn’t?

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 177-178

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-23


Chapter 7 Gender Inequality

6. The federal Employment Equity Act, (1995) states:

2. The purpose of this Act is to achieve equality in the work place so that no person
shall be denied employment opportunities or benefits for reasons unrelated to ability and, in
the fulfillment of that goal, to correct the conditions of disadvantage in employment
experienced by women, aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities and persons who are,
because of their race or colour, in a visible minority by giving effect to the principle that
employment equity means more than treating persons in the same way but also requires
special measures and the accommodation of differences.

Equality is primarily defined as balance or “the same in all respects” whereas equity
addresses “fairness under the circumstances.” Is it possible to achieve equality in the
workplace through the adoption of employment equity policies? If so, how? If not, why not?

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 176-178

7. Despite decades of effort, workplaces are still highly sex segregated and this fact contributes
significantly to the wage gap between men and women. Explain how sex segregation in the
workplace negatively affects the earning power of women.

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 164-167

8. Currently, there is no federal policy aimed at reducing gender inequality among elected
politicians. Imagine that you are heading a task force to address this issue. What two
recommendations would you propose, and explain how they might increase political
participation and representation by women.

ANS:
Responses will vary.

PTS: 1 REF: p. 178-179

Copyright © 2014 Nelson Education Ltd. 7-24


Another random document with
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Text Page of Didot’s Racine, Paris, 1801 256
Firmin Didot. From Engraving by Pierre Gustave Eugène Staal
(1817–1882) 256
William Morris. From Portrait by G. F. Watts, R. A., in the National
Portrait Gallery, London. Painted in 1880 258
Sir Edward Burne-Jones, Bart. From a Photograph at the British
Museum 260
Text Page of Kelmscott Chaucer, 1896 262
Title Page of Doves Bible, London, 1905 265
Text Page of Doves Bible, London, 1905 267
The Sala Michelangiolo, in the Laurenziana Library, Florence 276
Dott. Comm. Guido Biagi, in 1924 278
Vestibule of the Laurenziana Library, Florence 280
Miniature Page from the Biblia Amiatina, R. Lau. Bibl. Cod. Amiatinus
I 288
Antonio Magliabecchi 293
Library Slips used by George Eliot while working on Romola in
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CHAPTER I

In Quest of the Perfect Book


I
IN QUEST OF THE PERFECT BOOK

“Here is a fine volume,” a friend remarked, handing me a copy of The Ideal


Book, written and printed by Cobden-Sanderson at the Doves Press.
“It is,” I assented readily, turning the leaves, and enjoying the composite
beauty of the careful typography, and the perfect impression upon the soft,
handmade paper with the satisfaction one always feels when face to face with a
work of art. “Have you read it?”
“Why—no,” he answered. “I picked it up in London, and they told me it
was a rare volume. You don’t necessarily read rare books, do you?”
My friend is a cultivated man, and his attitude toward his latest acquisition
irritated me; yet after thirty years of similar disappointments I should not have
been surprised. How few, even among those interested in books, recognize the
fine, artistic touches that constitute the difference between the commonplace
and the distinguished! The volume under discussion was written by an
authority foremost in the art of bookmaking; its producer was one of the few
great master-printers and binders in the history of the world; yet the only
significance it possessed to its owner was the fact that some one in whom he
had confidence had told him it was rare! Being rare, he coveted the treasure,
and acquired it with no greater understanding than if it had been a piece of
Chinese jade.
“What makes you think this is a fine book?” I inquired, deliberately
changing the approach.
He laughed consciously. “It cost me nine guineas—and I like the looks of
it.”
Restraint was required not to say something that might have affected our
friendship unpleasantly, and friendship is a precious thing.
“Do something for me,” I asked quietly. “That is a short book. Read it
through, even though it is rare, and then let us continue this conversation we
have just begun.”
A few days later he invited me to dine with him at his club. “I asked you
here,” he said, “because I don’t want any one, even my family, to hear what I
am going to admit to you. I have read that book, and I’d rather not know what
you thought of my consummate ignorance of what really enters into the
building of a well-made volume—the choice of type, the use of decoration, the
arrangement of margins. Why, bookmaking is an art! Perhaps I should have
known that, but I never stopped to think about it.”
One does have to stop and think about a well-made book in order to
comprehend the difference between printing that is merely printing and that
which is based upon art in its broadest sense and upon centuries of precedent.
It does require more than a gleam of intelligence to grasp the idea that the
basis of every volume ought to be the thought expressed by the writer; that the
type, the illustrations, the decorations, the paper, the binding, simply combine
to form the vehicle to convey that expression to the reader. When, however,
this fact is once absorbed, one cannot fail to understand that if these various
parts, which compositely comprise the whole, fail to harmonize with the
subject and with each other, then the vehicle does not perform its full and
proper function.
I wondered afterward if I had not been a bit too superior in my attitude
toward my friend. As a matter of fact, printing as an art has returned to its
own only within the last quarter-century. Looking back to 1891, when I began
to serve my apprenticeship under John Wilson at the old University Press in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, the broadness of the profession that I was
adopting as my life’s work had not as yet unfolded its unlimited possibilities.
At that time the three great American printers were John Wilson, Theodore L.
De Vinne, and Henry O. Houghton. The volumes produced under their
supervision were perfect examples of the best bookmaking of the period, yet
no one of these three men looked upon printing as an art. It was William
Morris who in modern times first joined these two words together by the
publication of his magnificent Kelmscott volumes. Such type, such
decorations, such presswork, such sheer, composite beauty!
This was in 1895. Morris, in one leap, became the most famous printer in
the world. Every one tried to produce similar volumes, and the resulting
productions, made without appreciating the significance of decoration
combined with type, were about as bad as they could be. I doubt if, at the
present moment, there exists a single one of these sham Kelmscotts made in
America that the printer or the publisher cares to have recalled to him.
When the first flair of Morris’ popularity passed away, and his volumes
were judged on the basis of real bookmaking, they were classified as
marvelously beautiful objets d’art rather than books—composites of Burne-
Jones, the designer, and William Morris, the decorator-printer, co-workers in
sister arts; but from the very beginning Morris’ innovations showed the world
that printing still belonged among the fine arts. The Kelmscott books awoke in
me an overwhelming desire to put myself into the volumes I produced. I
realized that no man can give of himself beyond what he possesses, and that to
make my ambition worth accomplishing I must absorb and make a part of
myself the beauty of the ancient manuscripts and the early printed books. This
led me to take up an exhaustive study of the history of printing.
JOHN GUTENBERG, c. 1400–1468
From Engraving by Alphonse Descaves
Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris

Until then Gutenberg’s name, in my mind, had been preëminent. As I


proceeded, however, I came to know that he was not really the “inventor” of
printing, as I had always thought him to be; that he was the one who first
foresaw the wonderful power of movable types as a material expression of the
thought of man, rather than the creator of anything previously unknown. I
discovered that the Greeks and the Romans had printed from stamps centuries
earlier, and that the Chinese and the Koreans had cut individual characters in
metal.
I well remember the thrill I experienced when I first realized—and at the
time thought my discovery was original!—that, had the Chinese or the
Saracens possessed Gutenberg’s wit to join these letters together into words,
the art of printing must have found its way to Constantinople, which would
have thus become the center of culture and learning in the fifteenth century.

From this point on, my quest seemed a part of an Arabian Nights’ tale.
Cautiously opening a door, I would find myself in a room containing treasures
of absorbing interest. From this room there were doors leading in different
directions into other rooms even more richly filled; and thus onward, with
seemingly no end, to the fascinating rewards that came through effort and
perseverance.
Germany, although it had produced Gutenberg, was not sufficiently
developed as a nation to make his work complete. The open door led me away
from Germany into Italy, where literary zeal was at its height. The life and
customs of the Italian people of the fifteenth century were spread out before
me. In my imagination I could see the velvet-gowned agents of the wealthy
patrons of the arts searching out old manuscripts and giving commissions to
the scribes to prepare hand-lettered copies for their masters’ libraries. I could
mingle with the masses and discover how eager they were to learn the truth in
the matter of religion, and the cause and the remedies of moral and material
evils by which they felt themselves oppressed. I could share with them their
expectant enthusiasm and confidence that the advent of the printing press
would afford opportunity to study description and argument where previously
they had merely gazed at pictorial design. I could sense the desire of the
people for books, not to place in cabinets, but to read in order to know; and I
could understand why workmen who had served apprenticeships in Germany
so quickly sought out Italy, the country where princes would naturally become
patrons of the new art, where manuscripts were ready for copy, and where a
public existed eager to purchase their products.
While striving to sense the significance of the conflicting elements I felt
around me, I found much of interest in watching the scribes fulfilling their
commissions to prepare copies of original manuscripts, becoming familiar for
the first time with the primitive methods of book manufacture and
distribution. A monastery possessed an original manuscript of value. In its
scriptorium (the writing office) one might find perhaps twenty or thirty monks
seated at desks, each with a sheet of parchment spread out before him, upon
which he inscribed the words that came to him in the droning, singsong voice
of the reader selected for the duty because of his familiarity with the subject
matter of the volume. The number of desks the scriptorium could accommodate
determined the size of this early “edition.”
When these copies were completed, exchanges were made with other
monasteries that possessed other original manuscripts, of which copies had
been made in a similar manner. I was even more interested in the work of the
secular scribes, usually executed at their homes, for it was to these men that
the commissions were given for the beautiful humanistic volumes. As they had
taken up the art of hand lettering from choice or natural aptitude instead of as
a part of monastic routine, they were greater artists and produced volumes of
surpassing beauty. A still greater interest in studying this art of hand lettering
lay in the knowledge that it soon must become a lost art, for no one could
doubt that the printing press had come to stay.
Then, turning to the office of Aldus, I pause for a moment to read the
legend placed conspicuously over the door:
Whoever thou art, thou art earnestly requested by Aldus to state thy business briefly
and to take thy departure promptly. In this way thou mayest be of service even as was
Hercules to the weary Atlas, for this is a place of work for all who may enter
ALDUS MANUTIUS, 1450–1515
From Engraving at the British Museum

But inside the printing office I find Aldus and his associates talking of
other things than the books in process of manufacture. They are discussing the
sudden change of attitude on the part of the wealthy patrons of the arts who,
after welcoming the invention of printing, soon became alarmed by the
enthusiasm of the people, and promptly reversed their position. No wonder
that Aldus should be concerned as to the outcome! The patrons of the arts
represented the culture and wealth and political power of Italy, and they now
discovered in the new invention an actual menace. To them the magnificent
illuminated volumes of the fifteenth century were not merely examples of
decoration, but they represented the tribute that this cultured class paid to the
thought conveyed, through the medium of the written page, from the author
to the world. This jewel of thought they considered more valuable than any
costly gem. They perpetuated it by having it written out on parchment by the
most accomplished scribes; they enriched it by illuminated embellishments
executed by the most famous artists; they protected it with bindings in which
they actually inlaid gold and silver and jewels. To have this thought cheapened
by reproduction through the commonplace medium of mechanical printing
wounded their æsthetic sense. It was an expression of real love of the book
that prompted Bisticci, the agent of so powerful a patron as the Duke of
Urbino, to write of the Duke’s splendid collection in the latter part of the
fifteenth century:
In that library the books are all beautiful in a superlative degree, and all written
by the pen. There is not a single one of them printed, for it would have been a shame to
have one of that sort.
Aldus is not alarmed by the solicitude of the patrons for the beauty of the
book. He has always known that in order to exist at all the printed book must
compete with the written volume; and he has demonstrated that, by supplying
to the accomplished illuminators sheets carefully printed on parchment, he can
produce volumes of exquisite beauty, of which no collector need be ashamed.
Aldus knows that there are other reasons behind the change of front on the
part of the patrons. Libraries made up of priceless manuscript volumes are
symbols of wealth, and through wealth comes power. With the multiplication
of printed books this prestige will be lessened, as the masses will be enabled to
possess the same gems of thought in less extravagant and expensive form. If,
moreover, the people are enabled to read, criticism, the sole property of the
scholars, will come into their hands, and when they once learn self-reliance
from their new intellectual development they are certain to attack dogma and
political oppression, even at the risk of martyrdom. The princes and patrons
of Italy are intelligent enough to know that their self-centered political power
is doomed if the new art of printing secures a firm foothold.
What a relief to such a man as Aldus when it became fully demonstrated
that the desire on the part of the people to secure books in order to learn was
too great to be overcome by official mandate or insidious propaganda! With
what silent satisfaction did he settle back to continue his splendid work! The
patrons, in order to show what a poor thing the printed book really was, gave
orders to the scribes and the illuminators to prepare volumes for them in such
quantities that the art of hand lettering received a powerful impetus, as a result
of which the hand letters themselves attained their highest point of perfection.
This final struggle on the part of the wealthy overlords resulted only in
redoubling the efforts of the artist master-printers to match the beauty of the
written volumes with the products from their presses.
These Arabian Nights’ experiences occupied me from 1895, when Morris
demonstrated the unlimited possibilities of printing as an art, until 1901, when
I first visited Italy and gave myself an opportunity to become personally
acquainted with the historical landmarks of printing, which previously I had
known only from study. In Florence it was my great good fortune to become
intimately acquainted with the late Doctor Guido Biagi, at that time librarian
of the Laurenziana and the Riccardi libraries, and the custodian of the Medici,
the Michelangelo, and the da Vinci archives. I like to think of him as I first saw
him then, sitting on a bench in front of one of the carved plutei designed by
Michelangelo, in the wonderful Sala di Michelangiolo in the Laurenziana Library,
studying a beautifully illuminated volume resting before him, which was
fastened to the desk by one of the famous old chains. He greeted me with an
old-school courtesy. When he discovered my genuine interest in the books he
loved, and realized that I came as a student eager to listen to the master’s word,
his face lighted up and we were at once friends.
Dott. Comm. GUIDO BIAGI
Seated at one of the plutei in the
Laurenziana Library, Florence (1906)

In the quarter of a century which passed from this meeting until his death
we were fellow-students, and during that period I never succeeded in
exhausting the vast store of knowledge he possessed, even though he gave of
it with the freest generosity. From him I learned for the first time of the far-
reaching influence of the humanistic movement upon everything that had to
do with the litteræ humaniores, and this new knowledge enabled me to crystallize
much that previously had been fugitive. “The humanist,” Doctor Biagi
explained to me, “whether ancient or modern, is one who holds himself open
to receive Truth, unprejudiced as to its source, and—what is more important
—after having received Truth realizes his obligation to the world to give it out
again, made richer by his personal interpretation.”
This humanistic movement was the forerunner and the essence of the
Renaissance, being in reality a revolt against the barrenness of mediævalism.
Until then ignorance, superstition, and tradition had confined intellectual life
on all sides, but the little band of humanists, headed by Petrarch, put forth a
claim for the mental freedom of man and for the full development of his
being. As a part of this claim they demanded the recognition of the rich
humanities of Greece and Rome, which were proscribed by the Church. If this
claim had been postponed another fifty years, the actual manuscripts of many
of the present standard classics would have been lost to the world.
The significance of the humanistic movement in its bearing upon the
Quest of the Perfect Book is that the invention of printing fitted exactly into
the Petrarchian scheme by making it possible for the people to secure volumes
that previously, in their manuscript form, could be owned only by the wealthy
patrons. This was the point at which Doctor Biagi’s revelation and my previous
study met. The Laurenziana Library contains more copies of the so-called
humanistic manuscripts, produced in response to the final efforts on the part
of patrons to thwart the increasing popularity of the new art of printing, than
any other single library. Doctor Biagi proudly showed me some of these
treasures, notably Antonio Sinibaldi’s Virgil. The contrast between the hand
lettering in these volumes and the best I had ever seen before was startling.
Here was a hand letter, developed under the most romantic and dramatic
conditions, which represented the apotheosis of the art. The thought flashed
through my mind that all the types in existence up to this point had been
based upon previous hand lettering less beautiful and not so perfect in
execution.
“Why is it,” I demanded excitedly, “that no type has ever been designed
based upon this hand lettering at its highest point of perfection?”
HAND-WRITTEN HUMANISTIC CHARACTERS
From Sinibaldi’s Virgil, 1485
Laurenziana Library, Florence (12 × 8 inches)

Doctor Biagi looked at me and shrugged his shoulders. “This, my friend,”


he answered, smiling, “is your opportunity.”
At this point began one of the most fascinating and absorbing adventures
in which any one interested in books could possibly engage. At some time, I
suppose, in the life of every typographer comes the ambition to design a
special type, so it was natural that the idea contained in Doctor Biagi’s remark
should suggest possibilities which filled me with enthusiasm. I was familiar
with the history of the best special faces, and had learned how difficult each
ambitious designer had found the task of translating drawings into so rigid a
medium as metal; so I reverted soberly and with deep respect to the subject of
type design from the beginning.
In studying the early fonts of type, I found them exact counterfeits of the
best existing forms of hand lettering at that time employed by the scribes. The
first Italic font cut by Aldus, for instance, is said to be based upon the thin,
inclined handwriting of Petrarch. The contrast between these slavish copies of
hand-lettered models and the mechanical precision of characters turned out by
modern type founders made a deep impression. Of the two I preferred the
freedom of the earliest types, but appreciated how ill adapted these models
were to the requirements of typography. A hand-lettered page, even with the
inevitable irregularities, is pleasing because the scribe makes a slight variation
in forming the various characters. When, however, an imperfect letter is cut in
metal, and repeated many times upon the same page, the irregularity forces
itself unpleasantly upon the eye. Nicolas Jenson was the first to realize this,
and in his famous Roman type he made an exact interpretation of what the
scribe intended to accomplish in each of the letters, instead of copying any
single hand letter, or making a composite of many hand designs of the same
character. For this reason the Jenson type has not only served as the basis of
the best standard Roman fonts down to the present time, but has also proved
the inspiration for later designs of distinctive type faces, such as William
Morris’ Golden type, and Emery Walker’s Doves type.
Specimen Page of proposed Edition of Dante. To be
printed by Bertieri, of Milan, in Humanistic Type (8¼ × 6)

William Morris’ experience is an excellent illustration of the difficulties a


designer experiences. He has left a record of how he studied the Jenson type
with great care, enlarging it by photography, and redrawing it over and over
again before he began designing his own letter. When he actually produced his
Golden type the design was far too much inclined to the Gothic to resemble
the model he selected. His Troy and Chaucer types that followed showed the
strong effect of the German influence that the types of Schoeffer, Mentelin,
and Gunther Zainer made upon him. The Doves type is based flatly upon the
Jenson model; yet it is an absolutely original face, retaining all the charm of the
model, to which is added the artistic genius of the designer. Each receives its
personality from the understanding and interpretation of the creator (pages 22,
23).

Jenson’s Roman Type.


From Cicero: Rhetorica, Venice, 1470 (Exact size)
Emery Walker’s Doves Type.
From Paradise Regained, London, 1905 (Exact size)

From this I came to realize that it is no more necessary for a type designer
to express his individuality by adding or subtracting from his model than for a
portrait painter to change the features of his subject because some other artist
has previously painted it. Wordsworth once said that the true portrait of a man
shows him, not as he looks at any one moment of his life, but as he really
looks all the time. This is equally true of a hand letter, and explains the vast
differences in the cut of the same type face by various foundries and for the
typesetting machines. All this convinced me that, if I were to make the
humanistic letters the model for my new type, I must follow the example of
Emery Walker rather than that of William Morris.
During the days spent in the small, cell-like alcove which had been turned
over for my use in the Laurenziana Library, I came so wholly under the
influence of the peculiar atmosphere of antiquity that I felt myself under an
obsession of which I have not been conscious before or since. My enthusiasm
was abnormal, my efforts tireless. The world outside seemed very far away, the
past seemed very near, and I was indifferent to everything except the task
before me. This curious experience was perhaps an explanation of how the
monks had been able to apply themselves so unceasingly to their prodigious
labors, which seem beyond the bounds of human endurance.
My work at first was confined to a study of the humanistic volumes in the
Laurenziana Library, and the selection of the best examples to be taken as final
models for the various letters. From photographed reproductions of selected
manuscript pages, I took out fifty examples of each letter. Of these fifty,
perhaps a half-dozen would be almost identical, and from these I learned the
exact design the scribe endeavored to repeat. I also decided to introduce the
innovation of having several characters for certain letters that repeated most
frequently, in order to preserve the individuality of the hand lettering, and still
keep my design within the rigid limitations of type. Of the letter e, for instance,
eight different designs were finally selected; there were five a’s, two m’s, and so
on (see illustration at page 32).
After becoming familiar with the individual letters as shown in the
Laurenziana humanistic volumes, I went on to Milan and the Ambrosiana
Library, with a letter from Doctor Biagi addressed to the librarian, Monsignor
Ceriani, explaining the work upon which I was engaged, and seeking his co-
operation. It would be impossible to estimate Ceriani’s age at that time, but he
was very old. He was above middle height, his frame was slight, his eyes
penetrating and burning with a fire that showed at a glance how affected he
was by the influence to which I have already referred. His skin resembled in
color and texture the very parchment of the volumes he handled with such
affection, and in his religious habit he seemed the embodiment of ancient
learning.
After expressing his deep interest in my undertaking, he turned to a
publication upon which he himself was engaged, the reproduction in facsimile
of the earliest known manuscript of Homer’s Iliad. The actual work on this, he
explained, was being carried on by his assistant, a younger priest whom he

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