An American in Prussia: A Female View of Social Conditions, 1884-1900

FAIN: FT-11962-74

Holger H. Herwig
Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN 37203-2416)

To study in German archives in order to confirm the accuracy of diary entries of Lida Mary Schoonmaker, to gather documentary materials on many of the central issues raised, and to use geneological guides in order to identify both major and minor dramatis personae. The diaries of Lida Mary Schoonmaker, an American, concerning her life among Purssian aristocrats from 1884 to 1900 provide insight into social conditions prevalent in Wilhelmian German. Moreover, they afford an intimate view of the emotional and intellectual problems and challenges that faced Victorian women.