A Unique Position: A Biography of Edith Dircksey Cowan 1861-1932 by Peter Cowan

Book Description

Secondhand. Very good condition. Minor wear to book corners and edges. Tiny mark on top foredge. Dust jacket has light creasing at edges and spine. Dust jacket is now enclosed in a glossy protective cover. Interior and binding are still excellent.

Edith Dirksey Cowan (1861-1932) was the first woman member of an Australian parliament, being elected to the Legislative Assembly as the member for West Perth, 1921-24.

This biography traces her ancestry, her formative years, marriage and family and her development as a pioneer working for social causes and the advancement of women's rights from the 1890s until her death. The author portrays her life against the backdrop of her time, which shaped her, while showing that she, in turn, contributed to shaping that time.

Edith Cowan was concerned with the lack of opportunity which the society of her time offered women in education, occupation and common civil rights, and with how little they were offered in hospital and medical care, her work to help right these matters - and for the provision of day nurseries, kindergartens, a Children's Court, the right of women to serve as justices, to be represented in parliament and the legal profession is discussed, also her war work for which she was awarded the OBE.