The First Women in Slovene Public Space: An Analysis of Social Capital and Networks from a Sociological and Historical Perspective is a master's thesis, which examines women who entered the field of public affairs in Ljubljana between 1848 and 1914. In this thesis I delve deeper into the cases of 54 women living in Ljubljana during that period, to identify their social background, their matrimonial status, and their involvement into public life. Furthermore, this paper deals in more detail with different sociological concepts – (bourgeois) habitus, social capital and social class - through which I try to demonstrate and solidify the characteristics of the social class the chosen women belonged to. According to my analysis of several editions of Slovenski narod, censuses of the Ljubljana population, the International Historical Class Scheme - HISCLASS and reports of some Ljubljana clubs and societies, I found that many aforementioned individuals formed ties with the then Ljubljana elite (as daughters and wives) and in public they were also known as cultural figures and artists. An important part of the women involved in Ljubljana's socio-political activities ere teachers. It turned out that quite a few of them came from disadvantaged backgrounds, which they managed to overcome through education or marriage. With the help of the details of membership in various Ljubljana clubs and societies, I present the details of the women’s activities, their mutual acquaintances and the involvement of their husbands and parents. In the thesis I also intertwine the relations between the sexes, the relationship between the public and private sphere and the entry of women into the public considering the national engagement of the Slovenian nation during the observed period.
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