From Mothers in the Home to Mothers of the Nation: The Image of Women in Saxon Publications at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century (c. 1860-1930)

Focusing on the public discourse (appearing in various types of publications), this study aims to explore the main roles attributed to women and especially to married ones by elite members of the Saxon society in Transylvania at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century. The analysis tries to establish which were these roles, how were they perceived by men and women, when and how were they adapted to exterior political, economic and social pressures. It also takes into consideration the influence of Saxon nationalism and the discourse of the emancipation movement of Saxon women in Transylvania in shaping women's position in the family and in Saxon society during the above-mentioned period.

Keywords: Saxon women, marriage, motherhood, gender roles.