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- Title
Breathing Power and Poise: Black Women's Movements for Self-Expression and Health, 1880s-1900s.
- Authors
Streeter, Carrie
- Abstract
In the late nineteenth century, many Americans embraced François Delsarte's "Laws of Expression" as a scientific study of emotion. Believing that his theories established universal principles about the union of mind, body, and spirit, American elocutionists cited Delsarte's laws as they created norm-defying physical exercises designed to help women overcome nervousness and strengthen their powers of self-expression. "Delsarte" classes typically featured breathing, relaxing, and energizing exercises, often conducted in a loose-fitting Grecian-styled robe. This article follows the experiences of Black women who practiced these exercises in the Black churches and community centers of Indianapolis, Indiana. Through their stories, I demonstrate how Black women engaged "Delsarte" exercises in ways that united personal wellbeing with projects of social activism. In doing so, this article brings visibility to longstanding erasures of Black women's practices for self-expression and health.
- Subjects
HEALTH of Black women; RESPIRATION; EXERCISE physiology; SELF-expression; DELSARTE, Francois
- Publication
Australasian Journal of American Studies, 2020, Vol 39, Issue 1, p5
- ISSN
1838-9554
- Publication type
Article