Respectable and Disreputable Women Mechanisms of Relief for and Oppression of Women in Spain in the Early Modern Period

One of the defining characteristics of the working classes during the Old Regime was poverty, and the main victims were women, especially those who “vivían sobre sí” [eighteenth century Spanish expression meaning to fend for or support oneself]. Indeed, the percentage of female-headed households in cities which were considered “impoverished” was higher than that of male-headed households. Furthermore, women not only had to cope with hardship and destitution but they also expected to scrupulously observe the prevailing moral doctrine. If they were considered respectable, they were eligible to receive relief from public and private charitable institutions, but should they transgress the moral standards of the day, they would find that there was no room for tolerance