The Young Bride 1875

Mary Cassatt created this oil on canvas painting, *The Young Bride,* during her time in France. It shows a young woman, possibly on the cusp of marriage, engaged in domestic handiwork. Cassatt was an American expatriate, who exhibited with the Impressionists in France, and she often focused on domestic scenes and the lives of women. But, unlike her French colleagues, Cassatt seemed less interested in the objective recording of light, and more concerned with conveying the subjective and psychological experience of her sitters. This particular image evokes some important social and cultural contexts. Consider the emphasis on domesticity, which reflects the limited roles available to women in the late 19th century. The act of knitting can be seen as both a creative activity and a symbol of female confinement. To understand more, we might look at contemporary etiquette manuals, domestic advice books, and of course, biographies of Cassatt and her circle. Through this, we can start to see how Cassatt both accepted and subtly challenged the social norms of her time.