The Young House-Keeper, or, Thoughts on Food and Cookery (1838)
AUTHOR: Alcott, William Andrus
https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/005809884
https://archive.org/details/younghousekeeper00alco
KEYWORDS: diet, food, household economics, women's status
---. Rose in Bloom
Alcott, William. Gift Book for Young Ladies
---. The Home-book of Life and Health ---. “Woman a Slave in Her Own House”
Beecher, Catharine Esther. A Treatise on Domestic Economy
---. Woman’s Profession as Mother and Educator
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---. The Girl's Own Book
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---. Millennium Guild pamphlets
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Jackson, James Caleb. American Womanhood
Kellogg, Ella Ervilla. Every-Day Dishes and Every-Day Work
---. Healthful Cookery
---. Natural Food Recipes
Nichols, Mary Sargeant Gove. Agnes Morris
Nichols, Thomas Low. “Dietetics”
---. Dr. Nichols' Penny Vegetarian Cookery
---. How to Live on a Dime and A-Half A-Day
Smith, Ellen Goodell. The Art of Living
---. The Fat of the Land and How to Live on It
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Trall, Russell Thacher. The New Hydropathic Cook-Book
SUMMARY (Bryn Skibo, edited Deborah Madsen):
Preface: The purpose of the book is to elevate house-keeping to a respected profession and one deserving of study: “The elements of the nation, nay, of the world itself, are prepared, to a great extent, in our nurseries, and around the domestic fireplace” (19). “I hope [the text] will prove a timely contribution to the cause of human improvement – to the melioration, the elevation, the restoration of fallen humanity” (20).
Chapter I: “Dignity of the House-Keeper”
Alcott makes clear that he is not confusing the positions of “mother” and “housekeeper,” because they are very different (27). Alcott states that “[t]he plan of the Creator most certainly does require that these household duties should, as a general rule, be performed by the mother” (30). A lengthy discussion follows of the value, importance, and duties of a housekeeper (note: the mother directs the housekeeper), placing the housekeeper potentially above legislators, because no one more directly influences the development of a person than her. He discusses such topics as “Cookery, As It Should Be”; “Economy of Time, By a Reformation in Cookery”; “Expense of Animal and Vegetable Food Compared”; and “How to Begin the Work of Reformation.” The chapters that most directly address Alcott's vegetable diet are:
Chapter VI: “Nature of Food in General”
Alcott poses a series of questions. “Man” is an omnivore “But because he can subsist on all things, does it therefore follow that he must eat all things?” (80). “Why has the Creator delegated him the right of choice?” (80). “What kinds of food are best for healthy persons – best for their whole being, here and hereafter?” (90).