No more library classes for Catherine: Marital status, career progression and library employment in 1950s England

This article uses a discursive analysis to explore constructions of unmarri ed women in three 1950s library career novels. We suggest that, within thes e texts, spinsters were constructed as oppositional to single women. Throug h a discussion of the stereotype of the library spinster we illustrate that spinsters were portrayed as old and unattractive, as "Other" to single wom en who were portrayed as young and heterosexually attractive, or "heterosex y." We also argue that whilst the stated aims of these career novels were t o encourage teenage girls into library work, they also, paradoxically, alon g with other contemporary discourses, contributed to the impoverishment of some women's library career prospects. A significant factor in this curtail ment was the marriage bar which we define in relation to employment general ly and library work specifically. Our arguments are supported by reference to both library history and women's history. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.