women and the rural idyll

Pergamon

S0743-0167(96)00004-6

Journal o]Rural Studies, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 101-111. 1996 Copyright (~) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd

Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved 0743-0167/96 $15.00 + 0.00

Women and the Rural Idyll

Jo Little* and Patricia Austin? * Department of Geography, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4RJ, U.K.

+ Department of Planning, University of Auckland, New Zealand

Abstract - - The existence of a 'rural idyll' has been widely accepted by social scientists working within the rural field. Yet the term itself has received relatively little critical attention. In particular, the variable characteristics and impacts of the rural idyll amongst different groups within the rural population has been largely overlooked. The cultural turn in rural geography and the emphasis which has recently been placed on identifying and studying the rural 'other' provides an important opportunity for the notion of a rural idyll to be unpacked from the perspective of different rural dwellers. This paper investigates the role of the rural idyll in maintaining rural gender relations. It examines women's attitudes towards and experiences of two key elements of the rural idyll; the family and the community. Drawing on material from interviews with women in rural Avon in the south west of England, the paper shows how women's identity as 'rural women" is closely tied in to their images and understanding of rural society. It is argued, in particular, that the opportunities available and acceptable to women are built on very strong assumptions and expectations about motherhood and belonging within a rural community. Some of the more practical implications of these expectations are explored in the context of women's involvement in the community and in the labour market. Copyright ~ 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd

Introduct ion

Debates concerning the distinctiveness of a rural ideology have been pushed to the forefront as rural geographers begin to acknowledge the centrality of people ' s ideas and values about the spaces they occupy to at tempts to 'make sense of the rural ' (Crouch, 1992). Attention has started to turn to the 'everyday knowledge ' of both ordinary and elevated folk (Gale and Anderson, 1992) in explaining socio- economic patterns and processes in the countryside and by so doing has awakened interest in the partial and often contradictory nature of different views of rurality. At a time when the changing fortunes and demands of agriculture are opening up new possibil- ities for rural land use in Britain, questions about the 'value ' of the countryside and how it is perceived have become critical. Decisions about the future of rural areas embrace a particular set of priorities which in turn are derived from a particular (and often very specific) view of the rural. Just whose view of the rural this is has become an urgent question for rural geographers. The academic inter- ests of seeking to identify an underlying rural ideology consequently dovetail with the political imperative of evaluating and negotiating the future of the countryside.

The "cultural turn' in rural geography and the resulting interest in constructions of rurality (see, for example , Cloke et al., 1994; Halfacree, 1993; Murdoch and Pratt, 1993; Philo, 1992) has reopened debate on the existence and nature of a "rural idyll'. While the notion itself has been around for many years (both in academic and popular texts), the current 'conceptual reinvestment in the rural" (Whatmore , 1993, p. 538) has provided an impetus for its re-evaluation. Despite its wide use in the past, the rural idyll as a concept, or set of concepts, has never been adequately unpacked. The term has been used to describe the positive images surrounding many aspects of the rural lifestyle, community and landscape, reinforcing, at its simplest, healthy, peaceful secure and prosperous representations of rurality. Many writers have referred to qualities or attributes felt to be important to the rural idyll (see, for example , Williams, 1973; Short, 1991; Laing, 1992; Mingay, 1989) but few have looked in any depth at how these may vary between groups and individuals (exceptions include Cloke and Milbourne, 1992). Just as important is the absence of detailed investigation into the impact of striving for and maintaining a rural idyll on the lives of rural dwellers. We thus know very little about the precise and variable power of the rural idyll as a set of

101

102 Jo Little and Patricia Austin

representations of the rural or about its distri- butional implications for different groups in society.

The purpose of this paper is to begin to examine critically the contemporary rural idyll from the perspective of one particular group in rural society, that of rural women. The paper starts by briefly considering some of the commonly accepted representations of rurality within the so-called rural idyll. It then goes on to interrogate these in relation to women's perceptions and experiences of rural life. The aim is to explore how women's values, perceptions, expectations and self-identities reflect a particular view of rurality and to investigate the way this view then becomes incorporated into their behaviour and lifestyles. The paper argues, as a starting point, that the rural idyll is instrumental in shaping and sustaining patriarchal gender relations and that it incorporates, both consciously and unconsciously, "strong expectations concerning aspects of household strategy and gender roles and consequently impacts on the nature of women's experience within the rural community. It will draw on the rather limited literature which exists on gender relations in rural communities (see, Hughes, forthcoming; Little, 1987; Whatmore, 1993) and provide new evidence from recent empirical work in rural Avon in southern Britain.

Representations of rurality and the rural idyll

Any entry into the recent literature reveals that, as a cultural concept, the rural idyll (or indeed more broadly, rurality) has no single meaning; it is, as Cloke and Milbourne (1992) acknowledge, complex, often denying neat interdivision. Citing the work of Mormont (1990), these authors ground their discussion of the rural idyll in the problems of defining rural spaces and the assertion that 'there is no longer one single rural space, but rather a multiplicity of social spaces that overlap the same geographical area' (Cloke and Milbourne, 1992, p. 360). 'Rural- ity' becomes a social construct and 'rural' a 'world of social, moral and cultural values' as defined and understood by rural dwellers. The construction of rurality takes place over a range of different spatial scales, shifting subtly in emphasis over time.

Despite this inherent fluidity in the meanings ascribed to the countryside, there are clearly elements of the cultural representation of rurality that endure, changed only minimally, over time and space. Indeed it is the very sustainability of the fimages' and 'myths' of rural life that ensure their importance not simply as a reflection of people's views and beliefs about rurality but also as a force in the recreation of 'place' and associated socio-spatial

relations. A number of texts have sought to identify some of these myths as they have been reproduced in past and present literature and in art (see Williams, 1973; Short, 1991; Barrell, 1992) while others have documented their existence in advertis- ing and in the media (see Laing, 1992; McLaughlin, 1986). Such sources demonstrate the central elements of the rural idyll, showing how these are sustained through selected texts, paintings and so on. Just as importantly, they explain the essential power of accepted images of rurality, noting their role in maintaining a particular pattern of social relations and an accepted order within the rural community (see Wiener, 1981).

Pivotal to the myths and images surrounding rural life is a nostalgia for the past and an escape from modernity. As Short (1991, p. 34) writes:

The countryside as past is often used in contrast with the fears of the present and the dread of the future . . . Households can look back to rural roots. (The countryside) is the location of nostalgia, the setting for the simpler lives of our forebears, a people whose existence seems idyllic because they are unencumbered with the immense task of living in the present.

Rural life has long been associated with an uncom- plicated, innocent, more genuine society in which 'traditional values' persist and lives are more real. Pastimes, friendships, family relations and even employment are seen as somehow more honest and authentic, unencumbered with the false and in- sincere trappings of city life or with their associated dubious values.

The perceived harmony of social relations has assumed an important role in the rural idyll and, more specifically, in the images and myths surrounding the village community. Even where poverty and deprivation are acknowledged and where that deprivation is linked to poor wages and exploitation, the traditional rural community is represented as a place of happiness and solidarity where kinship ties prevail and where relationships are unfailingly 'tight knit'. The village community is seen as a place where few slip through the net of a caring paternalistic society. People take responsibility for the welfare of others unlike in the city where most turn a blind eye to the plight of the individual.

An important feature of the rural idyll is its ability to survive over time. A number of authors have focused on the durability of traditional images of the countryside (see, for example, Bunce, 1994; Newby, 1979; Short, 1991), attributing this to the ability of the rural ideology to adapt to the needs of the time and to the place of the countryside in the national identity. As part of the process of adaptation, the

Women and the Rural Idyll 103

culture of the countryside has, it is argued (see Cloke and Milbourne, 1992) been sanitised and commodified. Quaint customs and pastimes - - village festivals, dances, games of cricket - - are now available at a price to the visitor or rural resident. Buildings, monuments and even entire villages constitute important 'heritage capital' to be pack- aged and sold to tourists, while the wealthy are permitted more permanent access to the rural idyll in the acquisition of their own privatised piece of the countryside. This recognition that access to and ownership of the countryside is selective raises the issue of rural landscapes as landscapes of power. A key feature of the rural idyll is that it not only reflects, as mentioned above, particular power relations in society but that it increasingly relies on the notion of exclusion and selectivity.

Past images of rurality reflect the experiences of the elite, the wealthy and the powerful and are sustained largely by the labour and poverty of the village labourer. As Jackson (1989, p. 38) writes: 'pastoral visions of the countryside concealed the labour that made the rural idyll possible for the few by denying basic rights to the many'. Hidden behind the images of bucolic health and happiness lay poverty and deprivation and a set of oppressive power relations in which the majority of villagers were dependent on the paternalism of local land owners. While contemporary rural power relations may involve somewhat different 'actors' , they are nonetheless critical to issues of access. Work on rural class structures (see, for example, Cloke and Thrift, 1990; Newby, 1979; Phillips, 1993) has established the notion of the countryside as a 'positional good' to which access is dependent on wealth arguing that the attributes of the countryside have become increasingly commodified, assimilated into the consumption patterns of the middle classes.

That the rural idyll has been created by and for the enjoyment of the wealthy there can be no doubt. Equally certain, it may be argued, is that the images of rural life have been deliberately and specifically constructed to sustain as well as reflect the power relations of class. Traditional images of rurality also reflect another form of power relations that is the power of patriarchy. Somewhat less well recognised (although certainly not ignored - - see, for example, the work of Davidoff and Hall, 1987; Delphy, 1984; Little, 1987; Middleton, 1986; Rose, 1993) is the importance of 'home' and 'family' within the rural idyll and, critically, of women's role at the centre of both. Of course this is not exclusively a rural image

- - women's place in the domestic household and the gender relations through which this was established and maintained is seen as central to the creation and appeal of the suburbs for example - - but it is one

which has endured with little questioning or change.

But patriarchal gender relations are still more fundamentally embedded in the creation of the rural idyll. The romantic vision of pastoral England is built on a particular interpretation of masculinity and femininity that sees women representing the innocence of the natural world which 'active masculinity must support, protect and oversee" (Davidoff and Hall, 1987, p. 28). Davidoff and Hall interpret the 'longing for rural tranquility versus urban rest- lessness and corruption' as closely folk)wing the 'dichotomy between Home and Work, both associated with the overarching categories of masculine and feminine' (1987, p. 28). The image of women encompassed in the rural idyll is one of virtue and morality. The so-called 'lynch pin' of the rural community, their actual activities are trivialised except where they are seen to relate directly to the provisioning of men and the sustenance of the male headed household. There has been some discussion in the literature of how such images reflect the reality of gender relations in the contemporary rural community (see, for example, Little, 1987) showing how attitudes to women's place remain highly patriarchal, but such work is poorly developed.

Here we return to the original contention of this paper and to the argument that while we may recognise (to varying degrees) the particular role and place of women in the cultural construction of rurality and acknowledge the patriarchal power relations underlying such a construction, we know relatively little about the implications of these meanings for the lives of women living in rural areas today. To what extent does the notion of a rural idyll impinge on the daily lives of individual women or on their expectations and opportunities? Should the idea of a rural idyll be seen only in very general or abstract terms or as something that has a real and tangible impact on those living or wishing to live in rural communities? Cloke and Milbourne (1992) look at the different geographical scales within which rural meanings are circulated and in doing so start to grapple with the more detailed localised constructions of rurality. While there is clearly an important national construction of the rural, it is at the local level that the dominant meanings are negotiated and at this level that the particular variations in individual factors and localised con- structs are played out (often in a complicated and multifaceted way).

In order to understand more about the rural idyll and its role in constructing and reflecting gender relations we clearly need to move away from broad interpretations of national characteristics to an


examination of localised behaviour patterns, identities and beliefs. Only in this way will it be possible to explore specific elements of the construction of rurality or to fully comprehend how any particular understanding or interpretation of rurality can influence rural lifestyles. It is to this task that the paper now turns.

Women's rural idyll and East Harptree

The following discussion of women's experiences of rural living and of the rural idyll is based on research undertaken in the small village of East Harptree in Avon. The village has a population of 633 (1991 census) and is situated only about 10 miles south of Bristol in the attractive Chew Valley on the edge of the Mendip Hills (see Fig. 1). The area is prime commuter country with good access to Bristol and to other local centres such as Bath and Weston-Super- Mare for those with their own transport. While there has been some new house building in the locality, this has generally been in small 'exclusive' estates and almost invariably of an up-market nature. East Harptree is in a designated Conservation Area and while it has experienced some recent development the village retains a traditional feel and picturesque appearance. It is a location highly sought after by people wishing to move into the area, not simply because of its position and appearance but because it

has retained a primary school, shop and post office as well as a pub and village hall. As a result, the village has a high proportion of middle class 'incomers' - - an important characteristic which cannot be ignored in terms of the issues raised here.

The discussion examines dominant meanings of rurality from the perspective of the women of East Harptree. Their perceptions of the rural community in which they live and their identities within that community are explored in an attempt to identify what they see as key 'qualities' of the rural as well as how such qualities have shaped their own experiences of living in the countryside• The research was undertaken in 1992/3 and included a questionnaire covering a wide range of issues around women's family situation and responsibilities, employment and attitudes towards rural life. This was backed up by longer in depth semi-structured interviews with some respondents. In total, information was gath- ered from 64 women•

The analysis is organised into two main parts reflecting the central themes in women's perceptions of rurality and village life. Clearly, these two areas do not encompass a comprehensive picture of rural imagery and ideology. They were found, however, to hold a very powerful role in terms of women's experiences and understanding of rurality and both appeared to be critical areas in the establishment of

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a rural identity. It should also be remembered here that the material is drawn from one village in a particular ' type' of rural locality, The findings here cannot automatically be assumed to exist in all rural communities. The village of East Harptree, however, in its size and social constitution can be seen as typical in some ways of lowland rural Britain. Moreover , the notion of a rural idyll is something that, as described above, is a common and widespread representation of rurality. While the conclusions reached in this study cannot, therefore simply be applied to all rural England, they do relate to what we would argue are widespread practices and views of rurality as exist in contemporary village communities.

became clear through discussion that for a large proportion of women the positive associations between rural living and the family were influenced very strongly by the perceived needs and welfare of children. Many households had moved to the village at key stages in the lifecycle - - on or just before the birth of children or as children reached school age. Women from such households talked about the 'better environment ' offered by the village for bringing up children; the lack of pollution, the ' f reedom' available to children and the reduced threat of crime and violence. They spoke of a more friendly society in which children could identify more easily with both other children of all ages and adults. As one mother put it:

The farnily

In the preceding section of this paper we acknowledged the role of 'the family' in cultural constructions of rurality. Not unexpectedly, given this debate, 'the family' was frequently cited in discussions concerning the reasons for households (and individuals) choosing to move into or remain in the village. Eight women stated that they had moved to the village on marriage while a further 13 said that they had chosen to live in the village because it offered a 'better environment ' for a family. The fact that this answer was given by a range of different households both in terms of composition and origins indicates the complexity of incorporated meanings. It was apparent that amongst the women interviewed was a group - - 11.3% of questionnaire respondents - - of mainly working class women, who had lived for all or a large part of their lives in East Harptree and for whom 'the family' was the extended family of at least parents or children and siblings. For this small group of women the importance of the family had a practical element; they relied on family very often for housing and/or childcare, and/or transport and without that practical help, life in the village would have been very difficult or even impossible. In turn, they themselves provided practical and emotional support to other members of the extended family - - often in caring roles. For these women there was also, aside from the practical importance, a sense of the family and village as, in many ways, inseparable. The associ- ation was rooted in the past and clearly encapsulated feelings of belonging to a place and having a position as a farnily.

For the majority of respondents the importance of ' the family' and its role in the rural ideology and lifestyle was directly related only to the immediate household. Few had past family associations with the village or roots that originated from the local area. It

The village is wonderful for young children - - it's so easy to get out and go and play with friends. They can walk everywhere - - like to village events such as the bonfire - - there's much more freedom and it's more relaxed than the city (resident of East Harptree, original emphasis).

The notion of children having (or being perceived to have) greater levels of freedom within the countryside is an interesting and complex one, There may be occasions when children living in rural areas do, perhaps because of commonly held beliefs about the relative safety of the countryside, experience greater ~freedom' than their urban counterparts (they may, for example, be permitted to wander further from home). For much of the time, however, rural children's ability to participate in leisure activities, to see friends, etc., is dependent on a parent (generally the mother since many of these activities take place after school) providing transport. In East Harptree frequent reference was made by (mainly middle class) women to their role as ~chauffeurs' or "taxi drivers' as they recounted the complex and often timely travel arrangements that they made in order to transport their children to cubs, brownies, swimming classes, ballet lessons, etc. In some cases even the daily trip to school may have a major impact on women's employment or careers. For one of our respondents, a perceived necessity to meet even older children off the school bus (the walk to their farmhouse being up a very narrow lane with steep banks, heavily used by farm vehicles) has resulted in her working mornings only and delaying undertaking further employment training. The ' f reedom' of children as perceived within the rural idyll clearly depended not only on the availability of private transport to the household but also on the willingness of mothers to drive them to and from various activities.

In practically all cases incorporated within the decision to move to the countryside to provide a better environment for ' the family' and in particular


for 'bringing up children' were voiced firm views about women's roles as wives and mothers. Again, as mentioned above, the rural idyll has traditionally included very conventional images and expectations of women's place in rural society; at the heart of the family, the centre of the community. There can be no doubt that the woman of the rural idyll is the wife and mother, not the high-flying professional, the single childless business entrepreneur. It appeared then that the women questioned in East Harptree conformed closely with the expectations contained within traditional images by generally leaving employment completely when pregnant and not returning (or intending to return) to paid work until their children were at least at junior and often secondary school.

The study of rural women's employment histories shows that few take maternity leave and then return to the same job after or between the birth of children. In East Harptree, of the 45 women questioned who had been in employment before having children, only 10 took maternity leave - - 9 of these returning to the same job after the birth of their child/children. Twenty-six stated that they had left work for several years while having children and didn't have a paid job at all during that time. Those who did take maternity leave and return to the same job were mainly women in professional employment (and at a high level of seniority in that employment), or women who could take their children with them when they returned to work (mainly carers such as nannies). These fragmented career patterns have important implications for the quality and choice of employment available to rural women and for their ability to progress to the higher grades of their profession. Clearly it must be remembered that for some the lack of childcare and transport in rural areas as well as the paucity of local job opportunities will be a factor in their decision to remain at home while their children are small. Employment opportunities in the immediate vicinity tended to be unskilled and poorly paid (for example, two larger local employers included an egg packing business and a yoghurt factory), while women applying for jobs in Bristol said that they are continually asked by prospective employers whether they will find the journey to work a problem and whether they will arrive on time (these issues are explored in more depth elsewhere - - s e e Little, 1987; 1994). Any local vacancies requiring skills such as secretarial or clerical are hugely oversubscribed. It was apparent, however, that giving up paid work while they cared for young children was part of a set of lifestyle decisions which expressly incorporated the desire to 'live in the countryside'.

clear that for many mothers in East Harptree, especially those without generational roots in the area, their involvement in village life took place largely through their children. Not surprisingly, women got to know one another through the 'mothers and toddlers' group and from waiting at the school gates for their children. Yet the importance of children's activities as an entry into village life went beyond this. At least three mothers talked of helping out at the village school on a voluntary basis (by taking small groups of children for cookery 'lessons' or 'art' for example, or running stalls at the school f6te and so on) and how this work helped them to feel 'part of the village'. This obviously raises the question as to how women without children gain entry to the community or fit in to what are seen very much as village events. As a young mother stated:

It would be a bit isolating here without kids. Everything is organised through kids . . . children give you a legitimate presence in the village (East Harptree resident).

Several women interviewed during the course of the research were apparently very conscious of the way in which their lives and identities within the village had become so orientated to the activities of children and to their roles as mothers. For many it was impossible to say whether their lives, attitudes or priorities would have been significantly different had they been living in a town or city since they had no comparable experience on which to base such a judgement. Some did believe that, on a practical level, a lack of job opportunities as well as the absence of services meant that they had little real alternative but to act as full time (taxi driving) mothers. There was also a recognition of the fact that, for small children, the village was relatively well provided. One mother described being 'sucked in' to a life that was dominated by organising and facilitating her children's involvement in local activities. This was not helped by the school day finishing at 2.30 pm (such that many women found it impossible to do even a part-time job without arranging childcare). This woman spoke of being surprised that she had ended up so immersed in the mothering role to the exclusion of many other things (including paid work). Six years ago she had envisaged returning to full time work (as a textile designer) shortly after the birth of her children and believes that she would have done if she and her husband had not moved away from their home town in Derbyshire. In this woman's eyes the rural lifestyle had given her a sense of isolation from the 'real world' that was both physical and mental.

In discussions about their domestic roles it became 'The family' also featured in the economic strategies


of some households beyond simply decisions concerning childcare and employment participation. Seventeen percent of women interviewed said that they had a "family business'. For two women the business was their own venture - - one had a dried flower business and the other was a tutor. The others were mainly involved in family businesses as typists and secretaries and only one received a regular wage for her work. There is a substantial literature spanning urban and rural areas on the nature of family owned and run businesses and some important theoretical debates on the role of such businesses in the context of the operation of both capitalist and patriarchal social and economic relations (see, for example, Redclift and Mingione, 1985). It is not the purpose of this paper to reproduce or even comment on these debates nor to go into great detail about women's involvement in (and frequent exploitation by) family businesses. Here the intention is rather to draw attention to the relationship that appeared to exist between rurality and family enterprise.

A small percentage (5.3%) of households in the East Harptree survey had moved to the area with the intention of setting up and running their own business; some others said that they had considered or were considering self employment. Many of these people referred to some of the practical reasons for setting up a family business in a rural area - - the availability of appropriately sized premises, the lack of some of the major difficulties associated with urban areas, - - especially traffic, car parking and access problems. They also, however, talked about the importance and appropriateness of other less tangible 'qualities' of rural life for the establishment of their businesses. Links were made between the self sufficiency of rural life and family businesses while some traditional attributes of the rural idyll were mentioned as in some senses encouraging to the development of the family business. These included the smallness of the rural community, the honesty and authenticity of rural people as well as the survival of 'real values' including a belief in hard work. In the case of businesses belonging to 'local' families, reference was made to the history of the business and its place in the social and economic development of rural life. For these people the continuity of the family business could not be separated from the continuity of the village community. For example, for at least two local women their success in establishing their own businesses can be directly linked to their ability to draw on their extended family contacts in the Chew Valley and established rural women's organisations such as the Women's Institute (W.I.).

Interestingly, recent economic decline and, in particular, the loss of jobs locally in the service sector,

has resulted in a small number of men in the village becoming self employed. At least three examples of solicitors and accountants setting up in response to actual and potential unemployment were cited by women we interviewed. In other cases women themselves had taken on employment or set up businesses to provide income for the household (one, for example, had started a bed and breakfast business). In such cases the family business loses its romantic rural associations and can, instead, become a source of stress within the family. Examples were given in East Harptree of families who had taken on large mortgages to buy expensive property when they first came to the village and were now, in the face of redundancy, struggling to support their former lifestyles. Health workers in the area spoke of the mounting levels of stress within these rural households and of the rising numbers of associated divorces.

Clearly all these issues impinge on the reality of life in the countryside. Amongst those interviewed these negative experiences did not appear to have threat- ened the positive perceptions of rural living but they did cause some women to reflect on the fact that their particular 'idylls' incorporated taken-for- granted economic security which for others may not have existed. The examples included here demonstrate the ways in which parts of the rural lifestyle are interlinked and that in everyday lived experience they cannot be said, individually, to sustain the rural idyll.

The community

Like 'the family', ' the rural community' has featured significantly within conventional rural ideology and the notion of a tight-knit, friendly, caring community looms large in peoples' images of both past and present village society. For women the ideal rural community and its role in village life takes on a particular set of meanings the nature and implications of which are explored below. As will be argued at the end of this section, the views expressed here represent one particular conceptualisation of community yet one which holds considerable power within the rural idyll.

As with the myths and assumptions surrounding the 'rural family', it was very clear from the research that the image of the friendly rural community not only attracted people to the village initially, but also helped to shape their attitudes and behaviour once they lived there. The research sought to identify precisely how conventional beliefs and assumptions about the village community impacted on women's lifestyles and behaviour. It should be remembered


that the rural 'community' as a complex and changing entity will mean different things to different people. In discussing their attitudes to and experiences of rural life, women were encouraged to apply their own definitions and meanings of ' the community' with no attempt being made to require or impose a definition from outside.

Not unexpectedly, women's remarks about the rural community seemed to confirm the traditional perceptions that it is 'friendly', 'supportive' and generally 'caring' in a way that the urban community is not. For the women interviewed in East Harptree, ' the community ' had a clear identity which encouraged in them a sense of belonging. They recognised certain conventional divisions between groups of village people (classically the 'locals' and 'newcomers ') but were quick to point out that such divisions in no way impinged on the overall friendliness of the place and the ability of village people to 'pull together ' and look after one another in times of need or crisis. One resident claimed 'it's very friendly here - - there are divisions but we always help each other ' .

In recounting the importance of the friendliness of the village and of the strength of 'community spirit', women described how their behaviour and attitudes had changed (both consciously and unconsciously) in response. One of the most telling anecdotes came from a woman who had lived in the village for a few years having moved into the countryside from the middle of Bristol. She told of her experiences on arriving in the village and described how she had been particularly touched by the friendliness of other villagers and the fact that one had left a cake on her door step as a way of welcoming her to the village. Some time later and settled in East Harptree the woman noticed another young family moving in and repeated the gesture of welcome. The two women, having children of the same age struck up a friendship. It was only later that they discovered that they had been neighbours in Bristol but had never spoken to each other. The shared belief that the village community is a friendly community had given the women the confidence to approach each other in a way that they never felt they could do in the city. As one woman stated:

The community is very impor tan t . . , people value that side of things and get involved in activities, like WI (Women's Institute), that they wouldn't do if they lived in the town (East Harptree resident).

On the gender division of 'community activities', one view was that

Lots of the organisation is done by women, but not exclusively. Men get involved with village football.

During the week the women run the village (East Harptree resident).

It is not only women's personal contacts that are affected by the characteristics of the rural community, but also their wider involvement in village society. It has been mentioned elsewhere that women's work tends to underpin many of the social functions and village 'events'. Many women described how, since arriving in the village, they had become involved in all sorts of clubs, societies and fund raising activities. For most this was a new experience, having never before been involved in 'organising anything' on a formal or semi-formal basis. When asked whether she intended to take on paid work in the future, one woman replied that she was ' too busy to have a job'. Another admitted that she never seemed to be in the evenings and that it could all get 'a bit much at times'. What is interesting is the relationship between women's involvement in social/fund-raising activities and the rural community. Their participation, it seems, was encouraged partly by the scale and accessibility of the activities, but more importantly through the belief that not only was it expected of them as members of the community, but that it was also part and parcel of what 'rural life was all about' .

While East Harptree was not characterised by feuding social groupings, there were, as noted above, divisions within the rural community. Some social activities were frequented more by one group than another - - the village hall or theatre was seen as being run by the 'newcomers' while the Village Club very definitely 'belonged' to the 'locals'. The groups did, however, come together socially for quiz and skittles nights. Some of the older village inhabitants commented that it was the incomers who were the most fervent supporters of the traditional village activities and festivals - - the keeping alive of such traditions providing an important source of voluntary work for village women.

People get on with things - - fund raising is so much better and quicker than it is in town . . . they take life into their own hands more than in the town (East Harptree resident).

Some of the older inhabitants expressed mixed feelings about the influence of newcomers on the village, recognising, for example, the important role newcomers had in keeping the school open yet also resenting what was seen as a negative impact on house prices.

There was undoubtedly a sense of responsibility amongst East Harptree women for the health and welfare of other village inhabitants. A club was run for the older members of the community by women


on a voluntary basis, while casual checks were kept on those known to be alone and/or frail. This caring concern took on a rather paternalistic dimension in relation to certain other issues - - namely housing and employment and at times succeeded in reinforcing class divisions. Many of the women interviewed referred to the need for more cheap housing and accessible employment to cater for the needs of the less well-off members of the community. Such paternalism was, however, restricted to those locals with past connections in the village as authentically 'rural ' and did not extend to the opening up of the community to newcomers from a range of back- grounds. Indeed the promotion of a caring and friendly image in the village masked a degree of intolerance to difference that was at odds with the values apparently espoused.

That there may be something inconsistent in the values adhered to by the 'rural community' is an issue rarely raised in discussions of the rural idyll. Even those studies that attempt to look critically at the reproduction of rural spaces and at the role of the 'idyll' have not directly challenged the conceptualisation of the rural community and the positive associations it engenders (but merely questioned their presence). There can be no doubt according to those interviewed that a strong 'community spirit' was perceived to exist within the village. What is more questionable is the extent to which that feeling of community can be universally linked with the sort of positive meanings that are traditionally assumed.

This links back to the point made at the start of this section on the specificity of the reported view of the rural community. How we conceptualise community is a debate that has featured significantly within work on gender - - in particular in feminist literature. Community has been seen as central to issues of gender and identity - - especially in terms of identity politics - - and to the ways in which certain forms of community may suppress aspects of identity. Traditional treatment of community by rural sociologists and geographers has tended to support (or at least confirm) the sort of expectations and representations presented here as dominant in the perceptions of women in East Harptree, together with their positive associations. Other literature has, however, disputed the positive and unifying nature of such perceptions and called into question the role of traditional conceptions of community in fostering a shared identity.

Iris Young has looked at length at the notion of community arguing that

The ideal of community presumes subjects can understand one another as they understand themselves. It

thus denies the difference between subjects. The desire for community relies on the same desire for social wholeness and identification that underlies racism and ethnic chauvanism on the one hand and political sectarianism on the other (Young, 1990, p. 302).

She goes on to state that 'any move to define an identity, a closed totality, always depends on exclud- ing some elements, separating the pure from the impure' (Young, 1990, p. 303).

The ideas raised by Young in her discussion of the marginalisation of certain groups and the sup- pression of difference within the community are helpful to an understanding of the power and influence of the contemporary rural community. In East Harptree clearly some idea of a positive, warm, closely knit, etc., etc., community was the reality for many people (especially, in this instance, women). This has been achieved, it may be argued, primarily on the back of economic wealth and, to a lesser extent, historical legitimacy. Those who are 'different' are excluded before they ever settle by a culture and identity that represents them as inappropriate in rural society. Their exclusion permits those who are accepted to shape the rural community to meet their own needs and expectations in both a cultural and a political way. Interestingly, Young's arguments lead her to debate the relationship between "the community' and 'the city' in suggesting that because it devalues and denies difference the community pro- poses a 'society without the city'.

Conclusion

In this paper we have at tempted to investigate the notion of a rural idyll from the perspective of rural women. We have argued that dominant images of rurality still reflect a view of rural society and community as more friendly, supportive and close- knit than its urban equivalent. Drawing on current debate on the cultural construction of rurality, we show how such perceptions become embedded, in a very tangible way, into patterns of behaviour, values and relationships. In the examination of women's lifestyles and attitudes, the paper moves beyond the general links between 'images' and ~reality' to look more directly at the implications of specific aspects of rural ideology as they are played out at a day to day level.

While the focus here has been women ' s images and understanding of rurality and women ' s lifestyles and identities, the main aim of the paper has not been to demonstrate a specifically female understanding of the rural idyll. The incorporation of different "qualities' or attributes within the idyll bv men and women - - the construction, in effect, of a gendered


rural idyll - - is something that requires further research. It requires, in addition, more detailed information (including in-depth discussions of attitudes, values and behaviour) from both men and women, than is used in this paper. The argument here is that aspects of the rural idyll operate in support of traditional gender relations, prioritising women's mothering role and fostering their centrality within the rural community. Those aspects of the rural way of life most highly valued by women appear to be those that offer them least opportunity to make choices (for example, about employment or domestic responsibilities) outside their conventional roles. Many were seemingly aware of the limiting nature of the rural idyll in this sense. Restrictions on choices of, for example, employment, were acknowledged by these women, however, as a small price to pay for a rural way of life as they perceived it.

As noted at the outset, the aim of this paper was to contribute to an ongoing debate on the cultural construction of rurality. The conclusions drawn are somewhat tentative and demonstrate, beyond all else, that more research, especially work of an in- depth ethnographic nature, is required to further clarify the relationship between the rural idyll and rural lifestyles. The view presented here is derived from one particular rural community - - and is a view dominated by middle class professionals. Although much of southern England is dominated by similar communities (and residents, in terms of class, educational background, culture and values) we recognise the specificity of the particular type of rural community studied here. While not wishing to deny or discredit the existence of an identifiable rural ideology, the precise characteristics of the rural idyll will vary between people and over space and the initial arguments here about the incorporation and reflection of attributes associated with rurality into the lives of rural dwellers should not be taken out of context. Some issues of considerable rele- vance to the existence and nature of a rural idyll - - issues surrounding the physical environment, for example - - have not been elaborated upon here. Moreover, the particular role of social class in the construction of rurality has not been explored. Again, further work is required to examine the extent to which the arguments raised apply to different social groups in different rural localities.

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