The circumstances of women of various social estates

Evaluate the circumstances of women of various social estates across the Imperial period. In what ways did women make meaningful contributions to Russian society, and how did the ways they were able to participate in public life or assert control over their own circumstances change over time? How did this differ for elite women versus peasant women? What were the effects of “the Age of Empresses” on the status of women in Russian society then and after? Give examples of specific women from the readings who embody the contributions, opportunities, and constraints of women’s place in Imperial Russian society.