Context:

Referenced as the first midwifery guide written with a woman's name, published in 1671. Sarah Reid discusses at length how Sharp drew on texts translated by Nicholas Culpepper and others, read widely, and argued that the best midwives need both 'speculative' (theoretical) and practical knowledge. Sharp also opened her book by claiming the role of midwife as set out in Exodus, linking midwifery to religious duty. A fascinating primary source for understanding how a 17th-century woman practitioner positioned herself against male medical authorities.