Abstract
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to show, by examining the exercise books of Beata Rosenhane, how a woman of the salons was educated in the mid-seventeenth century, to compare her learning to that of boys from the same period, and by doing this, to give a brief description of a little-noticed species of rhetorical training—the methods and means used for preparing young girls to take part in the rhetorical practices of the salons. The essay shows that different rhetorical repertoires existed during the seventeenth century according to the different futures envisioned for various groups of students,and that changes in the understanding of rhetoric as a field have obscured the accomplishments of women trained to meet the demands of the salon.