American Women's Roles

Throughout history, women have been regarded as of lesser value than men particularly in the public sphere. This is the result of gender stratification. Gender stratification refers to the issue of sexism, “or the belief that one sex is superior to the other” (Carl et al., 2012, p. 78). The theory that men are superior to women is essential to sexism. Sexism has always had negative consequences for women. It has caused some women to avoid pursuing successful careers typically described as “masculine”—perhaps to avoid the social impression that they are less desirable as spouses or mothers, or even less “feminine.”

     Throughout United States history oppression of people has always been prominent, whether through African American’s and segregation or Asian American’s during the Vietnam War. What is often ignored is our history of the oppression of women. No matter what time in history, there is always a case to be found of the discrimination over gender. Many people know of how African American’s came into freedom and the long perilous road it took, but few know the struggles, changes and hardships that women have perceived to get where they are today. As the civil war halted and industrialization and urbanization came into play, the role of women changed dramatically and their status

Women wanted to improve education in both university courses and at a school level. They wanted to open up career opportunities for girls that were once just meant for men, some examples of these were in sport and science. While this was happening other women were focussing on meeting women’s specific safety and health needs, this included greater access to contraception, abortion, and protection from domestic violence.

Throughout the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, gender roles began to change as women became active participants in American society. For instance, women became active in expressing their views against alcohol and pushed for the prohibition and temperance. Organizations such as The Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), argued that alcohol led to societal problems. Male and female reformers banned together to argue that alcohol was immoral and causing a negative impact on women. Women, if married, would experience an abusive, violent drunk husband who neglected his family and gambled his money away. Thus, the evils of alcohol became part of the progressive agenda that eventually led to the passage of the 18th amendment. Along with prohibition, women also took active roles in acquiring suffrage. In “The Politics of Good Government,” Gayle Gullett argued that in the California Women’s Movement built a nonpartisan broad suffrage umbrella that sought to enhance their “special interests.” Middle-class women assured their male allies that women’s enfranchisement was essential to progressivism. Furthermore, middle-and working-class women argued that suffrage would not only protect working women but women in general. Working class men and women also united to seek reform. Thus, through these heterogeneous groups, the California Women’s Movement built a unified coalition that led to women’s suffrage in 1911. [46] As America entered the First Great War, the

Another story that deals with a woman’s role in society is “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Their role is often portrayed as being controlled by men because that’s what they were in the 19th century. This story takes place in the 19th century which just goes to show that nothing really changes. “The Yellow Wallpaper” is about a woman who is basically locked away in a house by her husband due to her “psychological” problems. She isn’t allowed to leave and she only has a small window with bars across it. When she look out the window she basically creeps around in order to blend in with society. She also doesn’t want to see the other women who have to do the same thing as her because she knows that those women are a reflection of her. This just goes to show that women are to move without being seen. They have to abide by their husband’s rules or any man’s rules for that matter. Men are very superior during this time and if women don’t follow, then it most likely wouldn’t end well. The woman’s role in “The Yellow Wallpaper” is to not bother her husband and keep quiet. The world isn’t supposed to know about her condition obviously, considering she can’t leave the house.

Women could not vote, and as stated earlier, were often victims of abuse from their husbands. Things needed to change. So, women began getting jobs at factories and taking on bigger roles. They also created the cult of domesticity. Also, women began talking and giving speeches to other women. Women would even sometimes adise their hus Elizabeth Cady Stanton in Document 7, advocates for the rights of women. She wants equality for women and that they not be frowned up and looked down on by society. While women’s rights did not come quickly, or even for a while, the SGA attempted at getting the equality. The SGA started a trend of an increase in women’s rights and society kept improving it as years went

Imagine, you didn’t have the right to vote, to get your own money, or to get a good education just because you weren’t a specific gender or color ? What would you do about it ? Would you just let these things make you who you are, or would you fight for your rights. More than 70 years ago people weren't treated the way we are now. If you were a women then you would probably be at home cleaning or making meals for your family or even taking care of your children .While your husband is going to work and earning his own money. If you were a women you wouldn’t be able to work for your own money, your money would become your husbands money because your husband has the right to vote, to work, and more. Many ladies took a stand for what they believed in. One great lady who stood up for her rights was Amelia Jenks Bloomer. She impacted women's history in many ways.

The life of a woman was limited and restricted in every aspect of her life. A woman had only one option and one road to follow: to marry young, bare their husband's children, and devote their lives to homemaking. Woman did not have a life outside the home and had to conform to the life society had created for them. However, even though society painted this picture of what the average/typical women should act and look like, they fought against it. We see a shift in the 1920's with the creation of flappers, in the 1940's women joining into the industrial force, and in the 1960's and 1970's women coming together creating movements and striking against the misogynist society and demanding for their rights.

Women were fighting for the right of equality as men. The equality women were fighting for would allow them to work in classroom, law firms, office, and science

The American Dream - accomplishing greatness with only the clothes on one’s back (also known as the ideal success story) - has been greatly influenced by the role women have played in American History. Women were key in the education of future generations in America and were responsible for instilling true Republican values in them; this process would later be known as Republican Motherhood. Throughout American History, men found women worthy of only one main task: child rearing. This view of women changed only minutely throughout the centuries and demonstrated the extremity of it, when African-Americans (ex-slaves) were given equal rights before white women. Though women faced various political, social and economic obstacles, they still managed to shape the culture and society around them by fighting for their long denied hard powers. They sought only to gain the right of franchise, be measured as equals to men in society and thus no longer be discriminated against. Women played important roles in abolitionist movements, prohibition movements and as suffragists, popular icons, politicians and social activists. By overcoming many obstacles, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Abigail Adams, Anne Hutchinson and Mary Wollstonecraft left their permanent mark on history by creating the modern myth known as the American Dream. They represented the moral authority of the republic and by struggling for centuries for equal rights, they managed to intertwine Republican Motherhood with the

Women all around the world have done a lot of sacrifices to get both name and fame in the world. Some of the examples are Ellen Degeneres, Oprah Winfery, Kalpana Chawla, Janet Jackson etc. These women helped a lot for uplifting the women status in the entire world and most of the girls follow their footprints to get famous like them in future. But still there are a lot of women who are working in fields, as a maid worker and in industries in poor condition. These women are facing problems such as sexual abuse, harassment and high level of violence. In this reaction paper I will be discussing about the sexual abuse, health issues due to sexual favours, harassment and high level of violence that women have to go through every day in order to

In her essay, “Housewives and Homework: The Lacemakers of Narsapur,” Chandra Talpade Mohanty focused on how men sold products that women produced and profited from women’s work. The essay basically pointed out how work can be defined according to sexual identity. It made me wonder if American women are still perceived by men in society as being housewives even though some of us are doctors, lawyers, teachers etc. Is the work that women do seen as what Mohanty pointed out in her essay as “leisure time activities”? I think that to some extent men believe that women’s sole purpose on Earth is to be their wives/partners and to be good mothers to their children. Even though we “leisurely,” as Mohanty so

Throughout this paper I will be discussing the role of women in the American society. I will reference the importance of gender and gender inequality. The definition of gender aims to clarify for of all the historical framework of the topic, the role of women in the American society. The paper will lead from the role women were given around World War II and then transition into the role women can now choose in the American society today. Addition to the role of women I will also discuss the differences of how the genders are treated in the same places, for example work place. Men and women are culturally molded when referring to gender in the American society. The gender roles play a lead part into how the model family, education, and liberty are. The reason I chose to write about this topic is due to my strong belief that although I don’t agree with the characteristics society gave to gender, I do believe in gender equality.

     Femininity and masculinity are topics that have been debated over in our society extensively, through psychological research and day to day interaction with people. Children learn from their parents as well as society the concept of “feminine” and “masculine.” The majority of people tend to believe that these conceptions are biological but I believe it is more cultural. From birth, female children are shaped by society as being sweet, caring, loving, and delicate and usually associated with the color pink. While male children are shaped by being tough, aggressive, and competitive and associated with the color blue. As these children grow, the boy is given a football to play with and the girl a

Throughout the course, we have examine different aspects of rise of American Capitalism, however, there has been one aspect that we barely touched on. Women. Women have always played a crucial part in the expansion of American Capitalism. Women were seen as secondary sources, while men were the main actors. That is not even considering that the main men that were able to be actors where white men. Let’s jump forward to 2017, women are still placed as secondary characters in the world of business. Men, still hold the ultimate power, where they can control the American Economy, where they can say whatever they please and get away from it. Women are left with having to do far more to be able to get at the same equal playing field. That is not