History of Paternalistic and Maternalistic Views on Women's Livelihood

Women’s roles have changed greatly throughout history. As the advancement of culture, laws, and ideas altered ways of life, women’s lives also evolved in numerous aspects of society. Women’s roles changed greatly between 1815 and 1860. During this time, family dynamics changed as the mothers that were placed at the center of the household were given greater freedoms. In addition, women had more opportunity to take on jobs in the workplace. Women also fought for reform movements that altered their ways of life in the community. During the reform era of the United States, factors such as religion, education, and reforms greatly changed women’s roles in the family, workplace, and society.

Women were confronted by many social obligation in the late nineteenth century. Women were living lives that reflected their social rank. They were expected to be economically dependent and legally inferior. No

While social change has brought on more changes than what women are a custom too, at one point in history women actually felt a form of importance in fulfilling their roles not only in the home; but outside as well. “These demographic shifts account for many new or altered roles, such as increased number of duel-earner families, later and fewer marriages, fewer children, increased life expectancy, and the massive migration shifting employees across a nation and across the globe” (Lindsey, 2011, pg. 275).

In the 1800s, many women were unemployed and had duties at home or in their community. In the 1820s and 30s more women were teaching than men. Because

During the early 1800's women were stuck in the Cult of Domesticity. Women had been issued roles as the moral keepers for societies as well as the nonworking house-wives for families. Also, women were considered unequal to their male companions legally and socially. However, women’s efforts during the 1800’s were effective in challenging traditional intellectual, social, economical, and political attitudes about a women’s place in society.

During the 1800s women became more inferior to earlier times. They shifted their roles from a house wife to becoming a more important part of the family life. In the 19th century, America was going through an important change in development and war. Throughout the 19th century, women had one goal, to fight for equal rights under the law and most importantly the right to vote. Women in each ethnic group had different types of “jobs.”

Women throughout history have almost always been beneath men; unable to pursue an education like men could, unable to do what was labeled as ‘a man’s work’, and unable to have the same rights as men. In the mid-1800’s in the United States those limitations began to decrease due to new technologies and opportunities such as factory developments and even co-ed schooling. Those changes caused a great shift in what women could and couldn’t do while also paving a pathway towards women’s rights.

In the 1800’s before the turn of the century it was male dominated world. Women were expected to marry and bear children. They were also supposed to stay home in order to tend to the domestic duties of cleaning, cooking, running errands and taking care of the children while the men went to work to make a weekly wage (Women, par. 2).

In the early nineteenth century, women were expected to be, “‘angels in the house,’ loving, self-sacrificing, and chaste wives, mothers and daughters or they are… ultimately doomed” (King et al. 23). Women of this time were supposed to be domestic creatures and not tap so far into their intellectual abilities (King et al.). The role of women in the nineteenth century is described:

Throughout the early to mid nineteenth century, many women were seen trying to fight for many rights and opportunities that were not granted to them. Many of which pursued to organized movements, groups, conventions and other forms to utilize platforms to reach out and present the ideologies and changes that they believed needed to be changed. During this time, women were given the same legal status and rights as compared to a minor or a free black. The beliefs and ideology in this country during this time towards women were very similar to as of the colonial days. Which was very unfortunate due to the fact they we had already gone so far as a country to get to where they were at that time. But, during the 1840’s, women started to take a stand on the issues that they were having. These issues included that they were not allowed to vote, own property, not receiving the same pay as equal to men, and no voice in legal matters due to the fact that they would have to

“Gender Roles Attitudes since 1872 In social Trends..”, Campbell discusses the gender roles and their representations within numerous fields. In addition, Campbell mentions that the politics, in particular, have seen an increase in women involved within the government. Campbell mentions that during the 20th century, many women were not in the workforce. After WWII, they began seeing an increase of women entering the labor force. In 2000, 60%of wives with children younger than six entered into the workforce, as were 80% single women”(Campbell, 83). GSS measured numerous items about women in 1972 and got numerous responses.

As modern times drew closer the classical roles of females would have become obsolete and inefficient in such a rapidly growing industrial society. Looking at that the Eighteenth - Nineteenth Centuries purely from an economical view; without the help of women as “visible” members of society the Industrial Revolution would not have had such a dramatic and sweeping effect on society. “For thousands of years the achievements of women, if not actively erased from human history, have been largely ignored. History was written almost exclusively by men about men - men's wars, men's accomplishments, and men's discoveries” (Ashby and Gore p.15). Becoming visible was a long and tedious process; women were constantly being knocked down as their male-counterparts got all

As the Industrial revolution went on and changed society a division between women began to develop. Poor women went on to work in factories and jobs that involved little to no skill with pay that was very little and a major step below the men’s pay. Laws were then released that denied women the right to vote, to own property, spend wages on there own, retain guardianship over there children and even any right of self determination. Women were even frowned upon if they did any type of public speaking. Everyone in the 19th century may have not have felt this way or have treated women this way but this was the norms amongst most people during this

In the nineteenth century, the role of women in the family was changing. Depending on your race and class, different women had different experiences. This history helped to set up what our stereotypical views are today. Although some views were left in the past; it is these views and experiences that serve as baggage to present day times.

Gender roles is a very controversial topic in today’s society, especially when it comes to working. 100 years ago, in Europe, women were working long hours in factories. Women also worked as nurses, cleaned wealthy people 's homes, and were craftswomen. Meanwhile, 100 years ago in the United States women were expected to stay home and take care of the family/home, while the men went out and worked an average of ten hours a day for six days a week, compared to the traditional five day weeks and 8 hour days.