How Did The Industrial Revolution Influence Women Suffrage

Women in the nineteenth century lived in a time characterized by gender inequality. At the beginning of the century, women could not vote, could not be sued, were extremely limited over personal property after marriage, and were expected to remain obedient to their husbands and fathers.( women’s suffrage movement 1) In most situations, the men would have to go to work and bring home the money, and the women would have no choice but to stay home, clean the

Revised Thesis: The women’s suffrage movement opened many doors for the women of America and allowed them to achieve many objects they had never before thought of including: economic roles, political positions, and a place in social society.

Women in 1800s portrayed a reproductive machine. That role holds an importance considering the next child might be a male and also be the future generation society as a doctor, lawyer, or governor, something that contains a meaning; however, a woman's field was in the home. In the first half of the 19th century, the Market revolution was not necessarily labeled as an event but characterized as a process. The Market revolution helped shape the lives and the nation of these citizens. Many Americans produced materials primarily for themselves on their independent farms. These products provided, marketed purchase to others. Women continue to be labeled as social, economic, and political subordinates from before 1800 following 1850, and among these women, they were most affected by the revolution.

In the 19th century, the Market Revolution was created, resulting significance in American history by redefining the roles for genders, especially for women. During this time, factories began to appear changing the nature of work for men and women. Although, women were employed cheaper because at the time in Colonial America, men were considered superior to women, even in terms of morality. Some women worked effectively by applying their strength of factories, while other women adapted to a private lifestyle avoiding conflicts in the market economy. However, the privileges were determined based on a family’s class status, which were middle and upper classmen that gave a higher advantage than those who were poor. Those who were married had no

In the 1800’s, society held women back from doing certain activities, having certain jobs and having the same rights as men. “While there were often not specific legal restrictions circumscribing the activities of women, the social restrictions were quite pervasive.” “Social norms, then, prevented women from many activities, even though there were no overt laws stating a women could not be a doctor, for example.” The women’s suffrage movement connects to the Enlightenment era because many of the philosophers talked about men creating

Women did the same amount of work as men they got paid half of men wages because they were viewed as of less value. Since women were a cheaper labor force they were often hired to do men’s work, which often included working in dangerous and unsanitary conditions. Women became a necessity in the workplace, and they soon realized they did matter and that they deserved to be treated equally. Catherine Beecher was a women’s rights activist who fully believed in that sentiment. In “A Treatise on Domestic Economy” Beecher uses a key component of the Declaration of Independence highlighting that “all men are created equal and have the right to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” She uses that point to emphases the parallels between Democracy and Christianity. Beecher continues on to show the importance of subordination in some relationships. She states that women take a subordinate position in public affairs and in domestic life. Beecher informs readers that shouldn’t be the case. Women have greater importance and thus so, in turn, have greater responsibilities (A Treatise on Domestic Economy 240-244). With that realization, women fought for changes. It wasn’t much longer until political changes were legally required. Women fought for equal treatment in society, as a result, the feminist movement emerged. The Industrial Revolution was important in changing the role of women and getting the feminist movement to the point it is at the

In the 1920’s women suffrage was a substantial impact because that year women gained the right to vote and run for office. It took activists and reformers nearly 100 years to win that right (“The Fight” par. 1). Before the Election Day in 1920, women didn’t have the right to vote or basically do anything a man could do. Women fought against the court and formed multiple groups until they made a change in the law, to let women vote. Many American women were tired of being known as an unimportant role in their generation. They were beginning to become annoyed with what historians referred them as which was “a pious, submissive wife and mother concerned exclusively with home and family” (“The Fight” par. 2). “All of these contributed to a new way of thinking about what it meant to be a women and a citizen in the United States”(“The Fight” par. 2). “The suffrage movement in the United States gained prominence with the first women’s rights convention in the world”(“Women’s Suffrage” par. 5). Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton organized the convention in 1848. “American

3. Urban industrialism dislocated women’s lives no less than men’s. Like men, women sought political change and organized to promote issues central to their lives, campaigning for temperance and woman suffrage., Susan B. Anthony, launched the National Woman Suffrage Association in 1869, demanding the vote for women suffrage, though not yet generally supported, was no longer considered a crackpot idea. Thanks to the WCTU’s support of the “home protection” ballot, suffrage had become accepted as a means to an end even when it was not embraced as a woman’s natural right.

The industrial revolution swept through Europe and North America during the 19th century, affecting the class structure, economy, government, and even the religious practices of everyone who lived in or did commerce with these new "industrialized nations." It made the modern age possible, but it was not without its "growing pains." The position of women before the industrial revolution was often equivalent to chattel, and then as now, they were expected to take naturally to housework and child rearing. The history of working women in the Industrial Revolution is rife with accounts of abuse and tragedy, but overall it improved their position in capitalist societies. Below, I will explain the

In my thesis, I contend that the Industrial Revolution impacted women because women in the working and poor classes were a key labor force in mills and factories, they supported their role as the backbone of the household economy by completing housework in the middle class, and finally the Industrial Revolution made an impact on the contributions of ideas made by women.

With the help of the Industrial Revolution, women made significant strives in changing the traditional economic roles given to females. Before the industrial revolution the only opportunity for a woman to be financially secure was for that woman to marry a financially secure husband. This created women’s dependence on men because if the man died they would have no source of income. The Industrial Revolution provided many women with jobs of their own helping women to become self-dependant. This self-dependence allowed for women to pursue interests not involving men, such as

A boost in economic benefits wasn’t the only effect of the industrial revolution, it also brought about social changes. Before factories and machines, women weren’t viewed as being able to do the same job as men. They were seen as housewives and this assumption remained the same until the rise of factories and industry. For the first time, women were able to work in the same factories as men. However, women were paid less than men because society at that time still viewed them as inferior to men. Although you could still see this policy in some societies today, women are now able to work in the same positions as men because of the circumstances that were brought by the rise of industrialization and factories. Also, thanks to mass production in factories, the rule of supply and demand allowed people to afford new things as stated before. Such an effect is shown in Document 7 in an excerpt from The Working Man’s Companion published in 1831. It states how people are surrounded with an infinite number of comforts and

The fact is that women contributed to this inheritance by bringing their own money into the marriage, investing, and working themselves. The Revolution helped women in this respect in that when the men were gone women were able to open up their own businesses, mostly shops and taverns.

Throughout the nineteenth century, the role of women began to change. Slowly the role of women went from strict domestic work, to having their own say in their own reform groups. After the American Revolution, women began to have a say in what went on during their everyday lives or the lives of their children and husbands. A woman having her own say was something new for men to have to deal with, but they were willing to listen. Women do not get the right to vote nationally until the 1920s, but the start of their suffrage and political movement begins in the nineteenth century with the changing times of the Industrial Revolution and life after the American Revolution.

During Britain’s Industrial Revolution, a multitude of different jobs were opened to the working class of men, women, and children. While this era offered a wide variety of new opportunities for everyone, women were somewhat excluded in areas such as occupation availability and wage due to the cultural norms of the time period.