Middle Class Women In The Early 1900's

Gender in the 1900’s was a particular subject that nobody touched upon. The women of that time period questioned it, what is this gender issue? These women at the time did not have the language to identify in equality. Though they very well knew it was going on. In the later 1950’s and 60’s they called it “The Problem that has no name”. This “problem” would prove to certainly be a revolutionary event in history. Gender in the 1900’s denied the Women who were apart of the suffrage movement from being a full fledged member of society and a citizen of the United States.

‘We need to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead.’ This quote is said by Beyoncé, a famous female singer who embraces the women she is. Even though gender inequality is present for women in both societies, there are many differences between the expectations of females in the 1930’s to females today.

For many centuries, women and men were not treated equally. After the Civil War, women had many essential successes that helped them earn respect. Throughout all of history women have not been seen as true equals to men. Women did not realize the extent of the matter at hand until after the Civil War.

During most of the early 1800s and 1900s women have continuously been perceived to get married and be fragile. These women are said to be very dependent on a man, and unmarried women they had to find a perfect suitor in order to be considered a happy woman. Once the war hit, these old stereotypes would be broken. Women now had access to new life changing opportunities. The war gave women chances to get jobs they were never authorized to do and allowed them to stop being so dependent on the help of a men. It also gave them new duties, which would make them more responsible and treated differently. Even with these wars giving them more opportunities to do things, women still struggled with not being good enough and were limited in the amount

Now in this precise year and day, you may view women as a strong and powerful person but was it always like that? In the 1920s, was the year women finally got the right to vote after all the campaigns made and reforms performed. In all some were still housewives while some felt the need to work in order to provide money for the family or themselves. Not all were married and had a husband to provide for them. Many obstacles had to be faced in order to be where we are today. Females faced inequality with men, but that did not stop them from accomplishing what they desired. Jobs and education in the 1920s were limited to women.

The 1920s were a time of change. The years that preceded were filled with new technology, inventions, and mass media. A new way of life was created. Although these advancements may seem beneficial to us, there were unforeseen consequences that affected the women of the 1920s and beyond. Popular culture in the 1920’s including movies, magazines, and advertisements transformed the way in which Americans viewed women. Some of these depictions liberated women, but they also constrained them.

In the early 1800’s, women were second class citizens with little to no political rights, and limited access to education and professional careers. Women were not granted the same privileges as men, for educating women outside the home or women obtaining professional jobs went against traditional views. The ideology behind it was that men and women ideally inhabited different societal spheres. Men dominated the public sphere which had opportunities for education, paid labor, fighting in wars, and political rights. However, as industrialization and the population grew in the North, working class women began entering the public sphere for job opportunities.

Enlightenment brought figures such as Jeremy Bentham, Marquis de Condorcet, and Olympe de Gouges who advocated for women's rights.

The experience of American women during the Roosevelt year, had taken a massive leap. Before the 1920s, most American women were traditional housewife. But, during the 1920, many American women begin to join the workforce, some women had to balance managing between working and their homes. However, majority of the married American women during the 1920s remained in their homes as housewives. I believe the reason this was possible in the 1920s, was because, during the Second World War, majority of males had joined the military and the females had to support their families and also their sons, brothers, fathers and husbands overseas by providing

Being a woman in a male dominated society quickly became exhausting for those who wanted more out of life than to be a wife or a mother. Although, a domesticated lifestyle for some seems ideal it’s only natural for women to want different things such as success in a work environment or a marriage not occupied by children. Before the 1890s the United States was focused on the issue of slavery and trying to figure out whether it should be abolished or not. For this reason, feminists were silenced and swept up underneath the rug and it wasn't until the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments when women really started pursuing their rights. During this historical time period, women were confused as of why “savages” were give the right to vote while, white,

In the 1930’s times were much different from times today. The Great depression was during

American Women in the era of 1890 through 1925 had a difficult time getting and having opportunities due to the preconceived notions made of them. Women made drastic changes during this time period, industrialism and the war had a lot to do with it but politically and economically their rights were not yet given to them, Although women were as intelligent as men they did not earn the equal rights as to men.

The women activists of the era in the early 1900-1920s have provided awareness into the problems of the progressive era and also into the role of women as it was changing in public life. In the early 1900s, America was confronted with the effects of industrialization that was occurring, the growing importance of economic power, and urbanization of the cities, and a high rate of new immigrants. The changes mentioned above created fears especially in women that traditional values were being lost because wealth was more important. The was a growing desire among the women in society to change the negative effects of industrialization and to convince the government to care more about the social well-being of the people which was eventually known

Women’s roles in society have become more equal to men’s and have overwhelmingly changed since the 1930s. There have always been influential women throughout history, however, their influential techniques have changed greatly. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, women’s expectations, roles and opportunities, and their treatment can be compared to women today.

In the 1920s the role of women was now increasing. The number of working women were now increasing by 25 percent, women were now given the right to vote, instead of wearing long skirts, they started to wear clothing that was more suitable for their daily activities, also getting a divorce was more simple and so the number of divorces doubled.