Women’s Role During WWII 1939-1945
Men were leaving, people were fighting, and many were dying. World War II was one of the hardest times, and during that difficult time, women stepped up their roles and had a huge impact during the war. The women during World II in the United States and in Europe impacted the war by taking different jobs and becoming employed in the workforce, working in the home with normal household responsibilities while supporting the men oversees, and entering into the military with sacrifice.
There were many ways the European and United States women helped the war. With that being said, when the demand for male workers for jobs were not enough, many women stepped into the number of occupations that were opened.
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Government campaigns stressed the message that women needed to sustain their “feminity” so they provided beautiful posters of feminine women who were nicely groomed as nurses, volunteers, or factory workers. Additionally in Europe as well as the United States, “Attempts were made to maintain the boundary between masculinity and femininity.” In the United States and Europe many women stepped in opened occupations, media affected women greatly, and even though women were raised in a feminine way they still entered the workforce and volunteered for military service.
Second, the women’s work in the home is so beneficial, because it helped the national defense effort and gave support for the war. Many women showed their sacrifice and patriotism “on the home front” by facing several challenges, such as raising children and singly taking care of the home by themselves. These “heroes of the home front” sustained the highest quality of living they could possibly do for themselves and for their families. For example, in the article American Women’s Wartime Dress: Sociocultural Ambiguity Regarding Women’s Roles During World War II says that women in America became heroes on the home front. Also, it was stated that Britain women is seen as the home front as a legitimate duty. There was no doubt that women in America and in Europe took the home front responsibilities very seriously with all the challenges that brought.
Next, homemakers helped the national defense effort
One of the most important roles that women played, were the increasing large amount of female soldiers fighting in the war. These roles gave women the right to work and serve in armed forces. The jobs that women took part in during this time period made a huge difference in the war, and in turn, WW2 helped expand women’s
Women had a huge role in the World War II that so many do not recognize. Women were involved in many different jobs that allowed them to step out of the ordinary norm as the “typical housewife”, and dive into fierce hardworking jobs that until then only a man could do. Women jumped into the factories and many different roles that contributed to World War II, because the need for more American workers was crucial.
One way that women helped out in the war was that they went directly to the source--by dressing up as men and going to fight in the front lines, women (e.g.
Another way woman had positively influenced the war was through the assisting in the operation of stores and businesses. Due to all the men enlisted in the war the government came across a job shortage there were not enough men to work in stores. women jumped at the chance to help, and support their family's while they were at it. Although woman could not have jobs that required high responsibility woman could work in jobs such as secretarial positions, as clerks, cleaners, ect. This was a major stepping stone to woman proving their equality with men in society and the workplace.
worked in factories expanding industrial output, and helped raise money in the community. The women are what helped keep the country running. When women filled jobs that were traditionally men’s, this aided the country as a whole because while men fought in the war, women were able to keep the country moving. Women not only worked in factories and offices, but working in the community played an immense role in helping the soldiers fighting. Women raised money for the war, collected blood, rolled bandages, aided in civil defense, tended Victory Gardens, and hosted troops. Some women still worked at home centering their work around what the soldiers needed. They recycled aluminum foil and other materials that were scarce, they raised children as usual, and mourned for the soldier that had died. Women were assisting the troops with all that they could in order to make life easier for them.
The structure of workforce changed, all out war effort and lack of working age male in factories brought women into factories across Europe in incomparable way. Thousands of women worked with the army as nurses and ambulance drivers, with nominal supplies and harsh condition of the front line, they helped wounded soldiers and provided some solace to the dying. Propaganda Picture by E.V. Kealy, P-524, on its poster says “Women of Britain say-GO” I think which means that all the men can go to the war and fight for the nation, while women are taking care of the house. War had changed role women were assigned to but they were refusing to go back to their old Victorian traditional role and challenged the gender status quo of the women after the war which completely changed the patriarchal European states, and American society as
for our army to use. They did this sort of work while the husbands, brothers and other
Women managed to organize committees to gather and make food, socks, and other sources of comforts as well as write letters to the men fighting overseas. Women even got involved with volunteer organizations including the Red Cross, helping to raise money for the war effort in the process.
Women’s roles change during World War II because men were gone and their responsibilities weren’t being taken care of. The women began working and doing the men’s house chores for them along with their own responsibilities has women(Graves 1-2). The women were the only people who could take the mens places and money was tight. Women were needed to get work done because it
During the Second World War, both married and unmarried women worked in wartime industries and factories to take the place of men who joined the service. Although women didn’t play a significant role on the battlefields in Europe compared to males, it would be logical to conclude that women played an integral role in the participation and victory in WWII both at home and abroad. Yet when one considers their contribution, it is hard to imagine how much more they could have done given the conservative views of gender role at that time. In the context of traditional gender roles and boundaries, women conceivably maximized their wartime efforts by working in a variety of jobs including industry, volunteering, and serving as support staff for
Many people have never considered what women were doing in WWII when their husbands left to fight. Their lives weren’t easy or normal during the war. Women had to work just as hard as men, sometimes even more so. In this essay, I will discuss the position of American women before World War II, during the war, and at the end of the war.
World War II was the catalyst that changed the opportunities available to women and eventually the way they were regarded as a viable workforce. Suddenly women throughout the United States were pushing themselves to their limits to support the war effort. Women were fulfilling jobs and responsibilities that many previously believed to be impossible for their gender. Opportunities were opened in steel plants, ammunition factories, and even the United States military. As the war progressed the number of male workers declined dramatically. Society had no choice but to turn to the mothers, sisters, and daughters of our nation for help. The results for each woman varied
Women served an important role in WWII. They not only took the challenge and stepped up to take the places of the men off fighting in the war to work in factories, but they also fought side by side with those risking their lives and fighting for their country. They were needed everywhere during the war. There were an unbelievable amount of job opportunities for women during the war and many supported the brave acts of voluntary enlistment. “‘A woman’s place is in the home’ was an old adage, but it still held true at the start of World War II. Even though millions of women worked, home and family we considered the focus of their lives” says Brenda Ralf Lewis. Without the help of those women who were brave enough to
After getting an education as well as knowing there worth in society women knew there were more than just a wife and mother. During WWII women demonstrated their power to think in a world without men as they were off fighting the war. Women began to understand that they had more to offer the world other than housekeeping and raising children. In addition, many women wanted to continue working after the war as they had held jobs with responsibilities as well as earning wages. Furthermore, women were the ones making financial decisions as well as working in positions with higher responsibilities. Many women as well as minorities were simply casted a side to make room for the returning solders. This created a silent discontent among women
Millions of women before 1914 had taken over jobs that men had already stereotypically done. For example, some women had newer occupations such as typists, telephonists and shop workers. A small number of women were already attending university and entering careers such as medicine and teaching. The war just accelerated this. The concept of the war, meant that women were needed, both in larger numbers and also new kinds of work.