The lives of women from the 15th century to through the 20th century changed remarkably. As society changed, so did the role of women in the household, politics, workforce, and their rights. We started with the 15th century, a time where social classes were very rigid, which also led for a huge gap between the roles of women. Higher class women had different expectations and roles than women from lower classes up until the early 20th century. In the 1400’s and 1500’s, women’s lives were solely based around the home. Since they were 10, they were immediately taught domestic chores and how to run a household. Girls did not go to school, because they were not seen as worthy for an education and it would distract them from their main job as a household worker. Women remained home while their husbands worked in the fields and handled all responsibilities of the home. They also were not allowed to participate in political activities and had very little freedom so that they did not become more powerful than men.
This remained the same throughout the 17th century. The 18th century did bring little change to the role of women. Many women still stayed at home with the children and tended to household chores. However, during this time, some women began working outside of the home to receive an additional income for the family, working in domestic jobs such as maids, childcare, and cooking for other families. Also during this time, women began to participate in religious activities, and some even held significant positions in religious sects. Women also began to receive education in school. It was seen as necessary because they raised children, the future generation, so it was seen that they should have a basic education to further enlighten the upcoming generation of leaders. The 19th century did not change much from the 18th, however, during this time, social classes began to play a greater role on the lives of women, as the gap between rich and poor grew significantly during this time. Lower class women had to work outside the home, manage household chores, and raise the children. Without their income, the family couldn't survive. Upper class women on the other hand, grew up in a pampered lifestyle. They did not have to work and experience the luxuries of life. Women during this time were still excluded from political decisions and voting. The 20th century brought the greatest change to the lives of American women. It was during this century that women began to fight for their rights, demand freedom, and actively join the workforce. Women during the 1900’s gained a new confidence which led to great change by the end of the century. With the wars that took place and men leaving to fight, women got to show the nation that they could work just as hard and keep the country going. The rise of women’s rights movements brought many changes to women’s lives including the right to vote in 1920 and gender equality laws passed around the 1980’s. The status of African American women and other immigrant women improved parallely with white women. They faced more hardships at first and their equality was delayed compared to white women, however, their status in America improved greatly after their arrival in the United States to the 20th century. Over the centuries, the role and status of women in society changed notably as society itself changed and new improvement and technologies arised. We are now in a society where men and women are treated and seen as equals, however there is always room for improvement in different aspects of our lives. Maybe we will never be equal, but maybe we will reach a time in life where the entire human race is treated equally without regards to social status, race, and gender. Leave a Reply. |
AuthorSimran and Ananya Archives
June 2017
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