Benjamin Walton
Foundation World History II
April 1, 2015
Throughout history men and women have both looked at in different views of our social order. Unlike today, women and men didn’t have the same amount of power during the 19th century. European and American women in the nineteenth century lived in an age characterized by gender inequality. At the beginning of the century, women enjoyed few of the legal, social, or political rights that are now taken today. Women did not have the right to vote, could be sued, could not testify in court, and had extremely limited control over any marriage. These are just few of many examples of what women had to go through during these tough times. Throughout time women play a sacrificial during the 19th century because they were obligated to their husband’s wants and needs. In this essay I will be discussing the middle-class values, women roles, and the difference between sexes all during the 19th century. To begin, during the 19th century there are many different values brought about within the middle class. In the 19th century about eighty percent of the population was a general part of the working class. In order to be considered middle class you had to have at least one servant who mostly were female. This goes to show that the females were more of the service workers during this time. In addition the father was the head of the spouse and women did not have much rights. The children were separated from boys to girls. Boys went to grammar schools while girls were taught small accomplishments such as music and sewing. Families were often a lot larger than they are now days because of the living conditions they obtained. This was mainly due to the Industrial Revolution that had brought many people from the rural parts now to the urban or the city. This transformed life for many because it caused these people to have more money which ultimately would give them more comfortable living conditions. Personal security and prosperity were the highest goals as well as the success of the individuals. As you can see, there are many different values brought about within the middle-class during the 19th century. Moreover, another main key point about the 19th century is the role of the women. As said before the main role of the women during this time was to be a wife and also a mother. In most instances, men were the primary “breadwinners” and women were expected to stay at home to raise children, to cook, and to provide a haven for retuning working husbands. Motherhood in addition was viewed as one of the most important contributions women could make to her family and to the nation. The kids were growing along with the culture around them, and they needed a solid mother to take care of them while the man was at work. Today this seems much simpler, as we have more variety of different marriage structures. Although men still work just as hard, they are not always the breadwinners. Women have as just much of a role today now in society. Clearly, the role of women during the 19th century played an important part of our history. Lastly, another important subject taking part during the 19th century is the different between men and women. To say the least women were criticized as being more feminine, while letting their emotions get the best of them. Men were viewed as being stronger individuals who took higher roles throughout the entire world. Men were expected to live a public life, whether it was working in a factory or socializing with like-minding men in public. On the