Women's Rights In The Early 1900s

Words: 1137
Pages: 5
Open Document
During the fight for women's suffrage, during the early 1900s, women accomplished labor rights and a changed social perception of women. Through creating a new female personality women combated social expectations of gender normalities. The outreach from women’s original sphere of domesticity to spheres such as politics and economics, furthered women’s involvement in society. Advancements in the women’s movement ultimately led to the emergence of a new woman figure who fought for greater equality throughout their continuous efforts.
Before the 1900s, women continued as their husbands’ dependents and confined to society’s traditional image of a woman. Expected to stay at home, take care of the children, and submit to their husbands, women had …show more content…
The first step for women’s suffrage began in 1848 at the Seneca Falls Convention when Elizabeth Stanton and Lucretia Mott came together with the desire of equality amongst the sexes. These women opened the convention by giving a speech declaring the need for women to protest the American government in order to obtain representation. Also,they expressed the necessity of unity among women to fight for a better nation. When the injustices of the government became apparent to women, the movement accelerated towards women’s suffrage. Alice Miller’s poem addresses the hypocrisy in women’s responsibility versus their rights in 1915:
“I went to ask my government if they would set me free,
They gave a pardoned crook a vote, but hadn't one for …show more content…
Women’s fashion, in the 1920s, embodied women’s effort for freedom and independence, coinciding with the counterculture of the time. Mostly flappers, fashionable young women flouting conventional standards of behaviour, that broke old restrictions of fashion and behavior, according to Louise Benner, “with [their] short skirts, short hair, noticeable makeup, and fun-loving attitude.” Also, flappers drank illegal alcohol, smoked, and raised their hemlines, which was unheard of beforehand; thus resulting in these women defying “society’s expectations of proper conduct for young women.” Unacquainted with the popular new immodest fashion, women’s swimsuit hemline had to measure to verify women’s skirt’s did not exceed six inches above the knee, which displayed society’s discomfort with ladies’ becoming more revealing than before in earlier generations. Additionally, due to the expanding automobile business, women no longer needed men to travel as they could now drive themselves. Plus, novels such as The Great Gatsby influenced American women to loosen sexual relations by exploring romantic affairs among the characters. These creations gave more freedom to women, that in turn decreased the amount of control men exerted over women. With looser sexual relations, Margaret Sanger started the birth control
Show More

Related Documents: Women's Rights In The Early 1900s

Women During the Early World History Essay

women have left a remarkable mark on the world today. “Consequently, changes in status for many women in modern times-the right to own property, to vote, and to choose their own careers-may obscure the accomplishments made by women of earlier eras” (Walter & Maynes, 2001). Women have made an influence but small significant spheres. Women property rights consist of legal rights to acquire, own, sell and transfer property, collect and keep rents, keeps one wages, make contracts and bring lawsuits.…

Words 742 - Pages 3

Equality For American Women In The 1800's

Equality for American Women Here in America we try to fight for equal rights but it has not always been like this. In our county and many other countries gender balance has not always been welcome. Webster’s dictionary defines equality as “a state or instance of being treated equal.” Women and men have never been treated completely equal although many Women’s rights groups are and have been working hard to change that. From the early 1800’s to the 2000’s women have not had as important roles in our…

Words 504 - Pages 3

Women's Roles In The 1900s

were expected to do in the 1900s? An analysis of women’s roles in patriarchal society reveals that women are subordinate to men and are expected to follow these steps without any questions or say so. Women in the 1900s were kept at home to do jobs such as cleaning, watching the children, preparing the meals, and any other obligations of the household. As time went by, women started changing which led to wanting more than being controlled by men. Women felt as if their rights were not equal: this led…

Words 931 - Pages 4

A Jury Of Her Peers Vs Story Of An Hour

of the stories, “A Jury of Her Peers” and “The Story of an Hour” suggest that they focus on women’s limited role in society as they are unable to tell their own stories, additionally a closer reading reveals that the text examines the drastic effects these limitations have on women’s sanity. Both stories take place during the early 1900s. During this time period, women were not given the same, equal rights as men. Numerous female authors anonymized their writing personas by using male names. Women…

Words 572 - Pages 3

Susan B. Anthony: The Progressive Movement

as others. Big parts of this era was women’s right, working conditions and racism. The freedom to vote was acquired from many years of hard work. Being able to vote today, is a right that many people take for granted. Until June 4, 1919, women were not giving the right to vote. Muckraker -”people who search out and publicly expose real or apparent misconduct of a prominent individual or business”- Susan B. Anthony was a big contributer to the women’s right movement.…

Words 226 - Pages 1

Voting In The 1920's

change the world, and making the place they live in a better to live they thought it was impossible. Men think that women are not capable of doing things men can do. It took women more than half a century for them to have the right to vote. Women risked their live, the right to vote. “When I heard people say, “oh i’m not gonna vote”, i just wanna tear their heart out” (Judy Gold). Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were the ones in charge of national suffrage association also know as NSA…

Words 300 - Pages 2

Renisance: Age of Enlightenment and Society Essay

and insignificant to in the 1900s where women are considered as real citizens with rights and value in society. In the 1500s women had minimal, if no rights at all, and were treated as lesser than the male population, reserved to work in the homes and to be seen and not heard. Between the 1500s and the 1900s there was a period of development for women where they had begun to be more recognizable in society with the salons and other enlightenment ideas. Finally, in the 1900s women were almost treated…

Words 1060 - Pages 5

Rights Of Women In The Early 1900's

Throughout history up until the early 1900’s, women had little to no rights. During the industrial revolution, women were getting paid for doing work in factories. From this time, women started to build up the idea that they could do as much work as a man. Women wanted jobs, wanted to be paid like men, have a say, have the right to vote. They were given a taste of what men had all this time, and they wanted more. One by one, women came together to gain the rights that they deserved. Starting in 1826…

Words 582 - Pages 3

Emily Wilding Davison's Suffragette Campaign

Emily Wilding Davison was the most famous women during the twentieth century who campaigned for women’s suffrage. She is best known today for walking in front of the King’s horse at the Epsom derby. Equality was in fact the heart of the Women’s Social and Political Union. Emily resides in the public’s imagination as the martyr suffragette in modern times who risked it all to make sure women have fair rights. Throughout history, women have been labeled as the inferior gender. Women were not allowed to…

Words 523 - Pages 3

Intersectionality And Women Equality

America's glorified women's rights movement of the 1800's and early 1900's was for some women the beginning of equality and for others another false victory. Black suffragettes, and black women in general, not only faced racism but gender oppression, from both suffragettes and the ranks of black men fighting for racial equality. The barriers that white women had to face getting the vote was doubled for black women, as “being black and being female required a dual focus” (McGoldrick 271), and apparently…

Words 666 - Pages 3