1950s Position of Women

Question 1

Patriarchal Society

Answer 1

• Women were primarily housewives and mothers
• Very few women had senior positions in industry, commerce, civil service or politics
• Women MPs were sparse, particularly in the Conservative Party due to tradition
• Young Margaret Thatcher was was turned down initially, doubts if she could be a mother and stand for election
• Average marriage age: 21
• 75% of women were married
• Expected to be a virgin
• Priority to raise children, look after husband
• Family Allowance: paid directly to mothers for things such as shopping, ensured that women didn’t need to work

Question 2

Lives of 1950s Women

Answer 2

• Food Shopping/Storage: no supermarkets; wife visited baker, butcher, greengrocer, etc separately, food was cooked immediately as they only had a pantry with a cold shelf for milk, butter, meat, etc
• Education: university wasn’t common, school->job->marriage, didn’t work after marriage usually, taught darning, cookery, sewing,etc at school
• Washing: twin tubs with mangles, filled with water, difficult manual work, no washing machines at the time
• Housework was labour-intensive, daily jobs kept them active, walking children to school, walking to multiple different shops

Question 3

Unequal Pay

Answer 3

• 1964: number of females employed rose, still unusual to work after marriage, especially those with children
• 1951-1961: women within the workforce rose from 26% to 35%
• Average female wage were less than 2/3 or men’s wages
• Trade unions tended not to support women working as it could lower men’s wages
• Many believed it would be damaging for children if their mothers were working
• There were improvements for middle-class women working in the public-sector professions (e.g. teachers, civil servants) with equal pay

Question 4

Labour-Saving Consumer Goods

Answer 4

• Late 1950s: women’s lives at home were made much easier
• 1957-1959: number of households owning a washing machine rose by 54%, refrigerators rose by 58%
• Without washing machines, washing clothes could take up the whole day
• Use of fridges meant that women did not have to go shopping daily to get fresh foods e.g. meat, cheese, milk