Gender Issues Flashcards
Higher Mortality
High number of pregnancies due to expensive contraception — led to illegal and dangerous abortions. Rickets affected women in industrial areas.
Domestic and Workplace Violence
Women mostly of working-class suffered violence from men at home and at work — patriarchal family structures important for keeping social order. Police and courts sided with men. Reform movements in the late 19th century.
No Female Solidarity
Different life and work realities of women from different classes — industrial middle-class women avoided manual labour and were in-charge in the household, while industrial working-class women employed in physically-demanding jobs and were subordinate to men at home and at work.
Higher Education
Depending on class and income of parents. Religious education as important for women to preserve religion through the family. Women educated separately from men and learned topics such as history or modern languages for making conversation / socialisation with men.
Paid Employment
Usually as domestic servants, in textile industries, or in agricultural industries. Worse working conditions than men and no female union representation until the 1880s. Working women were still responsible for the household.
New Female Occupation
Since later 19th century, as secretaries / typists, telephone operators, or teachers.
Arranged Marriage
Norm for upper and many middle-class women — property brought by the wife into the marriage was administered by the husband.
Prostitution
Sometimes done temporarily, as the only alternative to impoverishment, otherwise, had to resort to crime. Authorities punished women instead of male customers.
Fashion
Fashion as “moral codes” with the aim to cover the female body as much as possible — led to impractical clothing that caused accidents with industrial machinery.
