OCR textbook - main developments of social/economic change 1865-1992 Flashcards
women & work after 1865 - change
- considerable expansion of no. of women in labour market
- biggest increase = white collar work & the professions
- south = women forced to contribute to agricultural work
- biggest change = greater experience of paid wwork among single/married women —> higher proportion of married AA women
- ## range of female employment changed
statistics to support expansion of free women holding jobs
10% in 1840
15% in 1840
24% in 1924
percentage of women workers as domestic servants/white collar work
- end of civil war v. 1920
domestic servants
1865 = 60%
1920 = 18%
white collar work
1865 = 1%
1920 = nearly 40% (clerical/professional work employment)
women & work after 1865 - continuity
- AA women still employed in domestic & factory work
- within women employment, teaching/nurse predominanted, followed by charity & welfare
- thus, stereotype that womens work was linked to their domestic, caring concerns predominated (even when economic growth widened female workforce
development from larger no. of women worker (from 1865)
- growth in union organisation - more strikers & demands for better wages/conditions —> but, only 2% of trade unionists were women by 1914
change/continuity between civil war/ww1 for women & work ?
- mixture
change - scale of women working & nature of employment changed
- work gave women more independence & background to greater involvment in public affairs/beginnings of industrial organisation
continuity - most work in traditional areas associated w/women
—> caring professions, producing garments, domestic service, education, nursing & meeting mens sexual needs - little change in attitude that the home was womens major responsibility
social change 1865-1914
- changes with family
- women gained —> boys & girls in school became roughly equal by 1920
- but, proportion of women in higher education remained lower
- growth in education & employment led to women being more confident to participate in pubiic campaigns
—> led to cooperation/expansion of womens clubs, more womens writers
changes in family 1865-1914
- avg. 5 children per couple (before 1861) declined to 3 by 1920
- due to prosperity, family size fell as middle-class americans wanted to ensure children could prosper
- women faced having fewer children & looking after them better
- expected more of partners
less social change 1865-1914
- equality for economic opportunity
- rewards
- ability to gain access to managerial positions
- enter traditional male professions eg medicine & law
- make decisions/gain political equality
= LESS PROGRESS
social/economic impact of ww1
- added to no. of women employed
- diversity of female employment increased
- numbers in farming grew –> demand for food increased
- women in armed forces
- many women travelled overseas in support of armed forces
- AA women saw change of lifestyle when they joined the emigration from the southern states –> northern states needed more labour
how many more women working in ww1 than 1865
3 mil more
how many women worked directly in armed forces in ww1
–> how was this less of a change
~30,000
less of a change as the work centred around domestic service eg. laundry or nursing
how many women travelled overseas in support of armed forces
20,000+ as members of the YMCA, red cross & salvation army
how many women killed serving overseas (ww1)
358
what did the war accelerate - for women
- higher levels of female employment
- increased womens confidence in tackling more demanding work
- associated women with the national cause
how did ww1 not make a radical change
- many women didn’t stay in roles after end of war
- much of work was traditional roles
-^^pressure to give up jobs for men returning from war - although wages rose, there was inequality between male/female labour
- little attempt to provide childcare facilities/help women who faced dual responsibilities at work/home
the ‘flapper’ era
during ‘roaring twenties’
- women wore less restricting clothes
- shorter hair
- smoked
- more ostentatious with their sexuality
- shorter skirts
- more ‘daring’ behaviour
= more independent/emancipated women of the twenties
objections to the ‘flapper era’ being a turning point
- conservative, rural USA there was limited acceptance of this
- areas suffering from fall in farm prices = little money to afford makeup, fashion or nightclubs
- urban centres, greater overt sexuality often caused women to become sex objects to attract men & increased double standards
women & work
- faced discrimination & attitudes were slow to change
- most of 12% of wives who worked in 1920s did to support families & not for independence
- mainly in domestics & textiles
- bulk of female labour unmarried
- work often more varied but in offices, women faced deep-seated sexual prejudice
- much less likely to make decisions than men
continuity or change in post ww1 era - women/work
considerable degree of continuity despite surface changes & experience of ww1
great depression & new deal
- depression made position of women worse
- pressure that women shouldn’t ‘steal’ jobs increased
- as women worked for less, they were often employed more by companies hit by depression
- married women found it more difficult to work & some states stopped married women taking jobs in any publicly run institutions
- depression put pressure on wages
- progress women had made in 1920s reversed by depression
- enforcing mandatory equal (more) pay was problematic
- 1930s saw regression
number of women working in 1930s increase
11.7% to 15.2%
ww2
- men taking part in war was greater
- growth in gov. machine & expansion of industry
- less prejudice against direct participation
- jobs included: flying/testing planes & typical sewing, nursing, cooking & typing
- propaganda eg. rosie the riveter
- women taking mens jobs clearly for duration of war
- no parity in pay
- more women as taxi drivers, heavy industry workers, drivers & workers in lumber/steel
- 6 million women entered workforce
how many women served in armed forces in ww2 and what in
100,000
–> women’s army corps, the navy & the women’s air force
avg. woman’s salary in 1944 compared to men’s
manufacturing work
women = $31.21 a week
men = $54.65 a week
how much social change did ww2 bring
- new jobs & taken on more responsibilities
- subject of propaganda campaigns
- ww2 taken social change further than ww1 but no great symbolic change
- reaction against change greater than after ww1
–> cold war encouraged conservatism
–> extended period of prosperity & growth of suburban america reinforced traditional attitudes - more in higher education
- more in professions
- more women taking a leading part in civil rights movements
- more using birth control
- dynamic female leaders also emerged
- most significant victory (social) = roe v. wade 1973
how many women killed in ammunition factories
37,000
roe v. wade
1973
how did roe v. wade originate
norma mccorvery brought a case in 1970 under name jane roe against the state of texas in the person of attorney general wade
what did roe do
- her & her female lawyers challenged this on constitutional grounds & claimed that a woman’s right over her own body fell into ‘a zone of privacy’
- to deny this privacy, texas (& other states) would be acting unconstitutionally
when did roe v. wade reach the supreme court
1973
terms of roe v. wade
- 1st 3 months of pregnancy = states couldn’t prohibit abortions
- 2nd/3rd trimester = couldn’t enact any ban if woman’s health was concerned
- after 6 months = states could protect unborn foetus but not if an abortion was necessary for the health of the mother
why was roe v. wade historic
- put rights of mother above foetus
- supported rights of women over their own bodies & over attitudes which denied them freedom
- greater recognition of women’s personal freedom
- challenged some traditional views on women
- woman’s right to choose whether they have children before other social responsibilities
negative aspects due to roe v. wade
- huge backlash of opposition = highlighted strength of counter view
- women’s position in society still highly contentious issue
(new feminism) due to the failure to pass the ERA, what key social issues did they focus on in the 1980s
- domestic violence, issues of sexual abuse in/out of marriage & providing shelters for women
- protect women from sexual harassment in workplace
- education on their history/rights
- protect women from conservative attempts to restrict abortion/access to birth control
- fund education for younger women & many social issues
how many women senators by 1990
2
divisions in women’s movement
- limited consensus on aims/methods of ‘second-wave feminism’
- women were divided
- divisions on way to use vote in 1919
- no agreement on ERA
- disagreements on abortion/nature & direction of feminism
positive aspects of new feminism
- more represented in politics –> 7 female senators in congress by 1993
- 1/2 university graduates were women in 1986
- ## positions of authority no longer unusual
which case revealed limitations
clarence thomas case of 1991
–> AA law professor, anita hill, accused clarence thomas of sexual harassment
–> hill’s treatment brough a considerable amount of protest & revival of feminism
main gains from 1865-1992
1865-1914
- job opportunities
- nature of work
- educational opportunities
- family size fell
1914-1939
- factory work
- clerical work
- flapper –> not rural
1939-1969
- armed forces
- more responsibility
- travel
- more in higher education
1969–>
- abortion
- new feminism
main limits from 1865-1992
1865-1914
- little birth control
1914-1939
- lost jobs when men returned from war/depression
- limited birth control
- discrimination at work
- divided organisations
1939-1969
- social conservatism during cold war
- divided
1969–>
- failure of equal opportunities
- divided
