Suffragettes Flashcards
Describe the rights already won for women at the start of the 20th century
- not that secure, very small steps
- like some women can vote at some local elections
- & age of consent raised to 16
What were the 3 most convincing arguments in favour of equal voting
- 16th century women freeholders could vote - this would just be restoring an old right
- women property owners should be equal to male property owners
- women already participating in party politics
Which are the least convincing arguments in favour of equal voting
- votes for women would clean up public life, if men & women adhered to the same moral principles
Which arguments against female suffrage could be considered most convincing
- giving women the vote would damage Britain because it would destabilise the existing structure
- women were indirectly represented by men
Why would no major party adopt women’s suffrage as an official policy
- unelectable - those who vote for it cannot vote
Status & role of women by 1903
Social Improvements
- 1839 - women win cutsody of infants after divorce
- 1900 - 60,000 trained nurses in British hospitals
- 1900 - London & Manchester universities accept women
Status & role of women by 1903
Economic Improvements
- women allowed to keep their income & property after they married
- 1900 - 2,000 poor law guardians
Status & role of women by 1903
Political Improvements
- 1897 - NUWSS formed, with individuals emerging campaining for women’s rights
- women began to engage in politcial parties
- women could vote on school board & in some elections
Status & role of women by 1903
Social Continuities
- ideology of domesticity power in the m/c
- role of the mother seen to be an affirmation of a women’s identity
- wife battering remained legal in the nineteenth century
Status & role of women by 1903
Economic Continuities
- majority of w/c women worked as servants for very low pay
- on average female workers earned 65% of a male wage
- jobs in the law & banking were still closed to women by 1900
Explain how the early women’s suffrage movement was divided in each of the following areas
-aims
- Young suffragists wanted to affiliate with the women’s section of the Liberal party,
- whilst others like Fawcett wanted to keep the suffrage organisation independent of party politics to keep wide appeal
- Some thought minor reform was better than no reform at all,
- while others thought limiting the vote to single women would only push back the vote further for married women
Explain how the early women’s suffrage movement was divided in each of the following areas
-political strategy
- Pankhurt’s activities of heckling & disruption produced futher splits with women critical of her behaviour
- some regional differences too
Why was the late ninteenth century a dissapointing time for women’s rights activists
- The 1884 reform act had given the vote to any working class men,
- & though 40% men remained unenfranchised, it was feared that women had missed the chance to secure the vote
- upheaval in the parties, & liberals declining
Which union was formed in 1897
- National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS)
Why did the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS) not have much sucess
- They spearheaded the campaign for womens suffrage, but their tactics & limited ideas produced little success, avoiding outdoor meeting, public appeals & by-election interfering, which was key to the CDAs success
