***Women, 1918-33 Flashcards
When were women in Germany given the vote?
1918
What was the first election turnout for women?
90%
What did Article 109 of the constitution grant?
Equal rights for men and women in marriage and professional employment.
What was the BDF?
A women’s group that believed women should play nurturing roles in society.
Were there female extremists?
Yes there were female communists but communists still saw fighting as a man’s role.
What did the SPD support?
Improving the maternity rights of women.
How many women were elected to the Reichstag 1919-32?
112
How did women’s legal status remain limited?
The legal status of women under the German Civil Code (1900) remained. This denied women legal autonomy.
What remained illegal in Weimar Germany?
Abortion and contraception
Why were opportunities for women in politics reduced after 1929?
Due to the dominance of right wing politicians in state governments.
Why did women receive opposition from within the Reichstag?
A lot of politicians advocated for a return to traditional female roles (Kinder, Küche, Kirche) as they were concerned about the falling birth rate and rising divorce rates. As well as campaigns for contraception and rights to abortion.
What happened with work and female employment during the Weimar Republic?
Work was expanding and female employment was rising.
What kind of jobs were there more of during the WR?
White-blouse jobs (clerical and shop work)
What was it possible for single women to do with regards to work?
For them to go further in their education and profession than before.
How many female lawyers were there by 1933?
36
How many women were there in lower legal professions in 1925 compared with 1933?
1925 - 54 women in lower legal professions
1933 - 251
How many female doctors were there in 1925? How does this compare with 1933?
1925 = 2,500 female doctors
1932 = Almost double (5,000)
What was the government policy after WW1?
That women should give up their jobs to retuning soldiers.
On average, how much less were women paid than men for the same job?
33% less
In what type of women was the idea of working more accepted?
More accepted for single women rather than married women. However, it was still seen as temporary until they got married.
What did many women face in the workplace?
Hostility and discrimination
How was the school day structured? How did this affect women working?
The school day was structured to end at lunch time so mothers had to work from home or part-time.
In 1925, how many women were doing poorly paid work to be able to look after their children? How did this change by 1935?
250,000; by 1935 this had doubled.
What percentage of women were in poorly paid, manual jobs?
50%
What culture developed in the 1920s?
Racy city culture - Some women abandoned traditional female behaviours in response to this.
What did the World League of Sexual Freedom campaign for?
- Sexual freedom
- Schools of love to teach men the scientific principles of the female orgasm
- Easy access to contraception
What did a movement in the 1920s aim to end?
To end state licensed prostitution and use female instead of male social workers to deal with female sex workers.
What was the Care Office created to do?
To provide help for women leaving prostitution.
What did politicians and the media criticise?
The morality of “new women.”
What was the KDK established to do?
To campaign against cultural decadence of the 1920s.
What is an example of films being critical of the new woman?
Pandora’s Box (1929) showed women as morally decadent and sexual temptresses ruining their lives.
What did women seem to exemplify for some people?
That society was in crisis.
Why were women less affected by unemployment during the Great Depression?
They were cheaper to employ.
What percentage of men and of women were unemployed in 1932?
46% of men were unemployed whereas only 33% of women were unemployed.
What increased as a result of the Depression?
Hostility towards working women.
What did Brüning pass on 30 May 1932?
A decree allowing for the dismissal of married women so that men could take these jobs instead.
How many female teachers and musicians were there by 1932?
100,000 female teachers and 13,000 musicians
What percentage of the workforce was made up of women by 1925?
36% - in areas such as industry, agricultural and clerical work.
