II. Victorian women had limited rights to control their own lives, both economically and in marriage.
A. During the Victorian era, women had limited opportunities to find work outside of the home and had almost no control of their money or property.
1. Feminists pushed “legislation to require husbands to share their family wage and to grant ownership to wives of household savings; motherhood endowment and later a supporting parent's benefit; the public provision of child care; and equal pay (Lake 5).” [BLOCK QUOTE]
a. Early feminist newsletters published scathing critiques of a woman’s life and her inability to “think of her own life and development” as “she has no money, it is her husband’s money, the complete right to her children is not yet legally hers, and she is not even in independent possession of her own body”
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Early feminists’ main goal was for a woman to be economically independent, regardless of her marriage status. Franklin uses Sybylla's family as a proof that women should be able to control the family's income. Sybylla's father drinks and gambles away the Melvin family money, yet her mother is unable to do anything to stop it, no matter how much she wishes she could (Franklin Locations 386-388).
c. Sybylla also has a grandmother and aunt who are independent women who control their own finances and do a wonderful job of it as their house is furnished with lavish goods and the women, while not working, are capable of running their own house, complete with servants, proving that women are capable of being economically stable without ruining their homes (Franklin Locations 764-767).
2. The traditional view of a woman's role was as a housewife. These mothers spent all of their energy caring for and rearing their children, creating a space that was clean and inviting, and maintaining the home for their husbands. (Graglia 37)." These women advocate for the traditional place of a woman and believe that it is their true job is to care for their
Women had not only been denied the voting rights and the lack of education before the nineteenth century, they had also been restricted the right to own property. Women who were married were basically owned by their husbands, up until the mid nineteenth century, so they had no regulations with money or their property (Hermes 1). If you were unmarried, however, you were allowed to be owner of property, but when they married the women became property of the man (Talbott 1). As stated previously before, women who were not married were allowed to vote as well as hold property, but a small amount of women did. Marriage was a disadvantage for the women, because they lost most of the rights they had previously. They were not allowed to buy or sell property (Erickson 1).
The Victorian era was a period of time in England spanning from 1837 to 1901, named after Queen Victoria who reigned in this time period. Women were a suppressed gender in the Victorian era. Unmarried women that were 21 years old or older had the right to own their own property and earn their own money; however as soon as they got married they lost all of their rights. Their husband was now entitled to all wealth and property. Most people accepted the suppression however certain people started fighting for women’s rights. One of the protestors was Barbara Bodichon who wrote the pamphlet “Laws Concerning Women”, which is about the laws that women were obligated to follow.
(i) Women were limited regarding the responsibility for, obliging them to wed in order to acquire, hence keeping them from achieving genuine autonomy (it is this issue which practices proto-women 's activist scholars like Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë). (ii) Women did not have full rights over their own particular body, which implied they had no lawful security against sexual viciousness (e.g. the possibility that a spouse could assault his better half was not conceded as law until late in the twentieth century). (iii) Women were victimized in the working environment, which not just implied ladies were paid not as much as men for the same work, it additionally confined them from applying for certain occupations, denied them advancement, and made no stipend for maternity take off. A considerable lot of these issues hold on
Women were confronted by many social obligation in the late nineteenth century. Women were living lives that reflected their social rank. They were expected to be economically dependent and legally inferior. No matter what class women were in, men were seen as the ones who go to work and make the money. That way, the women would have to be dependent since they were not able to go to work and make a good salary. No matter what class a woman was in, she could own property in her own name. When a woman became married she " lost control of any property she owned, inherited, or earned" ( Kagan et al. 569). A woman's legal identity was given to her husband.
Basically the Victorian era sucked for women. During the beginning they were expected to be smart, but to not have an opinion. They were to be beautiful, yet act and appear virginal. Women were also
The political atmosphere for women in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s was fierce and in a constant state of battle. Groups and events such as the National Woman Suffrage Association and the National Women’s Rights Convention were created. Feminist ideals began to gather momentum and support. Married women gained many rights during the 19th century as evidenced by the passing of several laws in their favor. Unfortunately, the social norms remained somewhat the same. 18th century jurist William Blackstone explained the early thinking of a woman’s status: "By marriage, the very being or legal existence of a woman is suspended, or at least incorporated or consolidated into that of the husband, under whose wing, protection, or cover she performs everything” (Offen 1). Women during these early years of the United States lost their identity and became a part of their husband. This school of thought slowly changed over the next two centuries. By the time Minnie Wright finds herself married, she is still under the full control of her husband socially but not necessarily legally. In this way, the patriarchal ideology conti...
In the early 1900’s, around the time the story takes place; women were expected to be care takers of the home, to be clean, well dressed and mannered. All of these
As you can see, men and women during the Victorian era had very different and distinct. Their duties were not based on the individual’s abilities but rather their gender unlike modern day England where an individual’s duties are based on their strengths and weaknesses as a person. Also, modern day women have so much more strength and equality then during the Victorian era where they had to obey their mothers and husbands and couldn’t live their lives the way they wanted to.
The Victorian era was an extremely difficult time for women in Great Britain. They were subject to gross inequalities such as, not being able to; control their own earnings, education, and marriage. As well as having a lack of equality within marriage, women had poor working conditions, and an immense unemployment rate as well. Not only was the fact that women were viewed as second-class citizens and had limited rights compared to men during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries a major problem, but women were also held to a much different standard, and expected to carry out many
Actually, many rights that we see as basic in modern times were withheld from these women. Heffer notes that in the pre Victorian era women could not get divorced, own property, legally protect their own bodies, vote, or hold political office; however, change was coming. First, the Infant Custody Act was passed in 1839 that legally gave women custody of any child she had fewer than seven in a court of law if she separated from her husband. This was a detrimental ruling because previously the custody was given to the husband no matter what. According to Heffer, divorce was finally made available for every one with the Matrimonial Causes Act in 1857. There was also an amendment to the Married Women’s Property Act which legally recognized women as individuals rather than property of their husbands. The evolution of women’s rights during the Victorian era was definitely the most critical and quick with women obtaining the right to divorce due to violence, keep any money she earned, and become entitled to child support within the following 15 years (Gordon).
Role of Victorian women was expected to be limited to childbearing and housewife. There were some changes that occurred in the lives of women during Victorian times.
The late nineteenth century was a critical time in reshaping the rights of women. Commonly this era is considered to be the beginning of what is know to western feminists as “first-wave feminism.” First-wave feminism predominately fought for legal rights such as suffrage, and property rights. A major hallmark of first-wave feminism is the concept of the “New Woman.” The phrase New Woman described educated, independent, career oriented women who stood in response to the idea of the “Cult of Domesticity,” that is the idea that women are meant to be domestic and submissive (Stevens 27). Though the concept of the New Woman was empowering to many, some women did not want to give up their roles as housewives. These women felt there was a great dignity in the lifestyle of the housewife, and that raising children was not a job to scoff at. Mary Freeman's short story “The Revolt of 'Mother',” tells the story of such a domestic woman, Sarah, who has no interest in leaving her position as mother, but still wishes to have her voice heard in the private sphere of her home. Freeman's “Revolt of Mother,” illustrates an alternative means of resistance for women who rejected the oppression of patriarchy without a withdrawal from the domestic lifestyle.
Many people believe that marriage is important in this day and age, but it holds little significance compared to the importance of marriage in the Victorian era. In the Victorian era women were to get married to a man of the same or a better social status, be good wives, and be a mother to her husband's children. Very few marriages started with love, but a woman's life is not complete without being married. Over time, the role of married women has evolved a great deal and they now have rights and privileges. John Stuart Mill was one of the great thinkers of the Victorian era, and his essay The Subjection of Women tells how few privileges women had and that they were slaves to their husbands. He also says that women are their own people and should be free. This was an uncommon view for a man of this time to have. Mill provided a much-needed reality check for the ethical treatment of women, and also generated ideas for the women's rights movement which was quite uncommon for a man to do in this period. His essay On Liberty promotes how important it is to have the complete freedom to state one's opinion. Had someone else been as brave as Mill before the Victorian era the women's movement may be further advanced today than it is.
There was an inborn sense of subordination of women throughout the Victorian era, and rather significant similarities between housewife and servant. This idea that women were not seen as an equal towards men can be traced back to the Victorian English natural hierarchy. It was their belief that those had to serve and owed much to the people superior to them, i.e. kings to gods, lords to kings, and servant to master, ect. (Davidoff, 408). To be born a woman, was to be under complete control of her husband, much like to be born a slave confined to their masters’ demands and wishes (Davidoff, 408). The difference between wife and slave was Victorian England’s social concepts of servitude. Women moved from paternal control in their private home, into a lifetime of servitude of their husband’s home, therefore; women knew their duties were fo...
Then there was the woman’s movement and women felt they deserved equal rights and should be considered man’s equal and not inferior. The man going out to work, and the wife staying home to care for the home and the children would soon become less the norm. This movement would go on to shape the changes within the nuclear family. Women deci...