The Representation of the People Act of 1918 is often seen to be the start of female suffrage in Great Britain. This bill was passed by the House of Commons with 385 votes for the act, challenged against by a small majority of only 55. This surprised the Suffragettes as well as a number of other suffragist movements greatly as they did not expect this much support from any form of government. The 1918 Representation of the People Act finally gave women the vote, however the women would only receive it if they owned their own property and were over the age of 30. Although not any women could vote as a result of this, it was a huge stepping stone in working their way to achieve equality. The 1918 Representation of the People Act changed the status of women a great deal, firstly it obviously allowed the women that qualified to vote, and this was a great improvement to what they could previously do before this act was passed, however now that women could vote there was a chance for many different acts to be passed that could further advance the rights of women in Britain. One of these acts that was passed from women being able to vote was the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act of 1919. This act enabled women to go in to jobs in the legal profession and civil service. This then further showed the equality between men and woman becoming closer and women were slowly but surely achieving their goals and receiving different abilities and privileges as a result of their campaigns. Women's status in society also changed a lot after these two acts as women could now do more in society, for example it would now be a great deal easier for a woman to go in to a shop and purchase something for themselves with nowhere near as much hassle; this co... ... middle of paper ... ...aken it on board. The purpose of the source shown above is to inform the House of Commons how women have worked so hard in order to achieve equality in Britain. Asquith uses the war to attempt to change the opinions of the House of Commons by identifying them as Britain’s saviour during the war was women’s salvation; he does this by saying that we would have not been able to carry on fighting in the war without it. In conclusion the 1918 Representation of the People Act was a huge turning point in women's rights and allowed brand new opportunities to come forward as well as that it showed the rewards from the campaigns that had previously been performed. This Act would have encouraged the suffrage movement to continue what they were doing in order to achieve even more results and changes to the system to give women even more chances than they had already been given.
It changed women’s everyday lives too. The women got better pay and the place where they worked was safer. Children’s well being was changed too (The Nineteenth Amendment). Susan B. Anthony held a major responsibility in women suffrage through her early life, working with the National Woman Suffrage Association, and her role after her death.
Before 1870 there were few bills passed to achieve much for the movement. One bill that was passed, which did not directly affect women in too many ways was one of the starting points of the campaign for the vote. This was the 1867 Reform Act. In 1832, the Great Reform Act was passed, this allowed most middle class men to vote, but not working class men. But, the 1867 Reform Act changed this. This Act lead to all men who had lived at the same address for 12 months to be able vote. This meant that many more working class men were able to vote in the General elections. After this Act, many women felt that if the majority of men, regardless of class, were able to vote, why should women not be able to vote as well.
Barton poses a series of rhetorical questions to the reader (‘did these women quail at the sight of a gun?...did they faint at the blood?’) which may lead a reader to infer that this poem was written to address the males in society. The continuous use of ‘he’ suggests that since it was the men who decided that women would be of no use on the battle field because of their innate weakness and inability to deal with the nature of war, it wsas now the men who needed to realise that women could do more than ‘wait patiently till victory comes’; women had shown that they were capable of much of the same things that men where including staying calm in the face of war and running the home with absolutely no male influence. This view is supported by radical feminist sociologists such as Kate Millett who believe that ‘patriarchy is not ascribed but rather socially created and therefore capable of being challenged and deconstructed’1. Therefore, ‘The Women Who Went to the Field’ can be interpreted as not only a statement about the changing roles of women in society, but, also as a statement for the need for the recognition of
The amendment would let women into power, giving them social justice and many political rights. Before 1920, women did not have the right to vote. They were known as “second class citizens”. Women were to stay home to help organize the family’s necessities. Having any other higher power was said to be way out of their limitations.
Women’s suffrage was a defining moment for Canada because women made up approximately half the Canadian population. By giving them the right to vote, it allowed Canada to be a more democratic country. Women getting the right to vote had a huge impact on the election of 1917 because women who were married to soldiers in the war could vote because of the War time Elections Act. It was also a big step for women to get involved more in the society during World War 1. In addition, the women contributed in the war effort a lot by making the products sent over seas to our soldiers, who had left their jobs to fight for their country in World War 1. This also was creating other opportunities for the women to get involved with society by taking the men’s places in the factories.
1. More women went to work outside the home, women gained the right to sit in parliament, more
Women were getting tired of not having the same rights as men, so they wanted to make a move to change this. Women got so tired of staying at home while the men worked. Women wanted to get an education. So they fought for their freedom. Abigail Adams said to her husband, “in the new code of laws, remember the ladies and do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands.” John’s reply was, “I cannot but laugh. Depend upon it, we know better than to repeal our masculine systems.” These were said in 1776. The women’s suffrage actually began in 1848, which was the first women’s rights convention which was held in Seneca Falls, New York. Prominent leaders began campaigning for the right to vote at State and federal levels. Susan B. Anthony was the leader for getting women their rights in the United States. Susan B. Anthony voted in Rochester, NY for the presidential election. This occurred in 1872. She was, “arrested, tried, convicted, and fined $100.” She refused to pay the fine. Supporters of The Equal Rights Amendment would march, rally, petition, and go on hunger strikes.
Women throughout the suffrage act were faced with many challenges that eventually led into the leading roles of women in the world today. Suffrage leaders adopted new arguments to gain new support. Rather than insisting on the justice of women’s suffrage, or emphasizing equal rights, they spoke of the special moral and material instincts women could bring to the table. Because of these women taking leaps and boundaries, they are now a large part of America’s government, and how our country operates.
As women started working, patriarchal control of the family was upset (Faragher 400). Women were now bringing in income just like the men were and to them this was empowering. They now longer depended on a man to survive. Now that women were working many also wanted an education beyond high school. Women started going to college and with a better education were able to further increase the interest of the women 's rights movements (Knight 361). Despite these advances women still were not close to gaining equality to their male counterparts. However they did gain more control of the family’s well being.
Although they were fighting for a worthy cause, many did not agree with these women’s radical views. These conservative thinkers caused a great road-block on the way to enfranchisement. Most of them were men, who were set in their thoughts about women’s roles, who couldn’t understand why a woman would deserve to vote, let alone want to vote. But there were also many women who were not concerned with their fundamental right to vote. Because some women were indifferent in regards to suffrage, they set back those who were working towards the greater good of the nation. However, the suffragettes were able to overcome these obstacles by altering their tactics, while still maintaining their objective.
Women began to speak out against the laws that were deliberately set against them. Throughout this time period, women were denied the right to vote in all federal and most state held elections. Women struggled to achieve equality; equality as citizens, equality in the work place, and equality at home. During this time, Americans worked to fight corruption in government, reduce the power of big business, and improve society as a whole.
Women’s role in society changed quite a bit during WWI and throughout the 1920s. During the 1910s women were very short or liberty and equality, life was like an endless rulebook. Women were expected to behave modestly and wear long dresses. Long hair was obligatory, however it always had to be up. It was unacceptable for them to smoke and they were expected to always be accompanied by an older woman or a married woman when outing. Women were usually employed with jobs that were usually associated with their genders, such as servants, seamstresses, secretaries and nursing. However during the war, women started becoming employed in different types of jobs such as factory work, replacing the men who had gone to fight in the war in Europe. In the late 1910s The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) had been fighting for decades to get the vote for women. As women had contributed so much to the war effort, it was difficult to refuse their demands for political equality. As a result, the Nineteenth Amendment to the constitution became law in 19...
It allowed married women the right to retain property they owned before marriage and wages they earned outside the family home. (pp.247) Their rights continued to progress when both white and black women were given the right to vote, although it still didn’t have the impact that was expected. Not only were women given more rights, but they also started attending schools and seeking employment. This was a big step for women, but men interpreted this as a threat to the balance of power. Weitz stated that after new “scientific” ideas were combined with old definitions of women’s bodies, due to their ill and fragile bodies, “white middle-class women were unable to sustain the responsibilities of political power or the burdens of education or employment.”
Suffrage is the right or exercise of the right to vote. Suffrage has been viewed as a right, a privilege, or even a duty. Suffrage was first proposed as a federal amendment in 1868, women 's suffrage struggled for many years before the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment gave women the right to vote in 1920. The demand for liberation of american women was first formed in 1848 at seneca falls after the civil war. In 1869 Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton formed the National woman suffrage association to work for the movement on the federal level and to press for a more drastic institutional changes. Lucy Stone and Julia Ward formed the American Women Suffrage Association which aimed to secure the ballot throughout the state 's legislature. The two groups run by the four women finally joined in 1890 united together under the name of the National American Woman Suffrage Association
Beginning in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century women began to vocalize their opinions and desires for the right to vote. The Women’s Suffrage movement paved the way to the nineteenth Amendment in the United States Constitution that allowed women that right. The Women’s Suffrage movement started a movement for equal rights for women that has continued to propel equal opportunities for women throughout the country. The Women’s Liberation Movement has sparked better opportunities, demanded respect and pioneered the path for women entering in the workforce that was started by the right to vote and given momentum in the late 1950s.