The Role and Rights of Women in Western Europe and Eastern Asia from 1750 to 1914

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During the long nineteenth century, political revolutions, industrialization, and European imperialism resulted in dramatic changes in the role of women in Western Europe and Eastern Asia. As industrialization spread in Western Europe, women were no longer able to fulfill their dual role as a mother and a worker. After the introduction of industrialization, laborious tasks were moved from the household to factories and women were forced to choose either the life of a mother or the life of a worker. Women who chose to leave their households were subjected to harsh conditions, low wages, and long hours. The majority of married and middle-class women were confined to the home, and deprived of an education and civil rights. Unlike the women of Western Europe, the women of Eastern Asia rapidly constituted a major portion of the work force, but they also faced poor conditions and unfair wages. Similarly to Western Europe, the women of Eastern Asia were of a meaningless status and were expected to remain confined to the home. However, during the nineteenth century, the women of Eastern Asia gained greater educational opportunities. Additionally, the change in the role of women in Western Europe and Eastern Asia resulted in countless suffrage movements for civil rights. Therefore, the role of women in Western Europe and Eastern Asia was significantly similar in terms of the participation in the labor force and their attempts at gaining equal civil rights. However, the women of Eastern Asia had greater opportunities for education.
Before the introduction of industrialization, the family and the household was the basic unit of manufacturing in Western Europe. The family members would work together in commerce, and agricultural...

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...Asia participated in several suffrage movements. The women desired similar rights: equal rights, educational opportunities, improvement of their position in the family, and divorce rights; the attempts to gain these rights failed. However, women continued to fight for basic rights. Unfortunately, women’s movements immediately ended in China because of civil war and warlordism.
From 1750 to 1914, the role of women in Western Europe and Eastern Asia gradually changed as a result of industrialization, political revolutions, and European imperialism. The role of women in these two regions were parallel in that the women faced similar hardships in the labor force and women displayed political power by taking part in rebellions and fighting for civil rights. Yet, the women of Eastern Asia had greater access to education and made up an immense portion of the work force

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