Roles of Women Throughout History: 3D Gallery

Greece and Rome

Greece:

Women were expected to stay at home and do household jobs in Greece. Women were also not very well respected in Athenian Democracy as they got no say in almost anything. An example of this is that the Council of 500 was only open to men which would leave the women to take care of the children. Athenian Democracy powerpoint

Rome:

Just like in Ancient Greece, women were clearly not very respected in Ancient Rome. When male slaves were released they were given full citizenship but for women that was not the case. They were either not released from being slaves or they weren’t given full citizenship. The Roman Republic Classwork. Women in ancient Rome were expected to do house chores and take care of the children so the men could do the “important” work. Women were also thought to have weak judgement so they weren’t trusted to make important decisions in the government.

As shown in this picture, women were seen as slaves to the higher class people. They were forced to fan them, bring them their food, and praise them.

Renaissance and Reformation

Just like during the ancient times, women were considered subject to men and they were denied all political rights. Peasant women worked in the fields with their husbands as well as having to attend to the family life. Middle class women were expected to help their husbands run their businesses. Even the highest class women would have to attend to all the house chores such as cleaning, cooking, sewing, and much more.

During the English Reformation, higher class women were respected a little bit more than in other time periods. The English Reformation powerpoint. Most women during the Protestant Reformation were expects to be obedient, silent, and to perform household tasks. The only reason they were allowed to get an education is because that education would teach them how to perform household tasks and chores and to be disciplined so they would be respectful towards their husbands. Their were many very important women that changed the outcome of the Protestant Reformation but for the most part women didn’t have much of a say yet and were forced to stick to house chores.

As shown in this picture, this women is being forced to do house chores. This was the case for most low and middle class women as they weren't trusted to do anything else.

Absolutism

Women were still expected to be loyal to their husbands, be modest and reserved, and they were even forced to believe in the superiority of men. If there was a woman who thought or acted otherwise, she was thought to be a witch then tried and executed. There was still no tolerance for women thinking that they were just as superior as men and it was sad to see that no changes were occurring. Later on in the late 1700s, witch hunts were ended and most absolute monarchs and dictatorships were dismantled. Women started demanding respect so they started receiving it. Their education started to get better and better. Women were looked at as more precious and more valuable than before when they were just considered as a person to marry and to have sons with. This short period of absolutism provided women with more chances to show how intelligent and how helpful they really could be towards the society.

In this cartoon, you see a women being put up onto a ladder and about to be thrown into fire. This would be a regular thing during the Age of Absolutism because of the ignorance of men who think that women have no chance to be as smart as them.

The Enlightenment

Parisian salons were distinguished from all male literacy circles and were completely dominated by women. Many of these salons were secretly held in the women’s households and the women invited different writers, artists, and philosophers to get across the point that they were ready for a change. The greatest salon at this time was The Salon of Madame Geoffrin. All of the most important philosophers, artists, nobles, princes, ambassadors, politicians, and reformers came to this salon to have intellectual debates on how to change the government and to get everybody’s opinions. This was the first real change that happened for women in a very long time. Unfortunately, even though these salons were occurring, there still needed to be much more change for women to be equal. Many women still didn’t receive the proper education needed because they were believed to be ignorant and not capable of understanding the material. All women were expected to be housewives and do nothing except for cook, clean, and take care of their families.

This picture is of Madame Geoffrin's salon and this is where many important women and men spent their time to debate politics.

The French Revolution

The Women’s March on Versailles was the spark of the French Revolution. It was a huge shift for not only the people in France, but in all the countries all around the world. It all happened from October 5th - October 6th, 1789. This was the beginning of the women’s movement to have equal rights and to be respected by men. It all started with many women marching outside of Versailles demanding bread for their families in the pouring rain holding pitchforks. This would be the last day the King would see Versailles, Louis XVI went to his balcony and announced that him, Marie Antoinette (wife), and their children would be leaving to Paris which at this point didn’t sit well with the women. All of the women charged into the palace and almost got a hold of both Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI but they managed to escape just in time. Because King Louis left to Paris, he was forced to support the reforms and it was the turning point of the French Revolution. This was the first time in a long time that women show how much a of a change they can make. Women then attempted to make their own declaration of rights after the men made their own not including any indication that it applied to women. Although some people didn’t take it very seriously, the women believed that it was the start of something new.

19th Century

Throughout the 19th century and a little bit during the 20th century, women were fighting for equal rights and more importantly to have the right to vote because they didn’t believe it was fair that half the population couldn’t vote for a leader. In the 19th century, men and women were expected to fill different spheres of society. Men were supposed to live a public life, from working in places such as clubs, bars, factories, etc. On the other hand, women were still expected to be homebound and care for their families. Women were very upset with this so they had the 1848 Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York. During this, men and women at the convention met over three days to discuss the current state of women under the U.S law. There was where the Declaration of Sentiments was made and it was a huge change in history. It laid out injustices of the women of the 19th century and some people thought it was way too harsh, even the women. Even though some people thought this way, it started a movement and a year later many of the 19th century women’s rights activists met up the year after at another convention. This includes, Lucretia Mott, Sojourner Truth, and the architect of the Declaration of Sentiments, Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

WWI

Women started receiving much more credit for everything they do after the Women’s Rights Conventions. They were respected well enough that some women even got to fight in the front lines of WWI. WWI is the first time that we really see the effects of all the protests throughout history working for the women. Some women were not necessarily happy that there was a war but they were happy that it would give them new chances to prove themselves to society. It forced men out of their jobs because they needed to fight. These jobs needed to be filled in and it was the perfect opportunity for women to prove that they can do just as good of a job as men or even better. Many women also took jobs as nurses for the US military, taking care of any injured soldiers and personnel. Women’s employment rates increased during WWI, from 23.6% of the working age population in 1914 to between 37.7% and 46.7% in 1918. The unfortunate thing for the women is that when the men get back from war then some women would be forced out of their jobs and would have to go back to doing house chores.

In the picture above are WWI nurses. This was one of the first times in history that women were trusted to do something extremely important for their country.

WWI Interwar Period

Like what was mentioned beforehand, many women had their new jobs taken away from them because of the men returning from battle who needed a job and weren’t going to start doing house chores for their wives.Women and some unemployed women rallied together to start the National Unemployed Workers’ Movement. This movement was set up in 1921 and it campaigned for better support for the unemployed and against the Means Test. The government then decided to make some industries considered as “women’s-work”. These industries included food and drink industries, electrical industries, and engineering industries. There was a catch though (there is always a catch), these jobs had very long grueling hours and the salaries were very low. Even with the women’s great work during WWI, men still didn’t trust them with more “skilled” jobs and it was a huge shock to these women.

The women in this picture were striking so they can get quality jobs that pay enough that they can support their families. They didn't think that it was fair that they were forced to be in their houses; cooking, cleaning, sewing, washing, etc. after all of the hard work they put into WWI.

WWII and WWII Interwar Period

World War II was the time that all the opportunities opened up for women across the world. It offered them the ability to enter jobs that women have never entered before (mostly in the defense industry). During WWII there were about 1.1 billion women alive. Out of that 1.1 billion women alive, 350,000 of them were participating in the armed forces. That is about .03% of the women population at that time. This is also not considering that there were only 12 countries in the war and there are hundreds of countries in the world. These numbers are crazy considering that almost no women were even allowed to have jobs outside of working at home not too long ago. A women named Therese Bonney also made and exhibit called Women Come to the Front: Journalists, Photographers, and Broadcasters During World War II. This exhibit consisted of eight women who were chosen to be in it because of the strength and variety of their collections in the Library of Congress.

From being nurses in WWI, to being out of jobs in the WWI interwar period, to being back on top as a huge part in WWII. In this picture there are three fighter pilots that have returned after a successful mission and they walk away from their jets with pride.

Post War-Present

Women have come a very long way in history. They started off as slaves in Ancient Greece and Rome. They were forced to stay in their houses cleaning, washing, sewing, cooking, and taking care of their children all by themselves because of men's ignorance. They weren't allowed to get an education, nor get jobs. Men can't take credit for women's history because only women can. Women had to face adversity and move past it. Every bad remark said to them, they ignored it. Women are the reason that gender roles are significantly more equal then they were before. Today, women are allowed to be in their country's military, they get the same opportunity as men when it comes to education, they are mostly respected around the globe. They are no longer limited to staying at home. Women can get any job that they desire as long as they work for it. All this hard work and dedication that past women put into making equal gender roles have certainly payed off and we thank them.

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Roles of Women Throughout History