Firstly, whether a family live in a symmetrical family or not will have an effect on the divisions of labour. March of Progress theorists (Liberal Feminists) such as Young and Willmott argue that family life is gradually improving for all its members, becoming more equal and democratic. For example, women now go out to work, just as men now help with housework and childcare. However Radical Feminists reject the ‘March of Progress’ theory, and argue that women remain unequal within the family. Anne Oakley argues that we still live in a patriarchal (male dominated) society, and therefore women occupy a subordinate and dependant role within the family and wider society.
Whereas the wife’s role was called expressive, this is when the wife is expected to look after the house and to raise the children emotionally and cook. However with increasing numbers of married women working in paid employment sociologists have looked more carefully at the division of labour and weather the increasing numbers of women working has caused the renegotiation of the traditional domestic roles. Whether a family live in a symmetrical family or not will have an effect on the divisions of labour. Theorists such as Young and Willmott argue that family life is gradually improving for all its members, becoming more equal and democratic. For example, women now go out to work and become wage earners, just as men now help with housework and childcare.
The domestic division of labour refers to the roles that men and women play in relation to housework, childcare and paid work; and in addition looks at the different powers both have within the household and the relationship. This essay will also focus on the factors which affect these divisions. Firstly, whether a family live in a symmetrical family or not will have an effect on the divisions of labour. March of Progress theorists such as Young and Willmott argue that family life is gradually improving for all its members, becoming more equal and democratic. For example, women now go out to work, just as men now help with housework and childcare.
Abigail Adams was one of the first women to question male superiority and the importance of laws for women which ultimately led to establishment of Women’s Rights. For women in America life in the early 18th century was associated with domestic activities. They were required to take care of household and raise the children while men were expected to support family with food and other common needs in order to survive. Even women who belonged to the upper class and had maids to help around the house were still expected to stay at home and be by the side of their husbands when necessary. Marriages were usually based on economic partnership and cultural believes.
During the occurence of numerous events, in particular WW1, the privilages of wowen were altered drstically during and following the war. Prior to WW1 women typically played the position of the homemaker; women were rather foucused on their beauty rather than their ability to perform. Their status was directed at maintaining the annual duties of the family and children, consisting of cleaning and caring for the house. As men left for service, logically the voyge was filled by a percentasge of women; which resulted in the percentage of women of women employ increasing. There was an sudded influxo f women to take on each untradational occupation.
Additionally, seeing as women make up half of the worldʼs population they are also another important factor to understand. When looking at world history is a whole it is clear to see that women influenced many developments, and they clearly played a role in shaping todayʼs cultures. We are living in a world today that is starkly contrasted with the one that women were living in back then, nonetheless, some of the ways that women are treated and looked at today branch from the beliefs and social systems of civilizations like Mesopotamia and Egypt. Some will say that men still are the head of the family, others will say that things are far more equal now than they were back then. That will continue to be an ongoing debate with no clear right or wrong answer.
Women in early societies lived to reproduced and continue the blood line, mostly striving for male babies. People in society in some ways believed that god wanted life to run as women as the follower or to be inferior. Women through the years pushed to work and for education and over time laws were granted to allow this for women. The people saw a need for more workers with more jobs now available. The turn of women’s rights has gradually changed so much that women and men are pretty much considered equal in most of the
In many cases, the wife was expected to run the house and provide child care. The husband would be the breadwinner and handle the financial decisions. Love was shown in part by performing duties for the family. As we discussed marriage has undergone many transformations that helped weaken the social norms that defines normal relationship ideas over the past few decades. Some examples of this are apparent with the increasing number of cohabiting relationships and the changes in both marriage and divorce rates during the 20th century.
Elizabeth Bott conducted a lot of research into conjugal roles and came up with the term ‘joint conjugal role’ which means that the couple share the housework and the childcare. This type of relationship has become much more common since the 1970’s, this suggests that there is more equality between men and women in domestic labour and gender roles. Controversially, Bott discussed segregated conjugal roles, the ‘instrumental role’ played by the man, meaning he provides for the family by going to work whilst the women play the ‘expressive role’ meaning that they cook, clean and look after the
The only things women were “good for” was taking care of their children and husband. Women has many obligations and very few choices, it was a women’s obligation to take care of her family as well as, clean, cook, sew, knit, and basically do anything and everything her husband asked or demanded. Women were more salves than actual wives. They were owned by men, whether it was her father, brothers, cousins, and/or husbands, they were viewed more as property than actual humans. Girls had to learn this life style at a very early age, if their mothers were busy gathering food; the daughter was to maintain the household.