The Depression hit women, like other minority groups in American society, similarly harsh because of that payrolls of many communities and private companies were open only to males. The main role of women during the Great Depression was that of the homemaker. Some women had gone through college level education and, like their male counterparts, were having a difficult time of finding employment. Those with families had the task of keeping their family together, as the traditional view of motherhood role, when the principle moneymaker of the family was out of work. However, some women joined the work force and would do jobs that men previously had held.
The downside is that the economy could not sustain having jobs available for both these men and women once the men arrived back home from the war. The view on women at this time made sure to put these women back were most believed they should be, which was at home, working as a waitress, or some type of cleaning
Many women probably did not even know how to write because their were neglected from their studies or were probably always to busy doing what ever their husbands wanted them to do. Rich's life was different she knew something had to change and that is the main reason why she decided to write about it. I would consider her as a model to all the other women at the time, her essay should have been a way to encourage other women to get off their buts, stop washing dishes, stop having kids, get their life together and start studying! The sad part of this is that till this day not many women are being recognized for their hard studies, and it has been almost thirty four years since this has come out to the public. This failure to consider what women need from their college experience in order to succeed is, as Rich says, part of the old belief that women's primary goal is or should be marriage--and that "[t]oo much intelligence or intensity may make [them] unmarriageable" (215).
Most women were stay at home moms or “housewives” while very few were able to work. If a woman had a job she was most likely working a low pay factory job. “The low wages, long hours, and poor working conditions women workers had faced in the 19th century intensified in the early 20th century, provoking a much more widespread women’s labor reform movement than ever before—one which involved both working-class women and middle-class women concerned with their social welfare (NWHM).” Women were being paid about 60% less than the man’s average wage. This was not ok to the women. They had believed that they were working just as hard as the men were and that the deserved the same pay.
They now share equal responsibilities in homecare and rasing the family. Slowly the gender roles that were previously set are melting away. Since the dawn of the feminist movement women have been able to accomplish what many thought impossible. But in our modern era woman now face other challenges, such as negative sexual attention. When a man is referred to as a ‘slut” it doesn’t associate to the actual definition used by society.
In the 1950’s, there were wives who were suffering from depression. Women sacrificed a lot for their families during this time (MailOnline). Some women did not get to further their education because they had children in their early twenties. These women were unable to go out and participate in activities outside of the home because they had to be the “perfect housewife” and manage the home (Lamb). It was like they were confined to the vicinity of their home.
This type of discrimination prevents many from attaining their goals of reaching the American dream. There are people that believe one gender over the other is simply more valuable and useful compared to the other, which unfortunately lead to unequal opportunity. Gender discrimination is usually targeted towards woman in most cases, many believe that women are of weaker nature and therefore cannot perform better than men could. Marissa Salazar had been a recent target of gender discrimination in her workforce, much related to the issue of Mr. Palmer. Gender discrimination leads to psychological and emotional disturbance, resulting in demoralization and descend in performance standards.
Welfare Reforms The dream of most women is to have the traditional family, which includes a husband and their children. There are more single mothers in this day and age that face more challenges on the way to achieving the American Dream. They find it hard to provide financially even working a full-time job because the pay is normally minimum wage and most still rely on public assistance to make ends meet. Some single mothers lack education and work experience, which prevents them from obtaining a decent paying job. Budget cuts to welfare programs are making it that much harder for the single mother to provide the necessities for their children because these supplemental programs are necessary to the day to day workings of a family.
Although, the struggle to balance traditional culture with the modern privileges is apparent. Traditionally Greek and Roman women are suppose to uphold the duty of having and raising children, but with newfound career paths many women are having difficult obtaining both. "As a result of this dilemma, in Greece there has been a rise in abortions by working women who are afraid that pregnancy may result in the loss of their job. Indeed, many employers ask prospective female employees if they are married"(2). This fact has caused family sizes to shrink over the years giving Greece one of the lowest birthrates in Europe, and among the top five countries with the lowest birthrates in the world.
In the eighteenth century most children were not receiving the best education. Women were being undermined in these institutions and it forced them and their children to look for other alternatives. In Margaret’s case, the readers get a sense that their economic life was difficult. Her husband and daughter, Mabel had to go to work in factories in order to meet ends meet. This is a new beginning where women left their houses to go and find jobs, “Job opportunities for women were better in the United States, particularly Massachusetts, the cradle of industrialization in North America.” In Margaret’s case readers get an insight of the middle class and working class family.