What Were The Effects Of Women's Lives Ww1

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1 Women’s lives after the two world wars changed, but there is some debate as to how much it changed. Their lives changed politically, with women gaining the vote, they changed in terms of employment, as they were now permitted to join certain professions and they also changed socially as a better way of living was set out for them. It is argued that women were given greater opportunities after the wars due to their exceptional participation on the home front. However, many historians believe that this change in women’s lives was simply due to the changing times and the progression in society. The historical debate surrounding this topic is wether women’s lives really did change greatly after the two world wars, or wether their lives simply went back to the way they were before the war started. This essay will discuss women’s participation during the two world wars, the gaining of the vote, women in the workplace after the wars, their role in society and how it changed and eventually, coming to the conclusion that women’s lives did not change to a great extent, and that it was all a result of changing times in society. Women’s participation during the two world wars was greatly appreciated. The great war came to be seen as a great opportunity for women, however, when war first broke out, the war was seen a threat to women’s position1. There was a massive disruption of the industries in which women were mostly employed, such as dress-making and textiles. This, in the end, was actually a benefit. As war work became available, such as munitions factories, many of those women could now work in a higher paid job as well as do their part in the war effort. Women in the domestic services even left their jobs in order to work for higher paid jobs2. The first world war gave women more opportunity in the workplace as more occupations were open to them and the war also
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