Essay On Women In The 19th Century

765 Words4 Pages
Over one hundred years ago, many people believed that a woman’s place was in the home, cooking, cleaning, and raising kids. Things have changed tremendously in America since the 19th century. Women now have rights that they didn’t have before. There are now plenty more opportunities available for women to succeed, unlike the 19th Century when women weren’t given any opportunities to do so. In the 19th century, women weren’t allowed to vote or run for office. Women had to stand by and watch the men decide on everything ranging from their own personal rights to choosing who would be President. Men didn’t believe that women were capable of making complicated decisions and that it should be left up to the men to decide on everything. Women decided…show more content…
With women not being allowed to receive degrees or attend college, it made it very difficult for women to get jobs. Towards the middle of the 19th century, it was nearly impossible for women to become doctors, architects, engineers, accountants or bankers. Women could become teachers, but teaching was a low-status job and had horrible pay. Women could also be secretaries or nurses but being a teacher was the only socially acceptable profession for women in the 19th century. After a long fight by women, the government finally allowed them to become doctors. Even then, there were only 200 female doctors in the U.S. by 1900. Women can now have any profession they wish. Women can even obtain jobs that were solely for men in the 19th century, such as surgeons, lawyers, and mechanics. At times it is still difficult for women to get hired doing certain jobs that are considered “manly”, but it isn’t impossible. There are many job openings for women and men alike; women are rarely discriminated against because of their gender. There are so many opportunities for women now. Women can now be seen working as firefighters, police officers, judges, and even in the military fighting in
Open Document