Introduction
First of all feminism is defined as an organised, political
movement for the attainment of such rights for women to be equal to men. The
movement started off purely in relation to suffrage giving women the right to
vote. During the time both genders felt that women had a specific place in the
society for example: home maker, but women felt that this role meant they
should be allowed a degree of influence on policy and politics that affected
them. From this movement developed feminism as we know it today still continues
through the struggle to have complete equality between women and men.
'
A myth invented by
men to confine women to their oppressed ‘state. For women it is not a question
of asserting themselves as women, but of becoming full-scale human beings''.
In religion terms this struggle can
still be very much ongoing this , despite
the United Nations passing the convention on the elimination of all forms of
discrimination against women.
The arguments that inspired the French Revolution and justified
the right of man did not necessarily lead to the advocacy of the rights of
women, since it was quite possible to define women as having a different nature
from that of men. Nevertheless, the French school of rationalism was important
in the development of feminist ideas and the question attracted a good deal of
attention from French philosophers in the eighteenth century (Bouten, 1975, p
52). The three Frenchmen Montesquieu, Diderot and Voltaire were sympathetic to
women’s rights although Rousseau was strongly anti-feminist and believed that
women should be subordinate men. Moreover, although the French revolution did
little to further the emancipation of women in France (Tomalin, 1974, p 13).
The ideas behind this revolution were to be important in the development of
feminism in England and in America.
Women's Rights: are entitlements and freedoms claimed for women and young
girls of all ages in many societies. In some places these rights are supported
by law, local custom and behaviour. They differ from broader notions of human
rights through claims of an inherent historical and traditional bias against
the rights by women and girls in favour of men and boys. During the whole of
the nineteenth century women had no political rights though there had been some
movement in other areas to advance or help the rights of women. In 1839 a law was
stated that if a marriage broke down and the parents separated, children under
seven years of age should stay with their mother. As the years passed new laws
were being made until 1857 where women could now divorce husbands who were
cruel to them or who have left them during their relationship.
As soon as it hit 1870 women were allowed to keep their own earned
money so they can spend it on how ever they wish for themselves and for their
children if a divorce has been confirmed. Finally in 1891 women could also not
be forced to live with husbands unless they wished to do so, in other terms
having their own way of overcoming a man who can bring a high level of support
and love. All these laws were very important towards women which advanced the
rights for them. However the laws where powerful to the local public.
If the woman left their husband it things would get much harder for her and for the children because of the attitude of Victorian Britain, which was that women should look after the husband after a long day at work .
For example I have researched into the area where women faced
difficulties after qualifying into a doctor. The UK's population was very
little in their books as men would not be treated by women and the remaining
with their male GP's as that way it was done. It took a very long time until
women could get a decent reputation among Londoners along with hostility among
the way.
During that time the culture also meant that only a few women where naturally skilled doing the obvious jobs such as , teachers, nurse, doctors etc. The view was very much supported by Queen Victoria but how ever she hardly did anything in advance for women. But eventually she had written a statement the country that ''let women be what god intended them to be and do, a helpmate for man, but with totally different duties. In the later years of the 19th century all women wanted one simple right which was the right to vote. This right was known as the right of suffrage for women and the group that fought for it became known as the ''Suffragettes''.
There was an argument that women who had money and employed men as gardeners, cooks etc were in the position of not being able to vote but yet the men who are employed in the business are able to... personally this indicates a high level of sexism. Also the argument lead to another statement in which those women that worked paid the same level of tax as men who were employed could not vote only men could. Their campaign took them into the 20th century - a century that gave women over 30 years of age the right to vote in 1918 and allowed them to stand for the parliament in the same year. Eventually 10 years later all women were given the same political rights as men.
The Suffragettes
The whole point of the suffragettes were to make a right into women being allowed to vote. This move for women started in 1897 and the founder of the National Union of women's suffrage is Millicent Fawcette, whom had to fight for the women's right of voting. The claim for the political emancipation of women is part of the equal rights tradition of feminism, and the demand for this enfranchisement on the equal terms with men dates from the very beginning of feminism as an ideology.
Already in Britain a number of articles advocating female suffrage as a general principle had appeared early in the 1830's and the subject was, as we have seen a topic of discussion. In the early 1832 a petition was presented to the parliament asking for the vote for all the unmarried females who possessed the necessary qualifications. The debates that were carried out in 1830 of the male franchise were not to result in any substantial campaign for women's suffrage. Indeed the working class women were not to involve themselves in political activities until almost the end of the century.
By the end of the 1890's and early 1900's the movement had entered a new phase, this was largely the result of two new factors in the situation: the growth of support for women's suffrage amongst themselves, and the increasing importance of the labour movement in British politics. If we are to understand the dramatic change in the fortunes of the suffrage issue that was to take place in the 20th century it is necessary to look at these circumstances in advance.
The growing support for women's suffrage within the new profession of charitable work had been mentioned: For these women the vote was seen as a powerful tool for the reformation of the society and they began not only to accept its necessity but in many cases, to join actively in the campaign.
Finally in my sense I believe that the support for the women's suffrage within the labour movement was to prove as problematic, in practice, as support within the liberal party, and for very similar reasons. Although some labour leaders were firmly and unshakeably feminist, others remained unconvinced. Even so the inclusion of women in the 1917 bill was by no means a forgone conclusion. In the event the act in 1918 introduced adult suffrage for men only. For women, the suffrage was limited to those over 30 who were local government electors, or wive and university graduates. By ristricting women's suffrage mainly by age the government allayed the fear that many still had that the country would be governed by women.
References
Faces of Feminism By Olive Banks
The Golden years, 1870-1920
Votes for women Chapter 8
The Campaign for Equal Rights
Bernard, Jessie (1979) 'Women as voters'
Bernard, Jessie (1971) The status of Women in Modern Patterns of Culture.
There was an argument that women who had money and employed men as gardeners, cooks etc were in the position of not being able to vote but yet the men who are employed in the business are able to... personally this indicates a high level of sexism. Also the argument lead to another statement in which those women that worked paid the same level of tax as men who were employed could not vote only men could. Their campaign took them into the 20th century - a century that gave women over 30 years of age the right to vote in 1918 and allowed them to stand for the parliament in the same year. Eventually 10 years later all women were given the same political rights as men.
The Suffragettes
The whole point of the suffragettes were to make a right into women being allowed to vote. This move for women started in 1897 and the founder of the National Union of women's suffrage is Millicent Fawcette, whom had to fight for the women's right of voting. The claim for the political emancipation of women is part of the equal rights tradition of feminism, and the demand for this enfranchisement on the equal terms with men dates from the very beginning of feminism as an ideology.
Already in Britain a number of articles advocating female suffrage as a general principle had appeared early in the 1830's and the subject was, as we have seen a topic of discussion. In the early 1832 a petition was presented to the parliament asking for the vote for all the unmarried females who possessed the necessary qualifications. The debates that were carried out in 1830 of the male franchise were not to result in any substantial campaign for women's suffrage. Indeed the working class women were not to involve themselves in political activities until almost the end of the century.
By the end of the 1890's and early 1900's the movement had entered a new phase, this was largely the result of two new factors in the situation: the growth of support for women's suffrage amongst themselves, and the increasing importance of the labour movement in British politics. If we are to understand the dramatic change in the fortunes of the suffrage issue that was to take place in the 20th century it is necessary to look at these circumstances in advance.
The growing support for women's suffrage within the new profession of charitable work had been mentioned: For these women the vote was seen as a powerful tool for the reformation of the society and they began not only to accept its necessity but in many cases, to join actively in the campaign.
Finally in my sense I believe that the support for the women's suffrage within the labour movement was to prove as problematic, in practice, as support within the liberal party, and for very similar reasons. Although some labour leaders were firmly and unshakeably feminist, others remained unconvinced. Even so the inclusion of women in the 1917 bill was by no means a forgone conclusion. In the event the act in 1918 introduced adult suffrage for men only. For women, the suffrage was limited to those over 30 who were local government electors, or wive and university graduates. By ristricting women's suffrage mainly by age the government allayed the fear that many still had that the country would be governed by women.
References
Faces of Feminism By Olive Banks
The Golden years, 1870-1920
Votes for women Chapter 8
The Campaign for Equal Rights
Bernard, Jessie (1979) 'Women as voters'
Bernard, Jessie (1971) The status of Women in Modern Patterns of Culture.
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