Many romanticize the 1950’s as a simpler time of life, looking back it is easy to discover that is not the case. The 50’s were a time of the middle-aged white man. A woman’s greatest aspect in life was to assume the position of a homemaker, mother and role model for her children. In the words of philosopher Denise Riley, it is “vital to acknowledge women’s diversity rather than define the category ‘women’ by biological characteristics of sex.” (CITE) Even today people associate “women” with the words feminine, delicate, or dainty.
The 1950’s society believed women to be less competent than men and were unable to live a normal life without a husband. It was expected that women were to have no individuality, in which their greatest goal in life …show more content…
University professor Maureen Honey evaluates the movement of the working-class woman during WWII. She states that “Women were hired to fill positions normally occupied by men, higher paid but required ‘masculine’ abilities and attitudes (1).” Once the soldiers had left for the Second World War, it was the responsibility of the women to take over their husband’s positions so they could continue to support their family. The absence of men in society meant that there were more job opportunities for women, which challenged the conventional standards society had created. Before the war, a working woman was generally frowned upon. Women had grown accustomed to working low-income jobs that usually offered no growth.
Joanne Meyerowitz supports this claim in her book Not June Cleaver: Women and Gender in Postwar America. She states, “Studies of postwar culture found that government propaganda, popular magazines, and films reinforced traditional concepts of femininity and instructed women to subordinate their interests to those of the returning male veterans (3).” Many of these advertisements restored faith in the working-class woman. The image of the working female now demonstrated how women could provide their own security and prosper without
The 1950’s society believed women to be less competent than men and were unable to live a normal life without a husband. It was expected that women were to have no individuality, in which their greatest goal in life …show more content…
University professor Maureen Honey evaluates the movement of the working-class woman during WWII. She states that “Women were hired to fill positions normally occupied by men, higher paid but required ‘masculine’ abilities and attitudes (1).” Once the soldiers had left for the Second World War, it was the responsibility of the women to take over their husband’s positions so they could continue to support their family. The absence of men in society meant that there were more job opportunities for women, which challenged the conventional standards society had created. Before the war, a working woman was generally frowned upon. Women had grown accustomed to working low-income jobs that usually offered no growth.
Joanne Meyerowitz supports this claim in her book Not June Cleaver: Women and Gender in Postwar America. She states, “Studies of postwar culture found that government propaganda, popular magazines, and films reinforced traditional concepts of femininity and instructed women to subordinate their interests to those of the returning male veterans (3).” Many of these advertisements restored faith in the working-class woman. The image of the working female now demonstrated how women could provide their own security and prosper without