“If society will not admit of woman’s free development, then society must be remodeled” -Elizabeth Blackwell ("Elizabeth Blackwell." Contemporary Heroes and Heroines). Since the beginning of time women were always treated as subordinates to men. It was always wrong but no one had the courage to fix it and make it right. When women finally decided to voice their opinions they were faced with discrimination. Especially in the Victorian Era, women were thought as nothing but housewives and were not able to reach their full potential in the workforce. No woman held a job outside of housework, teaching, and cleaning. At this point in history, there were no female physicians, lawyers, or engineers in the United States. Society suppressed woman’s
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Elizabeth knew she would not be able to conform to society, she was not content as a governess and had no intention of marrying anyone. At first she had no plans to pursue the medical field ("Changing the Face of Medicine"). It was when a close friend had become seriously ill with cervical cancer and confessed that she would probably survive if her doctor had been a female, that Elizabeth contemplated becoming a doctor. At the time, there were no female doctors in the United States, and there were no medical schools that accepted women. When Elizabeth asked her friends and family what they thought, she received little encouragement (Somervill 29). The odds were against her, but Elizabeth saw this as a challenge and accepted it. She began applying to medical schools. She applied to several, all of which denied her entry based on her gender not her academic skills. Finally, she was accepted to Geneva Medical School as a joke since the idea of a female physician was laughable if not downright scandalous at this time in history ("Elizabeth Blackwell." Contemporary Heroes and Heroines). At college, she was not given the same exposure and opportunities as the other (male) students. For example, she would be told to sit out of a particular seminar that involved material that the professor thought would cause women to become squeamish. The people at her …show more content…
After Blackwell obtained her medical degree she traveled to England to promote female physicians (“The Excellent Doctor Blackwell: The Life of the First Woman Physician”). Soon she returned to the United States and sought to open a hospital in Geneva, New York for women and children (“Elizabeth Blackwell.” Contemporary Heroes and Heroines). Elizabeth tried her best to spark a change in the way women thought of themselves and the way they were seen by society. She traveled between England and the United States in order to support aspiring professional women. While she was alive, Blackwell served as a public figure for feminism. Today, she continues to inspire young women to achieve their dreams no matter the obstacles they
Elizabeth knew she would not be able to conform to society, she was not content as a governess and had no intention of marrying anyone. At first she had no plans to pursue the medical field ("Changing the Face of Medicine"). It was when a close friend had become seriously ill with cervical cancer and confessed that she would probably survive if her doctor had been a female, that Elizabeth contemplated becoming a doctor. At the time, there were no female doctors in the United States, and there were no medical schools that accepted women. When Elizabeth asked her friends and family what they thought, she received little encouragement (Somervill 29). The odds were against her, but Elizabeth saw this as a challenge and accepted it. She began applying to medical schools. She applied to several, all of which denied her entry based on her gender not her academic skills. Finally, she was accepted to Geneva Medical School as a joke since the idea of a female physician was laughable if not downright scandalous at this time in history ("Elizabeth Blackwell." Contemporary Heroes and Heroines). At college, she was not given the same exposure and opportunities as the other (male) students. For example, she would be told to sit out of a particular seminar that involved material that the professor thought would cause women to become squeamish. The people at her …show more content…
After Blackwell obtained her medical degree she traveled to England to promote female physicians (“The Excellent Doctor Blackwell: The Life of the First Woman Physician”). Soon she returned to the United States and sought to open a hospital in Geneva, New York for women and children (“Elizabeth Blackwell.” Contemporary Heroes and Heroines). Elizabeth tried her best to spark a change in the way women thought of themselves and the way they were seen by society. She traveled between England and the United States in order to support aspiring professional women. While she was alive, Blackwell served as a public figure for feminism. Today, she continues to inspire young women to achieve their dreams no matter the obstacles they