Summary: The Impact Of World War One On Women

Improved Essays
There were many things that impacted women’s lives during World War I. Misogyny, dangerous working conditions, dealing with the loss of lover ones during the war, and having to look after a family on a low paying job are just some of the hard ships women faced during the war. This also came with many new learning experiences, new found confidence in their ability to maintain a job in the work force.

As World War I began, many women realized that they would have to step up and fill the vacated positions that would typically be reserved for men who were now at the war front, “There was initial resistance to hiring women for what was seen as ‘men’s work’”. Despite this, the employment rate after the war had begun had risen by 23.6% (of the working age population) in 1914, to between 37.7% and 46.7% in 1918. This increase shows that as the war progressed, so did the amount of women obtaining jobs, which could be because of high amounts of propaganda, or just high morale. The
…show more content…
Directly after the war, when many of the men had come back to claim their original jobs, many women were left with very little to do. “I cannot attempt to describe what it now felt like, trying to get accustomed to a woman 's life and a woman 's clothes again… Turning from a woman to a private soldier proved nothing compared with turning back from soldier to ordinary woman. (It was) like losing everything at one fell swoop, and trying to find bearings again in another life and an entirely different world” This quote is an account of what life after the war was like for women, especially for those working in the munitions factories, who made more money than they would make anywhere else. Having to go from that to not working at all proved

Related Documents

  • Great Essays

    In previous wars Women had trivial roles with the expectation they would stay at home to fulfil domestic activities. However, World War II changed women’s roles within in society majorly, despite society’s initial reluctance to accept them into the workplace. Women were very passionate towards these improvements and the opportunities to participate on the front line of war. To conclude; World War II had a major role in shaping the lives and roles of women in society of…

    • 1203 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ww1 Unit 2 Research Paper

    • 1143 Words
    • 5 Pages

    As more men were being called on to participate and fight in the war, women stepped up to produce the heavy machinery needed for the war and home to keep the country running. Women learned and did well at men-dominated trades like welding, riveting, and engine repair. Women were an integral role for a victory in the war as they were needed for the production and supply of goods to the troops fighting overseas. It was during this time that women disproved the notion that women were incapable of manual and technical labor. The main reason I left a domestic job to be a part of the factory was based on the fact that wages in munition plants and airplane factories were higher.…

    • 1143 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Woman in Australia during World War two were greatly affected by the conflict. The impact the war had on this group proves the validity of the statement that World War two had significant and far-reaching effects on Australian women. The impacts in the long term, in the short term and also the during the war period when Australia was at war from 1939-1945 are points that can be used as evidence. The conflict affected women greatly but, even before the war problems where still at hand, before World War Two woman where not allowed in the work force and had to stay home to look after their children and home, where they would clean the house and prepare meals.…

    • 727 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Gender roles before the 1920’s were very distinct. Women were lower than men on the social scale and had little to no power. They were strictly in charge of the domestic issues and chores. Women taught and raised their children, as well as did the cooking, cleaning, and other chores throughout the house.…

    • 1758 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Life before and after World War II drastically changed for women. Women gained experiences during the war time that has impacted themselves still today. The men who were eligible were sent off to fight leaving women responsible for filling their shoes and maintaining home life simultaneously. This left the door open for women like Constance Bowman and Clara Marie Allen to gain the opportunities to work in jobs previously only assigned to men. Bowman and Allen give real life accounts in the book regarding topics about social class, patriotism, and the idea of women leaving the home.…

    • 835 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    According to the article, “Roles for Women in WW2”, states that, “At first the government politely discouraged those women who wanted to perform some kind of military service.” The women of this workforce war era drastically changed the pathway for future women to come as well as in the…

    • 1910 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Women In Early America

    • 797 Words
    • 4 Pages

    During WWI, since most men enlisted to fight in the war, industries were left without workers. These industries focused their efforts labor force of women. Nearly 3 million women workers were employed at that time. The traditional outlook that women were not suited for outdoor jobs was broken down. Not only did women perform their household duties but they also worked in the industries supporting the war.…

    • 797 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Women In Ww2

    • 285 Words
    • 2 Pages

    US Women World War II changed the lives of women in the United States because women had to do heavy duty jobs just to feed and support their children, while their husbands were at war. Many men didn’t think that women weren’t important during the war because men were the always the ones that did the work. The truth is that women were a very important part of the war. Since the men were busy serving at the war, the woman had to fill in for their husbands or even friends. These jobs include operating hydraulic presses, help make ships for the war, produce aircrafts, ammunition, weapons and other things for the war.…

    • 285 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout the First World War, and World War Two, the involvement of women was closely associated to the role they played in society at the time. As their role in society changed over the time spanning the two wars, so did their methods of contribution. The First World War saw the efforts of women based largely on the home front, in keeping with society's ideal of a mother and housewife being the primary role of a woman. The contributions of the women to the war effort lay mostly in volunteer work and nursing work. However, as time passed and the role of women in Australian society changed, and the ideals of women changed, it is clear to see a significant change in the contributions by Australian women to the war effort.…

    • 538 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    During World War I women overcame many struggles to support their families and there country by joining the workforce in factories and in other…

    • 611 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This document stated that these women made a lot of contribution to the war effort. Women stepped up without any hesitation and gave up their household jobs to accomplish things that men had done before them. They became journeyman welder, radar installer, worked as lumber and operated heavy construction machine. They proved that they could do jobs as men can do. Many women worked in war-related jobs which changed the phenomenon of America.…

    • 885 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Ww1 Women

    • 915 Words
    • 4 Pages

    When World War 1 began in 1914, until it ended in 1918, the role of women underwent many significant changes. Before the war women were confined to their domestic enclosure and quite frankly, unnecessary in the workforce. They were expected to belong in the house while men did the hard labour. There are three key areas where the war inflicted women’s role the most; socially, on the battlefront and assisting the war effort. The way these areas had changed varied, from women holding more power and many women becoming employed.…

    • 915 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Women’s lives were greatly affected by World War II. First women were granted more job opportunities. The female percentage of the workforce increased from twenty percent to thirty-seven percent between the years of 1940 and 1945 (History.com Staff). The “normal” family consisted of a family where the mother stayed home all day to clean and tend the children. But because the men were sent away to fight in the war, factories needed women to take over and produce the needed products and materials for the war.…

    • 743 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Chisolm's Double Standards

    • 1790 Words
    • 8 Pages

    During World War II, women showed their capability when they took over enlisted men’s jobs when there was a scarcity of workers. They began doing jobs that before this had not been…

    • 1790 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Second World War set aflame a world illusioned by the veil of peace put in place by the Treaty of Versailles. The genocide against Jews and Slavs, the destruction of London, Berlin, and Leningrad, and the perversion of humanity to fit a political agenda coalesced into the complete destruction of the European balance of power, and in this power vacuum arose a climate polarised by the Soviet Union and the United States. Yet the Cold War was just one of the many effects of the war that profoundly changed America. Social movements spreading during and after the war, America’s exiting the war as the dominant economic power, and the risk of complete destruction due to ideological disagreements are but a few the key effects the war had on America.…

    • 780 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays