The changing Role and Status of Women in Britainsince 1900

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The changing Role and Status of Women in Britain since 1900

Explain why women failed to gain the right to vote between 1900 and 1914.

Before the Victorian era, women were deemed very much as second class citizens; any idea of women being anywhere near as equal to men would be having been thought ridiculous before this era. But the Victorian era was one of innovation and change, everything was questioned; religion, society and the idea of women being equal to men. But would British politics surely allow women the vote, many men thought that if women were allowed to vote, they might have been kicked out of office due to sheer weight of numbers.

         The idea of women suffrage began during the 1800s when many powerful land owners who were women thought why they should not have the vote when they are just as powerful and influential as many men.

        Entering this world at the same time was the lady philanthropist who wanted to go on a journey of self discovery; they found that going out to help people instead of remaining in their so called “domestic havens” was so much more fulfilling. They were involved with many different jobs like Sunday school, maternity help and also giving lectures to the not so educated members of the poor community. Many of them began to want to change things, and of course to do that they needed power, they needed the vote.

         Men during this time had very traditional ideas of what role a woman should play in society during this time, women were the head of the house hold, and therefore they were in charge of the domestic side of the men’s life. Three things which really defined women and their role in life were family, motherhood and respectability. This is what their lives would revolve around; motherhood was particularly important as it was the mother who was responsible for the child’s upbringing and to certain limits their education, daughters especially were taught how to behave like a respectable lady and tell her what her priorities were.

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         It was this strong belief of how women should behave that set back the suffragette movement; it was men who were in power at that time so it was ultimately their decision as to whether to address the situation or choose to ignore it, and choose to ignore it they did. This was because they thought that there were far more pressing issues to attend to than that of women’s suffrage,  for there was insurrection in Ireland, rebellion by the House of Lords and also widespread strike action by trade unions. There were also many other ...

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