Stereotypes Of Women In The 1940s

The dawning days of the 1940’s presents an image of America, with her population of businessmen and their loving wives. Everything was simple; he sustained her and, in turn, she raised his children. All was exactly as society claimed it should be, but, like all ideals, it didn't last. December 7th, 1941, a day that shall live in infamy - the Japanese bombing at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii - threw our idealistic nation into another world war. Businessmen became soldiers, fighting half a world away, and they left their housewives stranded. According to stereotype, these women should have floundered and failed on their own. Flounder they did, yet fail they did not. What began as a necessary adaptation, matured into an exploration of opportunity and,
This led them into the workplace; first in more clerical positions as the stereotype dictates, and then beyond. Rosie the Riveter became an icon in the call to action, drawing women from their homes and desk jobs, to the factories. Former housewives began to aid their men not only with rations and care packages, but with B-29s and ammunitions. Those women followed in the footsteps of a generation who entered the workplace during World War I. Yet, unlike their predecessors, they would not "return home" at war's end. Instead, they would take their place next to husbands, brothers, and sons and continue to carry out "men's
They didn't want to sit at home while the men fought, they wanted to fight too. Soon enough, Congress gave women a chance to serve in military positions. This marked the first time that women received regular military status. The Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), Women's Air Force Service Pilots (WASP), and Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES), were units created for the sole purpose of opening military service to women. But, these organizations consisted of strict non-combat units, a reminder of the mindset of Americans; women were not as strong as men. However, over the course of the war, women began to gain confidence in their own strengths and abilities. They were no longer a nation of housewives, and they began to demand the same respect awarded to their male counterparts. Oveta Culp Hobby, the first director of the WAAC, led the fight to drop 'auxiliary' from the WAAC title, and give women a title they deserve. She won this fight, changing WAAC to WAC and proving to women that they were not weak. She showed them that they could, and should, demand the merit that they