The American Woman

Different expectations have been established for men and women. The expectations have evolved and gone a long way from where they were 90 years ago in the United States. Women have typically been regarded as the weaker sex. The woman’s responsibilities in the early 1900s included cleaning and cleaning as well as child rearing. Their role in society as far as voting and voicing opinions was non-existent. Their roles also varied greatly from the males as they were segregated for their gender. “The United States at the turn of the turn of the century was a gendered place, meaning that there were social spaces where women could and could not go” (Bowles, 2011, Sec. 2.3). Things have transpired throughout history that has altered the expectations of the modern woman as well as their social limitations. Initially, colleges focused on teaching women clerical skills. As Bowles (2011) stated, “Business schools began to emerge that taught women specific skills such as stenography, bookkeeping, and typewriting” (sec 2.3). Because women were not allowed to attend the same reputable colleges as their male counterparts, their job opportunities were limited. Aside from clerical occupations, women could also be expected to be found working as sales clerks. As educational barriers began to slowly crumble, women were able to attain degrees. Despite getting those degrees, however, their career options were initially limited to teaching. Regardless of the initial career prospects, women began to seek more out of their education and sought out to do more than the basic, minimal jobs. As read on History.com (2012) “Congress passed the title IX of the Higher Education Act, which prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex in any educational program receiving federal funds and thereby forced all-male schools to open their doors to women and athletic programs to sponsor and finance female sports teams” (paragraph 10). Through legislative amendments and acts, women began to see equal

References: * Women’s Movement (2012). The History Channel website. Retrieved February 17, 2012, from: http://www.history.com/topics/womens-movement. * Bowles, Mark D. (2011) American History 1865-Present/End of Isolation retrieved from: https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUHIS204.11.1/sections/fm * Dicker, Rory (2008) History of U.S. Feminisms retrieved from: http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ashford/docDetail.action?docID=10447141&adv.x=1&p00=ban+the+bra+1968&f00=all&p01=%22United+States%22&f01=subject * Petro, Patrice (2010) Star Decades: American Culture/America Cinema: Idols of Modernity: Movie Stars of the 1920s retrieved from: http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ashford/docDetail.action?docID=10386166&page=150 * Solinger, Rickie (2005) Pregnancy and Power: A Short History of Reproductive Politics in America retrieved from: http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ashford/docDetail.action?docID=10137193&p00=Margaret+Sanger * Stansell, Christine (2010) Feminist Promise: 1792 to the Present retrieved from: http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ashford/docDetail.action?docID=10386235&p00=Women+Roaring+20s