Why Were Attitudes Toward Women Changing In Mid-19th Century Britain?

Why were attitudes towards women changing in mid-nineteenth century Britain?
During the mid-nineteenth century attitudes towards women in Britain were beginning to gradually change. Previously, the majority of people believed that women’s main role in society was to manage domestic chores in the home and raise her children as it was believed that this was a ‘sufficient emotional fulfilment for females’ . Due to the fact that this construct had become the accepted gender role for the majority of women in British society, women and men were viewed as ‘separate spheres’ .Men were viewed as part of the ‘public sphere’ therefore in Victorian society a woman was typically expected to keep away from this field and fulfil her duties in the home.
One such example of this is the Divorce Reform Act which was passed in 1857 . Caroline Norton was one such figure who suffered immensely because of the laws that were in place during the nineteenth century and as a result of this, she campaigned for a ‘change in the laws that discriminated against women’ . Norton decided to take some action and published pamphlets on these issues, which included English Laws for Women in the Nineteenth Century (1854) and a letter to the Queen on Lord Cranworth's Marriage and Divorce Bill (1855) . Partly as a result of Norton’s efforts, Parliament in 1857 passed the Marriage and Divorce Act . This act was a symbol of progression towards a change in attitudes towards women, as it was the first time that the issue of married women’s financial disabilities were discussed in Parliament and in the press . Towards the end of the nineteenth century, there were more examples of encouraging acts and changes in legislation which were viewed as an accomplishment for Victorian feminists who were eager to see changes in attitudes towards the treatment of women in Victorian society. By 1870 the Married Women’s Property Act was passed. This act allowed married women to own their property, whereas before this women would have to transfer all their property to their husbands after marriage .Prior to this, divorce heavily favoured men as it allowed any property to remain only in their possession. However through this act it allowed women to keep their property regardless of whether they were divorced, single or widowed . In many ways this act can be viewed as tremendously significant as it marked the viewpoint that women were entitled to keep what belonged to them and also