HIST/280: Women's Roles In Society

Throughout HIST 280 the theme of women’s roles in society has been prevalent. Women have been established throughout history as homemakers and caretakers of children, dependent on men for economic stability. This was exemplified in a Module 5 reading, which stated that piety, purity, submissiveness, and domesticity were hallmark traits of mothers, daughters, sisters, and wives1. A dichotomy has also existed: women have been categorized as either promiscuous and immoral or as domestic and submissive. For example, black female slaves were labeled as either a Jezebel: sensual, sexual, and impure, or a Mammy: maternal and “not just another slave” in Module 42. This division becomes complicated in Module 7A due to the new context of working women
This allowed a new category of women to emerge. In addition to the “promiscuous” or “domestic” woman, “Charity girls” were respectable working women who also engaged in sexual activity. Men would “treat” working women to drinks and other forms of entertainment, often in exchange for sexual favours6. Women who engaged in this type of activity too often would be criticized for being promiscuous, but in many cases it was necessary for them to survive. Women were still dependent on men for economic support because they were considered “second class” wage earners7. This is further evidenced by department store managers encouraging women to supplement their wages by finding a “gentleman friend”8. Therefore, it is clear that women could not financially support themselves and often turned to men for assistance. This further emphasizes the double standard, as women were required to maintain a balance between working respectability and being perceived as immoral. Men in the song are described as “villains”, which indicates a particular stance the song takes on working women and their relationships with men. Attempting to maintain this double standard would often place a woman’s good reputation in jeopardy, and many women rejected pleasure in favor of her own morality for this
The descriptive language of the song shows examples of how men and women interacted and the double standards that existed for women. Women often needed to rely on men for financial stability, but interacting with men too often would invite criticism of their morality. The concept of “charity girls” created a new category of women who were both respectable and exercised sexual freedom. Many women also practiced moral self-regulation and rejected men who expressed interest in them. The song is written from this perspective and establishes the idea that remaining pure and moral will allow its subject to continue to provide for her family instead of pursuing her own selfish