Socio 101 Miderterm

“Temporarily at least, the war caused a greater change in women's economic status and outlook than a prior half century of reform and rhetoric had been able to achieve.” ”The Federal government encouraged housewives to join the workforce as a patriotic duty.” Once they needed the women to work for America,it was promoted through various forms of propaganda that taking on the male's role was the best thing to do. “Immediately after the war, the percentage of women who worked fell as factories converted to peacetime production and refused to rehire women.” It was expected that the women were going to keep their jobs, even when their men had come home, but instead the women were fired in order for men to be hired.

Before the war women had to fit into a stereotype of “the perfect family” (“A Change in”). Prior to 1941 only 30% of women worked for 10 years and only 50% worked for 5 years (Discovery Education). Women were encouraged not to work, because it broke “the perfect family” stereotype (“The Women of”) (“A Change in”). Even husbands did not want their

The film titled, “The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter”, looks at the roles of women during and after World War II within the U.S. The film interviews five women who had experienced the World War II effects in the U.S, two who were Caucasian and three who were African American. These five women, who were among the millions of women recruited into skilled male-oriented jobs during World War II, shared insight into how women were treated, viewed and mainly controlled. Along with the interviews are clips from U.S. government propaganda films, news reports from the media, March of Time films, and newspaper stories, all depicting how women are to take "the men’s" places to keep up with industrial production, while reassured that their

Many people have never considered what women were doing in WWII when their husbands left to fight. Their lives weren’t easy or normal during the war. Women had to work just as hard as men, sometimes even more so. In this essay, I will discuss the position of American women before World War II, during the war, and at the end of the war.

In the 1940s women were called upon to help the war effort and support their “boys overseas” by stepping into factory jobs, signing up as nurses, and assisting in any way they could. Women enjoyed some of their greatest independence in these years as they did their part to support their country. The end of World War II brought many changes to the American people and women in particular. As men returned home from war women were forced back out of the workplaces they had only recently occupied, to return to the home. Not everyone had a positive view of the newfound independence of the American woman as author Arnold Green scripted in a 1956 sociology video:

People wondered if women went into the war because of patriotism or because they didn’t have many other opportunities. Women reacted to the call differently depending on age, race, class, marriage status, and how many children they have. They went from low paying jobs to higher paying factory jobs. While patriotism did influenced women, ultimately it was the economic incentives that influenced them to work. In Slacks and Calluses two women, Constance and Clara Marie did a great job while working in San Diego. Female Jobs were teaching, nursing, and doing other labor work, while Constance and Clara Marie were out working with the men, along with other women. They guided their way through a working world full of men and learned how to build a

The war brought enormous changes in American women’s lives. Before the war and for much of the world’s history, Women were seen as second-class citizens. At the start of the struggle women

Rupp’s 1981 definition of the new woman emphasizes the magnitude of change in women’s roles and accredits industrialism with the demise of tradition. Supporting Rupp’s summary, Stanford Professor Estelle B. Freedman and history department chair for the University of West Florida, James McGovern, conclude that the explicit association between the War and the genesis of the new woman is an incomplete determination. Freedman summarizes instead that "the moral revolution had been rooted in the pre-war years," and McGovern similarly assesses that the post-war era quickened the change surrounding women's roles, which had manifested previously in the Progressive Era (Freedman 391, McGovern 333). Specifically, McGovern claims that the new woman, who was “freer in [her] morals and paradoxically less feminine,” represents a continuation of "earlier intrinsic social changes [rather] than the sudden, supposedly traumatic experiences of the war" (316,

Women in America have faced gender suppression for centuries. From issues such as not being able to vote, to equal wage rights, feminists and suffragettes have fought for their place in society. During World War II, women began to shape the world around them by taking jobs in large numbers, as men had to leave their jobs to enlist. This was supported through one of America’s cultural icons, Rosie the Riveter, who represented a strong, working woman. However, once the men returned at war’s end, women were fired from their jobs. While women were praised for their work, they also changed the workplace itself, helping the United States transition out of an industrial economy. Harsh factories were given a feminine, personal touch, and the women began to break out of their dull housewife lives--until the war ended. Although World War II caused only a temporary rise in women’s employment, women changed company policies and took jobs normally reserved for men, challenging their own role as subservient housewives and permanently improving employment in the businesses that they worked.

The war expanded the horizons of American women. The war brought a tremendous shortage of labor. Not only was there great demand for labor to build up the war machines necessary to fight, but also the men were leaving employment for military service in huge numbers. As a result society asked women to fill the jobs, and they rushed to take them. ”Women in 1944 made up more than one-third of the civilian labor force” (Foner). There was a new found image of women now know as “Rosie the Riveter” who was a strong welding worker who helped build machines for the war effort. Many women looked up to this campaign propaganda of Rosie and envisioned themselves similar to Rosie. When in fact that it was only typical for a few women out of many to be an actual welder. “In fact only about two million, or ten

When looking at the shift occurring with gender roles in this postwar period, the simplified answer to why these advancements were happening is because of the impact of the war on society but Roberts goes in depth about the issues that were brought out in society because of the war. Jacques Boulenger said, “The femme moderne is above all a creation of the war.” The femme moderne is a prevailing image of women after the war and they are described as “scandalous in her dress and

Women before World War II had a set gender role; she was the wife and mother. Many jobs at that time were occupied by men. Some states even banned married women from having a job. Women who did work outside the house weren’t glorified and men did not care too much for them. Before the war the men were the sole provider. In result, many people who saw a women pick

Whichever groups have the power is a central concern of this theory. These Marxist statements are the central arguments of all conflict theorist's statements of truth. The second part of the conflict theorists assumptions is that the different parts of the social system as a whole are intertwined, not because of a shared value system, however, but because of the fact that one group is inherently dominant over the other. This dominance happens because one group, the dominant group, controls the resources. The third part of the assumptions of the conflict theorist is that society does not necessarily have needs, but individuals and groups do. Because the dominant group has the access to wealth, power and prestige, they have the ability to have their needs defined as "system needs." The fourth part of the conflict theorist's assumptions is the basic question of "Who benefits?" from the social arrangements of the day. On any issue in society, there are people who benefit and people who don't benefit. This conflict always gives the advantage to the stronger party. The fifth part of the conflict theorists system of assumptions is the conflict itself, which lends tension, hostility, competitions, disagreement over goals, and values, as well as violence. Not always are these issues negative, however. They can act as an adhesive to help join groups together in the pursuit of a positive goal. The sixth and final part of the

It is based on four principles: it is a trait of society, it from generations to generation, it is universal, it involves inequality. Two theorists, Karl Marx and Max Weber, are the prominent contributors. How gender, race and class plays a role in a society is clearly stated. Gender stratification occurs among men and women when men are given better recognition and opportunity than women. Feminist theory uses the conflict approach to examine the effect these social stratifiers play. Conflict theorist is of the opinion that stratification is harmful to the society. The economy benefits the upper or middle class over the working class, white over other race or skin

Conflict Theory was "influenced by Karl Marx's socioeconomic view of the elite exploiting the masses." (Parillo 12). The conflict perspective focuses on the inequalities that create racial and ethnic tensions between groups. In contrast to the fundamentalist's emphasis on stability, conflict theorists maintain, "Racism has much to do with maintaining power and controlling resources." Society is seen as being continually involved in struggles and disagreements as diverse groups struggle over limited resources. The system is hierarchical and characterized by social inequality. Conflict theorists argue that the rich and powerful force social order on the poor and weak and that existing social patterns benefit some people while depriving others. "Conflict theorists