Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Mammy archetype
Mammy
Mammy is the most well known and enduring racial caricature of African American women.Mammy was portrayed as dark-skinned, often pitch black, in a society that regarded black skin as ugly, tainted. She was obese, sometimes morbidly overweight. Moreover, she was often portrayed as old, or at least middle-aged. The attempt was to desexualize mammy. The implicit assumption was this: No reasonable white man would choose a fat, elderly black woman instead of the idealized white woman. The black mammy was portrayed as lacking all sexual and sensual qualities. The de-eroticism of mammy meant that the white wife -- and by extension, the white family, was safe.
Women At Work
In 1900, 18.8% of women were in the workforce. This number may seem small but it is a large step when comparing the status of women in previous years. As the industry continued to boom, women began to find jobs in both factories and mills. Women would form unions to fight against the unfair wages they received as well as the horrific working conditions they encountered. At this time, women were also working as teachers, typists, sale clerks, and many other jobs. Some women even began to receive typically male jobs, including science, medicine and law. Many small steps were being taken by women in hopes of improving their status in society.
Crowded factories and mills
The Womens Trade Union League fought for the 8 hour work day
sources: http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schooladventures/womenofthecentury/decadebydecade/1900s.html
Crowded factories and mills
The Womens Trade Union League fought for the 8 hour work day
sources: http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schooladventures/womenofthecentury/decadebydecade/1900s.html
Women in the Civil War
When women were not illegally fighting during the Civil War women had other important roles...
When battle began, both armies
were unprepared for the wounded.
Women with no medical training
would rush out to the front lines to
help injured soldiers.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
The Lowell Mill Girls
The Lowell Mills in Lowell, Massachsuetts employed young girls and women to work in their textile factories starting in the 1830's.
The early millgirls were of different ages. Some were not over ten years old; a few were in middle life, but the majority were between the ages of sixteen and twentyfive. The very young girls were called "doffers." They "doffed," or took off, the full bobbins from the spinningframes, and replaced them with empty ones. These mites worked about fifteen minutes every hour and the rest of the time was their own. When the overseer was kind they were allowed to read, knit, or go outside the millyard to play. They were paid two dollars a week. The working hours of all the girls extended from five o'clock in the morning until seven in the evening, with one halfhour each, for breakfast and dinner. Even the doffers were forced to be on duty nearly fourteen hours a day. This was the greatest hardship in the lives of these children. Several years later a tenhour law was passed, but not until long after some of these little doffers were old enough to appear before the legislative committee on the subject, and plead, by their presence, for a reduction of the hours of labor.
Those of the millgirls who had homes generally worked from eight to ten months in the year; the rest of the time was spent with parents or friends. A few taught school during the summer months. Their life in the factory was made pleasant to them. In those days there was no need of advocating the doctrine of the proper relation between employer and employed. Help was too valuable to be illtreated....
One of the girls stood on a pump, and gave vent to the feelings of her companions in a neat speech, declaring that it was their duty to resist all attempts at cutting down the wages. This was the first time a woman had spoken in public in Lowell, and the event caused surprise and consternation among her audience.
Cutting down the wages was not their only grievance, nor the only cause of this strike. Hitherto the corporations had paid twenty—five cents a week towards the board of each operative, and now it was their purpose to have the girls pay the sum; and this, in addition to the cut in the wages, would make a difference of at least one dollar a week. It was estimated that as many as twelve or fifteen hundred girls turned out, and walked in procession through the streets. They had neither flags nor music, but sang songs, a favorite (but rather inappropriate) one being a parody on “I won’t be a nun. ”
"Oh! isn’t it a pity, such a pretty girl as I-
Should be sent to the factory to pine away and die?
Oh ! I cannot be a slave,
I will not be a slave,
For I’m so fond of liberty
That I cannot be a slave."
Pictures:
http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/lavender/lowell.html
http://weave-away.blogspot.com/2011/05/lowell-mill-girls.html
http://edu.glogster.com/glog.php?glog_id=3948375&scale=100
http://weave-away.blogspot.com/2011/05/lowell-mill-girls.html
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2005/mickeyz030905.html
http://workingwomen.wikispaces.com/Lowell+Mill+Girls
http://b-womeninamericanhistory19.blogspot.com/2010/01/lucy-larcom-poet-and-mill-girl.html
http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/lavender/lowegal3.html
http://weave-away.blogspot.com/2011/05/lowell-mill-girls.html
http://yesteryearsnews.wordpress.com/2010/04/12/the-mill-girls-going-going-gone/
Information:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/robinson-lowell.asp
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5714
The FIRST First Lady
Martha Washington
Martha Dandridge was born in 1731 to a wealthy family. At age 19 Martha married Daniel Parke Custis, who was 38. Martha became a widow in 1757 and received a third of her husband's estate.
"Although widowhood was burdensome and challenging, it also offered women greater freedom than they had as wives. Married women lived under the strictures of coverture. As defined by English common law, coverture meant that once a woman married she could not own property, sue or be sued in court, or make contracts. Widows, however, acted in place of the male head of household and were allowed to perform all these functions."
At age 26, Martha was widow but owned 300 slaves and 17,500 acres of land on which she planted tobacco. Most widows at that time remarried for financial support, but Martha was well off and decided to marry for love. Martha married George Washington in 1759 after knowing him for ten months.
"Their attraction was mutual, powerful, and immediate. Martha was charming, attractive, and, of course, wealthy. George had his own appeal. Over six foot two inches tall (compared with Martha, who was only five feet tall), George was an imposing figure whose reputation as a military leader preceded him. Like his future wife, Washington’s own social status had improved as a result of an unfortunate death. After his half-brother Lawrence and his widow died, Washington had inherited Mount Vernon, a beautiful 2000-acre estate located high above the Potomac River in Northern Virginia.
For her part, Martha must have believed that in George she had found someone she could trust as well as love. Although some widows wrote legally binding premarital contracts that protected the assets they had from their previous marriage, Martha did not. For as long as she lived Washington would have the use of Martha’s “widow’s third,” the land, slaves, and money which would be handed down to the Custis heirs after Martha’s death. In addition, Washington would become the legal guardian of Martha’s children, responsible for managing and protecting their financial affairs."
Pictures:
Information:
Monday, October 22, 2012
Feminine stereotypes
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Women Soldiers in the Civil War
Frances Clayton
Women were not legally allowed to fight in the Civil War, but that most certainly did not stop them. There were thought to be 400 women who fought in the civil war. Women joined the army for the same reasons men did; they believed in a cause and wanted adventure. It was also possible that some women joined the army because they felt trapped at home or were a burden to their parents financially.
WWI and WWII ads aimed towards women
This is another advertisement promoting the Women's Land Army in the US.
Advertisements depicting patriotic women growing their own food was common during the World Wars.
Women were encouraged to can their food.
Manys ads depicted women wearing dresses made out of American flags. This was a way America encouraged patriotism among women. America's goal was to get everyone (even children) involved in an effort to help the country during the war.
Women's Land Army (Britain and America)
During World War I England and Wales created the Women's Land Army, an organization that encouraged women to take over farm work that men would normally do. The lack of men due to the war left women no other choice but to do the work themselves. America also created a Women's Land Army soon after. Both countries used the Women's Land Army through the first and second world war.
http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1280&bih=929&tbm=isch&tbnid=lGU6d1IEMGbNcM:&imgrefurl=http://www.thefourservices.co.uk/landarmy_in_ww2.htm&docid=lO_glAF_pAjQDM&imgurl=http://www.thefourservices.co.uk/LandArmy%252520-%252520Keep%252520the%252520Farms%252520Poster.jpg&w=700&h=1057&ei=VMZ1UOT2L-XEyQHXvoGAAw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=264&sig=100177833013943923729&page=1&tbnh=139&tbnw=92&start=0&ndsp=34&ved=1t:429,r:12,s:0,i:110&tx=65&ty=91
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Lillian RussellThe late 1800s was one of the few periods in history when slimness was not considered desirable. Women were supposed to have big busts and wide hips. Waists, however, were supposed to be small, and women still wore tight corsest to squeeze theri waists in. An Englishman reported that American women seemd to be morbidly frightened of getting thin. "They are constantly having themselves weighed and every ounce of increase is hailed with delight, and talked about with the most dreadful plainness of speech" he reported. A "beautiful Connecticut girl" he added, told him proudly that she had "gained eighteen pounds in flesh since last April."
The great American beauty of the age was Lillian Rusell, famed singer, actress, and dinner partner of Diamond Jim Brady. At her thinnest, the five-foot, five-inch Russell weighted about 140 pounds, but she frequently exceeded 160.
Dance troupes from Europe that toured the United States featured chorus girls who were definitely Rubenesque and American stage shows followed their lead. In the 1890s, Metropolitcan Magazine claimed that the "regulation chorus girl type" had "thick ankles, ponderous calves and a waist laced so tight that the lines of the hips and bust were distorted into balloon-like curves." Perhaps fleshiness was appropritae in an era when Americans finally discovered the joys of appetite. Or perhaps it was a reaction against the "fairylike" women of the pre-Civil War era. Helen Hunt, a widow who had gone west in 1872 to escape ill health and depression, wrote to her sickly friends proudly reporting that she now weighted 163 pounds.
Photography became common, and when women had their pictures taken they demanded that theri cheekss look redder, their skin whiter, their hair brighter, until, one photographer complained, the subjects "looked like ghastly mockery of the clown in a pantomime." It was only a small step from tinted photography to tinted faces. Makeup was still considered the mark of a fast women, but the late-nineteenth-century equivalent of the jet-set used it anyway. Fashionable women used hot tongs to curl their hair into effortful coiffures, which were sprinkled with gold or silver dust for special occasions. They wore elaborate hats - huge affairs bearing flowers, lace, organdy, and every possible kind of feathers, from ostrich plumes to stuffed birds. The slaughter of wild birds for hat decorationss reached such outrageouss proportions that it led to the nation's first public environmental protests.
Source(s):
America's Women, 400 Years of Dolls, Drudges, Helpmates and Heroines by Gail Collins
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Introduction to Gender Roles in the U.S.
The people that are in a society attribute value to
everything in their society. Wooden crosses then become religious icons, paper
turns into a source of monetary wealth, and people are set into a societal
niche. Those people that are in those niches are set up with a price tag; they
are given a value. That seems a bit presumptuous for our time, but was in fact
a norm through out most of our history. Sadly, it still casts a shadow over
what we would like to think we have now.
Women’s history has struggled with its identity but
women have the power to find who they are and what value they should have. It
is a cliché but knowledge is power, with it you can protect your own rights and
answer questions like are why are women only worth the 60 cents they will make
to every dollar a man makes?
19th
Amendment
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall
have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
This Video highlights
the power behind knowledge and how knowing your rights are key. You would not
want to unintentionally sign your rights away so take advantage of them
Gender Roles of the 1950's
Women were viewed as primarily housewives whereas the men would work outside of the home.
The Roaring 20's
The Roaring 20's represented the decade's distinctive cultural edge in most of the major cities of the "west" for a period of sustained economic prosperity
Young women of the 1920's
The flapper became the image that represented the huge change that occured in the live's and attitudes of women during the roaring 20's
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Exotic Dancers from the 1890's
These pictures show that having curves was considered beautiful at one time. The exotic dancers also seem quite covered compared to the exotic dancers of today.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
The Concept of Beauty in American History
Send any info. including pics. of what America viewed as the typical beauty, and at what time.
In The Early 20th Century
Target: Council of Fashion Designers of America, IMG Modeling Agency, and Women Management
Goal: Require modeling agencies to hire women with diverse body types and to screen all models for eating disorders.
Though the American population has shifted to be one that is largely unhealthy due to overindulgence, the prevalence of eating disorders in the United States is still astounding. Eating disorders affect an estimated 10 million women and 1 million men. These disorders are mental health issues which usually stem from poor body image and a lack of self-esteem. But where are these 10 million women getting the ideas that propel them to hate their bodies and undergo extreme measures to achieve unrealistic and unhealthy body weights?
Easy answer: the media.
It may not be shocking to know that 86% of those diagnosed with an eating disorder report that their disordered habits began before the age of 20. What is disturbing is that 33% of people with eating disorders developed their habits between the ages of 11 and 15 and 10% were affected before the age of 10. We need to stop sending messages to young girls and women that skinny necessarily equals pretty. This is not to say that women who are slender are not as beautiful as curvier women; rather, it should be promoted that healthy habits are what create a healthy and beautiful body.
Thus, women who are have severely low BMIs and are 15% or more beneath the average BMI for their height should not be allowed to walk the runway or be promoted in advertising campaigns. This is not to punish these women; rather it is to encourage the exposure of positive body images and dispel the myth of a set image of beauty. Women should not be barred from modeling if they are naturally slender, instead all models should be screened for eating disorders as a mandatory part of their employment. Companies should be encouraged to hire women of varying body types and they should not be allowed to portray women who are either severely underweight or severely overweight. A positive image of natural beauty must be promoted, and any person who is at an unhealthy weight should not be permitted to represent an ideology of beauty.
In The Early 20th Century
by Louise Wood
Definitions of beauty in the 20th century, when referring to human physical beauty, are nearly always constructed in terms of outward appearance and sexual attractiveness. Nancy Baker's definition is The Beauty Trap is more concerned with intangible personal qualities. “A truly beautiful woman makes the best of her physical assets but, more importantly, she also radiates a personal quality which is attractive.” In Beauty In History, Arthur Marwick defines a human physical beauty in more direct terms: “The beautiful are those who are immediately exciting to almost all of the opposite sex.”
Beauty in the Beginning of the 20th century and its Influences:
For the first two decades of the 20th century, many of the attitudes towards beauty associated with the 19th century remained. In Victorian society, it was considered a woman's duty to make herself beautiful. In the early 20th century, this was coupled with the idea of “self-presentation” as enjoyable, expressive and creative. However, some of the more bizarre and painful “beauty aids” of the Victorian age continued to be marketed well into the 1920s. A particularly unpleasant example is “M.Trielty's Nose Shaper”, described as a “metal object ... held over the nose by straps buckled round the head and adjusted with screws.”
One of the main elements of this century's perception of beauty that sets it apart from the 19th century is the polarity of cosmetics. In the last century, cosmetics were frowned upon in society as the mark of a prostitute. The cosmetics industry grew from the roots of the manufacturing of theatre make-up by Helena Rubenstein and Max Factor, who adapted their products for everyday use.
From puberty onwards, young girls use cosmetics in order to look older an attract older boys. Conversely, their mothers use cosmetics in order to disguise the flaws of age and maintain a youthful appearance. That is not to say that the cosmetics boom does not have its adversaries: many feminists believe the marketing of cosmetics, along with high fashion, to be an exploitation of women by male industry moguls. Some women resent having to use cosmetics in order to compete in the workforce. But for many women, the cosmetics ritual is not a chore or a necessary evil, but an enjoyable activity in itself. It is not purely for the benefit of men that women wear cosmetics, but for themselves and each other.
The cosmetics and fashion industries are interdependent with the medium of advertising. Cynthia White points out that the turnabout in opinions on cosmetics is women's magazines in the 1920s coincided with the increase of cosmetics advertising in the same publications. Advertising is often presumed to have little cultural value, but is a powerful way in which attitudes towards women and beauty are reinforced. The 20th century fascination with celebrities is a tool expertly used in the advertising industry. If a beautiful model, or more effectively a beautiful celebrity is used in an advertisement, the qualities associated with that person are transferred onto the product.
Another major influence on this century's attitudes towards beauty was the growth of the film industry. For the first half of the century, all the major beauty icons were film actresses. It was a medium that allowed women who would have previously been overlooked to shine. For instance, the 19th century aversion to redheads was still in place as late as the 20s. It was that black-and-white medium that allowed Clara Bow to be the exception. However, stars such as Bette Davis and Katherine Turner who could not be described as “conventionally beautiful” invariably came from middle or upper class backgrounds. Beauty was an essential attribute for a working class woman to become successful in Hollywood. This period was also the beginning of the ties between the film and fashion industries, which would continue for decades to come.
1900-1910s:
Up to the 1910s, the “Gibson Girl”, invented by Charles Dana Gibson in the 1890s, was still considered to be the ideal of femininity. The Victorian ideal of “the chaste and delicate woman” continued to be embodied in the form of childlike, virginal film stars such as Lillian Gish and Mary Pickford. A more typical 20th century contrast was provided by Theda Bara, who was perpetually cast in the role of the Vamp.
By the second decade of the century, fashion was losing its Victorian austerity, and giving way to soft, draping, Oriental-inspired fabrics. However, corsets were still worn, and the fashion for long, narrow skirts prompted the popularity of the “hobble garter”, a device worn around the calves to stop women from taking long strides and splitting their skirts.
One reason given by Fred E. H. Schroeder, quoted in Women In Popular Culture, for the continuing popularity of long skirts was the bulky menstrual cloths worn by women until the advent of disposable feminine hygiene products in the 20s.
1920s:
1920s fashion placed more importance on “natural endowment” than any time in the preceding centuries. although cosmetics were worn to conceal natural flaws, their main function was to draw attention to women's natural features. Skirts became shorter than they had possibly ever been, but in contradiction to the atmosphere of freedom in fashion, feminine curves became unfashionable. Women wore “flatteners” to minimise their busts, and waistlines were lowered to hip level. The ubiquitous bobbed hairstyles of the 20s were originally cut in barber shops. When barbers failed to meet the demands of fashionable young things, beauty shops sprang up everywhere. the new technique of permanent waving was immensely popular: American women spent $250m on perms alone during the 1920s.
The icons of the 1920s were represented, again exclusively in the cinema, by the up-front sexuality of Jean Harlow, Clara Bow and Mae West, together with the “mysterious androgyny” of Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich. The theme of androgyny was to be continually repeated throughout the century, particularly in the 60s and 80s.
1930s:
The Production Code enforced on Hollywood films in the 1930s put an end to the sexual content of the films of the 20s, however tame, including a ban on miscegenation. Although sexuality was played down, the change in content meant that roles for women became more realistic, resulting in the rise of “wholesome” stars such as Katherine Hepburn and Jean Arthur. 1930s fashion favoured tall women with wide shoulders and narrow hips, a type exemplified by Greta Garbo. Hem-lines dropped and waistlines returned to their normal position, and the “erogenous zone” shifted from legs to the back, coinciding with the increasing popularity of sunbathing.
1940s:
World War II brought strict controls on clothing production for the following decade. The principal 1940s look was a practical and masculine style (“the Utility Lines”) with padded shoulders and knee-length hem-lines. Shortage of materials for stockings led to the popularity of trousers for women. In the late 40s, as a reaction to wartime austerity, Christian Dior launched the “New Look”, with corseted waists, padded hips and billowing skirts, using far more fabric than most women's rations would allow. Despite its exclusive nature, Dior's look revolutionised fashion and influenced the return to overt femininity in the next decade. The cinema continued its influence throughout the war years; icons of the 40s were as diverse as Vivien Leigh, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis and Rosalind Russell.
http://barneygrant.tripod.com/p-erceptions.htm
Change the Model of Beauty in America: Demand that Modeling Agencies Promote Healthy Bodies
By Jaclyn BauerTarget: Council of Fashion Designers of America, IMG Modeling Agency, and Women Management
Goal: Require modeling agencies to hire women with diverse body types and to screen all models for eating disorders.
Though the American population has shifted to be one that is largely unhealthy due to overindulgence, the prevalence of eating disorders in the United States is still astounding. Eating disorders affect an estimated 10 million women and 1 million men. These disorders are mental health issues which usually stem from poor body image and a lack of self-esteem. But where are these 10 million women getting the ideas that propel them to hate their bodies and undergo extreme measures to achieve unrealistic and unhealthy body weights?
Easy answer: the media.
It may not be shocking to know that 86% of those diagnosed with an eating disorder report that their disordered habits began before the age of 20. What is disturbing is that 33% of people with eating disorders developed their habits between the ages of 11 and 15 and 10% were affected before the age of 10. We need to stop sending messages to young girls and women that skinny necessarily equals pretty. This is not to say that women who are slender are not as beautiful as curvier women; rather, it should be promoted that healthy habits are what create a healthy and beautiful body.
Thus, women who are have severely low BMIs and are 15% or more beneath the average BMI for their height should not be allowed to walk the runway or be promoted in advertising campaigns. This is not to punish these women; rather it is to encourage the exposure of positive body images and dispel the myth of a set image of beauty. Women should not be barred from modeling if they are naturally slender, instead all models should be screened for eating disorders as a mandatory part of their employment. Companies should be encouraged to hire women of varying body types and they should not be allowed to portray women who are either severely underweight or severely overweight. A positive image of natural beauty must be promoted, and any person who is at an unhealthy weight should not be permitted to represent an ideology of beauty.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)