Project #2: Women in
Society
Alexandra Bily
Although women have been given many
different interpretations of their value and
reasons of existence through out society
one thing is clear, women are a valuable
component in life and have fought for the
right to live joyous and enriching lives.
Women in the Middle Ages
Starting off in the year 467 A.D. the Middle Ages
were where most of all the documented
assumed roles of women are shown. Women
were majorly depicted responding to the
domestic responsibilities at the home. The main
model of how women should be seen as came
directly from the Biblical story of Adam and Eve.
In religion, the women were seen as the reason
for mans banishment from Paradise and a
constant threat of temptation to sin.
Women and witch hunts
Later in the 17th century the
patriarchal society of England
had to deal with the nonconforming group of women
who challenged the social
order. Many women who had
husbands that died, or never
decided to get married
challenged the social order of
society. In response to that,
women who didnt undergo
normal procedures laid out by
men were out casted as
witches that performed black
magic. (Explanations or
European Witchcraft)
Womens role in society
Although in history some periods of time refer the
female as negative, women for the most part are
also perceived as the nurturers that help structure a
family together. Marking the female as the initial
provider of the family brings heavy value to the
importance of being a female. All around the world
there are different perceptions of what a woman
should be.
Matrilineal roles
Matrilineal, or inheriting from female
descent, can describe some societies
found in the world where women are
seen as the dominant figures in a
group and are often given positions of
power to make decisions. Mostly tribes
in Africa have since the beginning of
civilization have been a female
directed decent particularly pertaining
to the control of the food and land.
Powerful rulers such as Queen
Nefertiti , Queen Manthatisi in South
Africa, and Queen Candace Amanirena
of Nubia all stand as testimonies of
flourishing empires that test the
strength of men and time. (Organic
Roots)
Patrilineal roles
In contrast, many societies around the
world function as a patrilineal society
where inheritance stems from the male
descent rather than the womens.
Patrilineal societies are more widely
seen, particularly in Western European,
American, and Asian cultures. In Japan
culture, for example, primogeniture of
the passing down of financial assets or
properties is given from father to
typically the eldest son. Women in
patrilineal societies are expected to give
up their maiden name and receive the
last name of their male spouses as a
symbol of men leaving a legacy.
( Contemporary Japan)
50s in America
Around the time of the 1950s, the
American economy was booming
which gave way to many advances
in life in America for both men and
women. Much during this time came
the development of societal norms
here in America, and many of those
norms involve the concepts of what
place women have in society.
During the 50s the general
norm was to do what your
neighbor was doing. The
whole concept was to
conform to one simple
society that functioned
relatively the same, and
completed each day just as
previous days before.
Women at that time
perceived themselves as
what the new norm was, the
stay-at-home woman who
Post war feelings and
involvement
After the war women
who had helped
manufacture products
were forced to come
back to the house and
tend to the home.
This forced return
caused much
disharmony between
females and societal
expectations.
Advertisement and Suburbia
Conformity was executed
swifter through the use of
newer products such as the
Television and the radio.
Through vehicles of
advertising and shopping
malls, the newly shaped idea
of what it was meant to be a
woman was developing the
country and its societies. Also
with the addition of the
automobile, the vision of
suburbia life became the
newest model for the ideal
womans life. ( United States
History)
Conformity backlash
In the 60s and 70s there was
an explosion of backlash
against conformity much of it
occurring from the womens
front. The Feminist Movement
began making itself known
through protests and sit-ins
along with the struggling
minority group of young
African Americans. During
this time the Feminist
Movement protested for
equality in many areas such
as equal pay, equal rights and
educational opportunities.
( Feminist)
Modern inspirations
Modern inspirations for
women, majorly
campaigned through
social media, challenge
the ideas of what a
woman can do and what
it means to really face
opposition.
Some examples of
modern day inspirations
are women such as pop
singer Beyonce, movie
star and political
advocate of feminism
Emma Watson, and First
Lady Michelle Obama are
only a few powerful and
influential women that
Citations
Bestor, Theodore, and Helen Hardarce.
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