Women in 1907

INTRODUCTION

Women have come a long way since the early 19^th century. They have defied all odds that stood in their paths and emerged as frontrunners in our communities. One thing is for a fact, whether a woman is from Asia, Africa, Europe or America, they have been subjected to almost similar issues.

So how can we be able to describe women in 1907, and be able to distinguish them from women in 2017, commonly referred to as the modern women? The following Article comprehensively covers the main factors that define both the two classes of women helping us to clearly understand the two.

A woman in the early 19^th century was defined based on the following four factors; piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness.

• Piety

Women in 1907 valued their religion and keenly observed various religious activities. It was for this reason that a woman’s gentler nature was better suited to her piety and charity. A responsible woman was believed to be an active church member who ensured that her home was a religious one. She was tasked with bringing up her children in a religious manner obeying all laws and doctrines of her religion.

• Purity

Women in the early 19^th century were expected to uphold sexual purity. Ladies valued their virginity as no man would have accepted to marry a girl who wasn’t a virgin. It was for this reason that mothers and grandmothers occasionally educated their daughters on the importance of sexual purity.

Heavy punishment was accorded to all women who never maintained their sexual purity. In many early African communities for example, non virgins were married off to older men or in certain instances, dowry was never paid if discovered that a woman was not a virgin. Such heavy punishments served as warnings to all women in the early 19^th century.

• Submissiveness

Women in 1907 were expected to be submissive to their husbands. Men were regarded as the head of their homes and were the ones that were tasked with giving out instructions. Women were expected to be submissive to their husbands and in every way possible please their men.

An early 19^th-century woman was far from being an independent woman. She was expected to ask her husband for permission whenever she required to do something. She was expected to withstand any form of harassment or domestic violence that came her way from her husband.

• Domesticity

Women in 1907 were seen as the mothers of their households. In this early society, the only way one was to become a mother and a wife, was through marriage. This is because marriage was seen as the only proper state to exercise domesticity.

Women were expected to make their homes refuge from the many problems of the world. Their task was ensuring that their homes run smoothly as men went to work. They were expected to be housewives and sadly a woman role was reduced to that of being in the kitchen and raising up her kids.