Womens’ Liberation Movement Notes

The Women's Liberation Movement AKA: Women's Lib Feminist Movement or Women's Rights Movement â€Å"Feminism is the radical notion that women are human beings† -women fighting male power structure Women, you may be feminist if you: -had lots of choices after high school -had the option of college/grad school -have a career/job and family -plan to be a doctor, lawyer, engineer (professional) -support fair work salary for any work -workplace is free of sexual discrimination -participate in women's sports -go to a woman doctor -vote in any political race -run for any political office intend to use daycare -can get a divorce (custody) -â€Å"You have the choose of wearing jeans and tennis shoes instead of a girdle and heels† â€Å"man is not the enemy here but the fellow victim† -Betty Friedan -If civil rights are denied by somebody, it affects everybody Men, you may be feminist if you: -are in college or have had other opportunities because of mom's good job to cont ribute to income -mom had support services to help raise you/siblings -have a content, stay at home mom -have ever been asked out by a girl (or paid) Understand and Appreciate Art -How is it put together? What do I personally bring? -Where did it come from? (Context) The First Wave of Feminism 1848-1920 -Women's Rights Convention *Seneca Falls, NY: July 19-20, 1848 -19th Amendment *ratified June 26, 1920 *voting day: November 2, 1920 Second Wave of Feminism 1960s-70s State of Women's Rights in 1848 by Custom and/or Law -Economic *could not buy/sell property *could not enter into contracts without husband's consent *actually seen as property -Social *no recourse to spousal abuse *no divorce without husband's consent *few custody rights over kids *could not go out in public alone Educational *denied any education *denied education in math, language *most could not go to college *could not enter the professions (law, engineering) *some women attended â€Å"female seminars† or â €Å"academies† to become teachers; once they were married, however, they were fired -Political *could not serve on a jury *could not testify in a case (too emotional, not trustworthy) *could not vote (not smart, too delicate, â€Å"vote like husband†) Lizzy Borden: acquitted by a jury of 12 men: â€Å"not guilty† of killing her two parents â€Å"Lizzie Borden took an axe And gave her mother forty whacks.When she saw what she had done She gave her father forty-one. † The Birth of the Women's Movement -Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott attended the World Anti-Slavery Convention with their husbands in London; they were denied seats because they were women -The women reunited at a tea party at the McKlintock House in July 1848 (Seneca Falls, NY) and decided on a convention -Stanton mostly wrote the â€Å"The Declaration of Rights and Sentiments† *†We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal† List of Grievances -never exercised the right to vote he made her morally, an irresponsible being -in the eye of the law, married women were â€Å"dead† -denied right to education -denied divorce rights -demeaned to second-class citizens Women's Rights Convention, July 19-20, 1848 -300 men and women gathered at the Wesleyan Methodist Church, Seneca Falls, NY -Ratification of their Declaration -Fight over the 11th amendment (suffrage) -Frederick Douglass (great orator, ex-slave, equivalent to Malcolm X) fought for women's rights at the convention: compared value of women as lesser than animals in society Video Clip Notes: Not for Ourselves Alone- Seneca Falls narrations from female historians reflecting -procession of women to Seneca Falls -July 19, only women attended; July 20, open to all (over 300 men and women) -Lucretia's husband was asked to lead (the women were nervous because they never spoke in public) -men decried women of their rights -68 men and women signed their Decl aration -11 new conditions, only 10 were passed; still no right to vote -â€Å"The right to vote is ours. Have it we must, use it we will† -Stanton -â€Å"Without the vote, women would be unable to change the laws that hurt them† -Douglass The Suffrage Movement Susan B. Anthony (died 1906) *Last public words: â€Å"Failure is impossible† *One of four women and 2 modern women to be on money -Carrie Chapman Catt -Alice Paul â€Å"Iron Jawed Angels† (film) -women jailed for fighting for suffrage The End of the First Wave -Ratification of the 19th Amendment, June 29, 1920 Sufragette: women (1920s) who fought for women's rights Video Clip Notes -Interview with Ruth Dyk (98 yrs. old): mom was a suffragette -Interview with Ethel Hall (100 yrs. old) -more than 8 million women voted -14 years for women to vote since Declaration Stanton and Anthony did not get to vote because they died One Step Forward, Two Steps Back -Some improvement -loss of â€Å"steam† -Great Depression (â€Å"Migrant Mother† iconic Great Depression photo taken by Dorothy Lange, 1936) â€Å"We Can Do It! † World War II : The 1940s -women take over â€Å"masculine jobs† to help win the war -â€Å"if you've used an electric mixer in your kitchen, you can learn to run a drill press† -â€Å"Rosie the Riveter† represented a lot of women; iconic poster by J. Howard Miller -6 million women became Rosie's -â€Å"Rosie the Riveter† by the Four Vagabonds (song) Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jane Baker) was a Rosie working with planes, when a photographer saw her and took army photos -Fannie Lou Hamer: sharecropper who became a significant voting rights and civil rights activist Rush to the Altar mid-late 1940s -soldiers come home, women go home, men take back the jobs Marriage rate: 1948- 16. 4%; 2008- 7. 1% Traditional Housewives (Suburbs) 1950s -normalcy after the war -traditional families/sex roles -PhT (Putting Husband Through) and Mrs. degrees (women going to college to find a husband) -the ideal of the housewife â€Å"the feminine mystique† Video Clip Notes: â€Å"Why Study Home Economics† (University of Kansas) -â€Å"I'm going to need to know† -â€Å".. homemaker the rest of my life† -we're going to get married, no choice -Counselor: â€Å"Home Ec training teaches you how to be a better homemaker† Ultimate Goal: Marriage and Family -regardless of education -TV Show â€Å"Leave it to Beaver† portrayed traditional family roles -TV was new in the 50s: what messages were TV shows sending to men and women? -â€Å"Drop the Mop† song (â€Å"Equal jobs and educational opportunities†) The Winds of Discontent (late 50s, early 60s) legal job discrimination -1/3 women working outside of home (low paying jobs, laid off first, â€Å"glass ceiling†) -After WWII, new technology -Airline jobs- as soon as a stewardess got married, she was fired; wasn't the same for pilots (only could be male) -teaching was considered the â€Å"best job† (others were secretaries, but no professions) -Lorena Weeks: Used 1964 legislation to fight the legal discrimination at work *operated switchboards under bad hours and low pay Dissatisfied Housewives -Betty Friedan â€Å"voice of dissatisfied housewives† -Wrote â€Å"The Feminine Mystique† (1953)Video Clip Notes -K. Foley: working wife/mother *frozen opportunities and lack of jobs -Dust Roady: earned college degree in 1950, wanted to be a pilot, denied position and only offered to be a stewardess Video Clip Notes: Eastern Airlines commercial -discriminatory and demeaning towards female (stewardesses) -they were fired at age 32, versus male pilots being fired at age 60 -Friedan challenged the identity of women in her book; â€Å".. cannot find herself in a house† -not all women bought her message, however -Jacqui Ceball â€Å"it wasn't us, it was society†The President's Commiss ion on the Status of Women 1961 -JFK's presidency: women were paid $0. 59 for every $1 men were paid -2008: women were paid $0. 77 for every $1 men were paid -low, unequal pay -poor job opportunities -quotas in professional schools (only a certain number of women) -lack of social services -TV show â€Å"All in the Family† – wage disparity (Archie was the husband) -60s: some nuns got rid of their habits (changes in the church) â€Å"The personal is political† -social restrictions *†men only† and â€Å"women only† public places women were isolated in their own homes- they couldn't meet up and talk -this issue lead to â€Å"Consciousness Raising Groups,† where women could talk about anything in privacy without men or children -battered women's shelters -contraceptive rights, including abortion (Roe V. Wade) -rape laws -Before Second Wave Feminism, issues such as abusive relationships were â€Å"personal problems,† not â€Å"society 's problem† -However, feminists argued that society needs to be involved with solving these problems Video Clip Notes -Women try to enter men's bar â€Å"women are people,† â€Å"start all over† (black and whites, men and women)Video Clip Notes â€Å"Second-Class Citizens† -60s: in some states, women needed husband's cosign to get a credit card -70s: women would not be interrupted during consciousness raising group meetings -women's strike â€Å"don't iron while the strike is hot† The Mid 60s-70s -Civil Rights Act 1964 banned discrimination (race and gender) -National Organization for Women (NOW) 1966 *created by Betty Friedan; still one of the largest poetical organizations for women's rights today *aimed at men too (better for them) *not all feminists of 60s agreed with her (like MLK vs Malcolm X)Miss America Protest 1968 -Guerrilla theatre Video Clip Notes -March on Washington 1963 -led to critical victory for minorities and women: LBJ signs Civi l Rights Act -Lorena Weeks cited the Civil RIghts Act to fight *it took 5 years and an appeal to the Supreme Court, but she got the job she wanted -Women in white robes praying â€Å"Mother, Daughter, Holy Granddaughter† -to feminists: Miss America Pageant was epitome of â€Å"ideal woman† -female protestors threw bras, girdles, makeup, and heels in trash -Shirley Chisholm: equal pay and equal opportunities in stock market: feminismWomen's Liberation: â€Å"I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar† -Helen Reddy -Politics -Legal System -Wall Street -Media -Medicine -Arts -Sports -Pop Culure -ALL AREAS â€Å"The Feminine Mystique,† or Betty, Tina, Mrs. Robinson, and all those other housewives Betty Friedan 1921-2006 -Smith College 1942 -Wife, mother, housewife, writer, feminist leader -â€Å"The Feminist Mystique† -Worked as a journalist in 50s, but got fired when she got pregnant; she then did free-lance magazine work from home How did the Feminist Mystique get sta rted? -â€Å"McCall's† magazine â€Å"women's† magazine that catered to women's issues; asked Friedan to write a piece *Friedan interviewed women she graduated with and asked them â€Å"What has been your experience as a woman? † -The initial title of the article was to be â€Å"The Togetherness Woman† (the happy, ideal, traditional woman) -Smith College's Class of 1942 15th reunion What did McCall's expect to find? -ideal 50s women -high levels of satisfaction and happiness -LIFE Magazine, December 1956: â€Å"ideal American woman†¦white, middle-class, frivolous, spoiled, beautiful, boy crazy.. † Ideal 50s Woman -Feminine -Delicate Not intellectual -Compliant -Content -Him-focused -Family-focused -House-focused Video Clip Notes -Christian Dior set standards for fashion trends during wartime -Hourglass figure, girdles and slim shapes with big bust -â€Å"feminine, sexy† -Contestants had to peel potatoes and make a bed in Miss America Pa geant Barbie -invented in 1959 -commercial doll (doll $3, clothes $1-5) -Mattel International Video Clip Notes: Xerox commercial -first machine in 1959 -take-off on Marilyn Monroe, ditzy secetary -overall message: â€Å"So easy a woman can do it† A Housewife's Day -PTA meetings Shopping -Seeing her friends -In her kitchen What did Friedan's survey actually find? -discontent, unhappy -unexplained fatigue and physical illness -prescription drug use sky rocketed *3 years: 1. 2 million pounds of Miltown (tranquilizer) had been taken by women (mid 50s) -lack of interest in the world or hope for the future -went beyond her college peers She found that for women†¦. -College graduate rates: 60% drop out (PhT) -Marriage rates up, age down (average 20yrs and dropping in late 50s) -Skyrocketing birthrate -Labor Market: 1/3 working; nonprofessional â€Å"jobs† Politics: Congress- more in 40s than in the 50s What did Friedan conclude? -Women suffer from â€Å"the problem that has no name† *The housewife's â€Å"blight† (doctors used these terms, even) -Psychological problem: lack of identity -Trapped in a dilemma *Homemaker lifestyle that was the envy of many but not fulfilling, especially to the educated woman -McCall's denied Friedan's magazine Article (editors were men) What is the Feminine Mystique? -Post WWII ideology that a woman can and should only be fulfilled as a housewife and mother -Resistance: sickness, abnormality Intentionally pervasive throughout society -Fight back against Feminine Mystique is the Women's Lib Movement What did Friedan do? -Wrote â€Å"the Feminine Mystique† (1963) *†scream of pain† -Changed the course of history -Became a pioneer of the Second Wave -Remember: Susan B. Anthony was a pioneer of the First Wave Possible â€Å"Why? † Theories -nation's need to return to pre-war â€Å"normalcy†? -â€Å"Artificial Buoyancy† idea that in society, there are people who feel the y want to be on top, meaning some have to sink to the bottom (men vs. omen) -need for a consumer class with time and desire to shop The Freudian â€Å"Why† Theory -Sigmund Freud: Father of psychology and psychiatry -Anatomy is destiny *Women are anatomically built to be mothers -â€Å"Normal female traits are receptivity and passivity†¦a willingness to accept dependence. † -Freud is a â€Å"male chauvinist pig† -Shulamith Firestone coined this phrase Friedan's Conclusion: All the theories are true -The Feminine Mystique is pervasive in society and it is the result of an intentional conspiracy by the male-dominated society to keep things male-dominated The Stepford Wives Sci-fi book by Ira Levin: men find a way to turn their wives into robots (ideal 50s woman) -Movies: 1975- thriller; 2004- spoof (credits show many different shots to send his message) The Graduate (1967) -#7 American Film Institute: Best movie of all time -Book written by Charles Webb- gradu ated from William College then wrote it -Ann Bancroft (who inspired Professor Loughran to act very young) played â€Å"Mrs. Robinson,† an unhappy housewife -Dustin Hoffman plays â€Å"Benjamin,† a discontent college graduate; actor was originally supposed to be tall and attractive, like Robert Redford -Katharine Ross Music: Simon and Garfunkel wrote the theme song, which was originally supposed to be â€Å"Mrs. Roosevelt† -Director: Mike Nichols Video Clip Notes â€Å"the Graduate† -Scene begins after Ben's graduation party -Mrs. Robinson resorts to alcohol and music -â€Å"Mrs. Robinson you're trying to seduce me† Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970) -Comedy of manners: making fun of a certain segment of society -exploring dangers of Feminine Mystique in a humorous way -Making fun of upper, affluent lifestyles of these people Early Days of TV -1939 World Fair -Rapid expansion *Post WWII leisure *Better technology Better programming -Content *news, dram a, variety shows *live broadcast *advertising 1955: Fort Wayne, Indiana -Social Lives -Education -Business -Church TV and Politics -JFK AKA â€Å"TV President† -TV was live in the 60s *death of Lee Harvey Oswald was aired 1950s/60s TV: A Man's World â€Å"Women's lives are so dull†¦ they don't need TV shows† â€Å"women can make decisions in comedies.. † -Norman Felton, MGM Executive Producer -Madelyn Martin, writer for â€Å"Lucy† shows Television's Portrayal of Women (according to Friedan) -boring -jealous -inept -foolish -dependent -weak -silly -spoiled -materialistic â€Å"I Married Joan† (1954 Daytime TV Show) *Joan Davis (like Lucille Ball) *†Mrs. Bradley Stevens† (married to judge_ Marlo Thomas: Arts Hero -Personal Life *Born 1937 *Daughter of Danny Thomas (comedy â€Å"Danny Thomas Show†) *grew up privileged *wife/stepmother Phil Donaghue (precursor to Oprah, similar talk show) *didn't want to get married *saw mistre atment of women firsthand in acting industry *wanted to be an actress, and was concerned about making it on her own Acting -TV Series: That Girl, among others -Film -Theater Writing -Free to Be†¦You and Me (healthier children's book) *books, CDs, and TV specialsOther -Producer -Speaker -Awards: Lucy Award (outstanding women in TV), Emmy, Golden Globe, Grammy *same as Sidney Poiter: not about winning, but making a difference That Girl -September 1966 -First show about a single woman -Force behind the show *scripts *clothes -Production aspects -end of season, she had a boyfriend on the show, the producer wanted them to marry but she said â€Å"Hell no! † Making a Difference -Advocate for women's rights *The Ms. Foundation for Women -St. Jude's Children's (Cancer) Research Hospital *Her dad founded this in 1960 Janis wanted what med had- everything Don't compromise yourself. You're all you've got. † Janis Joplin: first female rockstar -wanted to be equal with men -she wanted a personal life -From Port Arthur, TX; always wrote letters and kept in touch with her family -Dated musician Country Joe McDonald -Wanted a career, broke with the band â€Å"Big Brother†and went successfully solo -Died of heroine overdose -Made it okay for a woman to create her own kind of beauty -made it possible for women to have any type of career -1995: inducted into Rock ‘n' Roll Hall of Fame -Helped women reach for the starts -inspired female rockstars