Blog #4

1. What were the major components of the ideology of “true womanhood?” How was this ideology linked to the class structure of early nineteenth-century America?

The ideology of “true womanhood” has to do with the ideology of gender roles. “True Womanhood” took hold in early nineteenth century. This was the time the United States was getting its independence and treating men and women “with almost no common human traits that transcended the differences of gender” (p. 137). According to “True Womanhood”, men and women were total opposites. The True Women were supposed to be a big part of the domestic life. They were supposed to take care of their children’s education, be good moms and wives, satisfy their husbands with their domestic chores, and so on. Men were mostly busy with business and politics.

2. What is the significance of the Lowell mill girls in the history of U.S. women and work? What were the implications of the decline of the Lowell system?

The significance of the Lowell mill girls is the opportunities that women in the history of United States had outside their homes. It started with one of the earliest American Industries with Textile production. “Textile production began as home-based outwork, but by the 1820s it was decisively shifting in the direction of factory labor” (p. 147). It was the most “female dominated” industry. This gave young and unmarried women the opportunity to work away from their home and get paid for their work. This gave the women the chance of independence and possibilities. The implications of the decline of the Lowell system were the wage cuts and the discrimination between men and women. Women were doing the same jobs as men but were getting paid less than men. There also were some cuts in women’s wages that directed these women to strike against the factory.

Textbook document (Chapter 3 pp. 169-173) – “The History of Prostitution”

1. What is Sanger’s view of the moral nature of women?

According to Sanger’s estimates six thousand women were “engaged in commercial sex in New York City.” However he did not believe that women became prostitutes by their choice. His view of the moral nature of women was totally different. He considered prostitutes as sex victims who, he believed “they must have been deserted, seduced, driven by destitution, or forced into prostitution” (p. 170). He interviewed two thousand prostitutes and found out that most of these prostitutes were forced to prostitution because of the bad conditions that they were living in. According to Sanger’s views, prostitution was a way for them to be able to earn money to survive. However this also was the reason of their serious diseases.

2. What does Sanger think are the cause and consequences of prostitution for women?

According to Sanger, the causes of prostitution for women are mostly inclination, destitution, seduced and abandoned, drink and the desire to drink, ill-treatment of relatives, as an easy life, bad company, persuaded by prostitutes, violated and so on. First cause is the inclination, “which can only be understood as meaning as voluntary resort to prostitution in order to gratify the sexual passions” (p. 170). In Sanger’s five hundred and twenty-five cases the destitution was the cause of the prostitution. Most of the women became prostitutes because of the poverty they were living in. The consequences of prostitution were the serious diseases and the spreading of venereal diseases.

3. How do Sanger’s conclusions about prostitution reflect the values of his own day?

Sanger’s conclusion about prostitutes was as victims. He blames the society that so many women became prostitutes because of all kind of difficulties that they were having in their lives. He came to the conclusion that women did not choose to be prostitutes, they were forced to become prostitutes by their society. He believed that women did not have many choices, and nothing was done to change that fact. He understands how hard was the women’s lives that lead them to the wrong path.