The Role Of Women Through The Years | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Community

The Role Of Women Through The Years

8thof March was International Women's Day.

100
The Role Of Women Through The Years

In almost all the world the 8th of March is International Women's Day. Recently, it became a consumer holiday, but we should give more credit to women and their achievements.

We must focus on the importance of women, and to do so, we need to go back in time, to the accomplishments women received in the economic, political and cultural fields through the years, in the world.

I will briefly explain how women's life, culture, social life and work changed.

We know, during prehistoric times that women were considered divinities: because it was said there was a connection between women and the land.

The family was based on a " patriarchy", in which the man was the head of the family.

During Greek times, women were lower than men, even if at home they had an important role: they had to take care of the children, of the house, they had to cook, clean, and spend much of their time home.

During Roman times, women had a little more freedom, they could go to the theatre, but they always had to take care of the family. They used to get married very young, and the father used to decide who was the best man for them. Unfortunately in some places this still happens.

In the Middle Ages instead, there wasn't a big difference between the Christian world and the Muslim world. Women were always submitted to men and all the decisions had to be taken by men. Women used to take care of the domestic environment instead men of the social one.

During the Renaissance, women couldn't perform in plays and all female roles were given to boys.

Only during the First and the Second World Wars women started to work, because men were called to fight in the war, and they had to take care of the family, somehow.

Women's rights achievements were given thanks to their many organizations, one of these is the women's suffrage movement. In the United States this movement went through a long fight until they won the right to vote. It took nearly 100 years to win that right.

On August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified, declaring for the first time that women, like men, deserved all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

Only, on November 2 of that year, more than 8 million women across the United States voted in elections for the first time.

In Italy, instead, women became equal to men when they went to vote for the first time in 1946: only a couple of years later, the Constitution established there was a gender equality.

Many things changed since then, and all of these movements, and all the feminist demonstrations women had during the years around the world, made them become free, to participate in politics, to be heard in social and economic fields and to be elected in important political offices: senators, political leaders and activists.

The first International Women's Day was celebrated the 28thof February 1909 in the United States, in honor of the workers' strike in the clothing industry, when for the first time women protested for their exploited working conditions of the time, working for many hours with a very low salary.

There's a story, we don't know the veracity of this news, that says there was an accident in a garment factory in New York: the owner blocked all the exits, someone set a fire in which 129 women remained closed inside, and all of them died. For example, in Italy, this event is remembered the 8th of March.

It has been a long journey since women have achieved their equal rights, that made them stronger on a social and personal level.

Women have important jobs in financial, economic, social and political environments, they can become doctors, actresses, writers, they can finally follow their dreams.

This is something to be proud of, thanks to all the job movements in the XX century we are able today to be free, to be equal to men and to do whatever jobs we like.

Last but not least, we need and we must continue to fight for our freedom, for our independence, for our life, for our private and social environment. Women have the same rights as men but in some working fields they are still disadvantaged, especially for those women who still have to follow strict rules or are still discriminated. Some of them still haven't got their sexual equality: many women are submitted to men, and all the feminicides that happen every year around the world is a proof that we need to fight for them, those who still are not equal to men in the domestic fields.

We need to fight for this, so that all this violence will stop and until every woman on this planet will be free and have the same sexual equality and civil rights that some countries already have.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Featured

12 Midnight NYE: Fun Ideas!

This isn't just for the single Pringles out there either, folks

13304
Friends celebrating the New Years!
StableDiffusion

When the clock strikes twelve midnight on New Year's Eve, do you ever find yourself lost regarding what to do during that big moment? It's a very important moment. It is the first moment of the New Year, doesn't it seem like you should be doing something grand, something meaningful, something spontaneous? Sure, many decide to spend the moment on the lips of another, but what good is that? Take a look at these other suggestions on how to ring in the New Year that are much more spectacular and exciting than a simple little kiss.

Keep Reading...Show less
piano
Digital Trends

I am very serious about the Christmas season. It's one of my favorite things, and I love it all from gift-giving to baking to the decorations, but I especially love Christmas music. Here are 11 songs you should consider adding to your Christmas playlists.

Keep Reading...Show less
campus
CampusExplorer

New year, new semester, not the same old thing. This semester will be a semester to redeem all the mistakes made in the previous five months.

1. I will wake up (sorta) on time for class.

Let's face it, last semester you woke up with enough time to brush your teeth and get to class and even then you were about 10 minutes late and rollin' in with some pretty unfortunate bed head. This semester we will set our alarms, wake up with time to get ready, and get to class on time!

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 5 Painfully True Stages Of Camping Out At The Library

For those long nights that turn into mornings when the struggle is real.

2522
woman reading a book while sitting on black leather 3-seat couch
Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

And so it begins.

1. Walk in motivated and ready to rock

Camping out at the library is not for the faint of heart. You need to go in as a warrior. You usually have brought supplies (laptop, chargers, and textbooks) and sustenance (water, snacks, and blanket/sweatpants) since the battle will be for an undetermined length of time. Perhaps it is one assignment or perhaps it's four. You are motivated and prepared; you don’t doubt the assignment(s) will take time, but you know it couldn’t be that long.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 14 Stages Of The Last Week Of Class

You need sleep, but also have 13 things due in the span of 4 days.

1550
black marker on notebook

December... it's full of finals, due dates, Mariah Carey, and the holidays. It's the worst time of the year, but the best because after finals, you get to not think about classes for a month and catch up on all the sleep you lost throughout the semester. But what's worse than finals week is the last week of classes, when all the due dates you've put off can no longer be put off anymore.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments