Education of Women in the early 1900’s M-Cash & T-Mula Slice

History The level and manner of women’s education in America was largely dependent on race, class, and location. Usually the purpose of women’s education in the early 1900’s was to become skilled at household duties and chores in order to find a suitable husband. A woman who was highly educated in academics was thought to be unusual, or “unsexed” and not sought after.

Education in America at first was based on European traditions. In Europe, wealthy girls might be taught by a governess or sent to a convent school to learn the basics of reading and writing. Middle class families could generally only afford to educate their sons and in lower class families neither the boys nor the girls were educated.

As we read in our article by Daniel Defoe, women were raised to work in the house. Women were also considered inferior to men, so they weren't given options to learn or have another job. Defoe goes on to say “I have often thought of it as one of the most barbarous customs in the world, considering us as a civilized and a Christian country, that we would deny the advantages of learning to women.” He points out that the only difference between men and women at the time was education, and most women wanted to do more with their lives.

Defoe goes on to say in the article that women, in his opinion, have more wit than men. He believed that God created them to do more, and not just to be maids and housewives. Some women in that time wanted to go to school rather than get married.

Dofoe believed that women should be taught all the graces of speech, and taught how to read (especially history). Also that women are sensible and retentive so they can be taught easier at a young age.

In the 1930’s, more women started going to school. There was also a spike at the college level as more women pursued careers. Teaching and nursing became the two top fields of study for women. Today in America, women are free to learn and hold important jobs.