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An exploratory investigation of women's studies in selected institutions of higher education with emphasis upon the historical background of the status of women and the special needs of women in ...

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An exploratory investigation of women's studies in selected institutions of higher education with emphasis upon the historical background of the status of women and the special needs of women in ...

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Content AN EXPLORATORY INVESTIGATION- OF WOMEN»S STUDIES IN SELECTED
INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION WITH EMPHASIS UPON THE
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE STATUS OF WOMEN AND THE
SPECIAL NEEDS OF WOMEN IN HIGHER EDUCATION
by
Sibyl Marjoria Strain
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(Education)
February 1977
Copyright Sibyl Marjoria Strain * 1977
UMI Number: DP24249
All rights reserved
INFORMATION TO ALL USERS
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a note will indicate the deletion.
Dissertation Publishing
UMI DP24249
Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author.
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UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
T H E G R A D U A T E S C H O O L
U N IV E R S IT Y P A R K
LO S A N G E L E S . C A L IF O R N IA 9 0 0 0 7
This dissertation, written by
Sibyl Marjoria Strain
under the direction of h&V.... Dissertation Com
mittee, and approved by all its members, has
been presented to and accepted by The Graduate
School, in partial fulfillment of requirements of
the degree of
Pb.IX
t- cl
D O C T O R O F P H I L O S O P H Y
Dean
DISSERTATION COMMITTEE
Chairman
FOREWORD
If I were born a woman, I would rise in rebellion
against any pretense on the part of man that woman
is born to be his plaything. I have mentally become
a woman in order to steal into her heart. I could
not steal into my wife’s heart until I decided to
treat her differently than I used to do, and so I
restored to her all her rights by dispossessing my
self of all my so-called rights as her husband.
I realized that the wife is not the husband’s bond
slave, but his companion and his helpmate, and an
equal partner in all his joys and sorrows--as free
as the husband to choose her own path.
Mahatama Gandhi, 1968
The conviction has long been growing in my mind that
no culture or civilization can be better than its
women. In numerous subtle ways they set the tone of
the life of man. In our history they have often been
badly treated; particularly their great potential has
been thwarted or neglected so that they have seldom
either as individuals or as a group been what they were
capable of being. In spite of this thwarting and
neglect, still I suspect that women have been the key
to man’s forward movement.
Earl V. Pullias, 1970
ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Deep appreciation is expressed to many individuals
for helping to make this work possible. Foremost is the
doctoral committee,, Dr. Earl V. Pullias, Dr. Doyce B. Nunis,
Jr., and Dr. Grayce A. Ransom. Special gratitude is due to
Dr. Pullias, teacher., friend,, and chairman. Recognition is
also given to Dr. Charles M. Brown, Dr. William Georgiades,
and Dr. Myron S. Olson for their help on the enlarged com
mittee.
By extending the time for the completion of this
work several times, the School of Education and the Graduate
School have shown understanding of the problems of women
students, one of the concerns of this study.
Acknowledgment is gratefully given to the distin
guished women; instructors and instructor-directors of
Women's Studies programs and students in these programs for
answering the questionnaires on education for women; and to
the professional associations for literature on their work
on the status of women.
Anong others who gave encouragement and valuable
suggestions are Mrs. Earl V. Pullias„ my daughter Laura M.
Strain, and my colleagues, James R. Heusdens and Dr. Bernd
Weiss. Thanks are expressed to Maxine and Jean Pennington
for the skill with which they handled the manuscript.
iii
CONTENTS
Page
FOREWORD......................................... ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................. iii
List OF TABLES................................... vi
Chapter
I. THE PROBLEM AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE.......... 1
Background of the Problem
Purpose of the Study
Statement of Procedure
Significance of the Study
Basic Assumptions
Delimitations of the Study
Definitions of Terms
Organization of the Study
II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE................. 29
Historical Perspective
Primitive Woman
Woman of Antiquity
Germantic and Celtic Woman
Christian Woman
Colonial Woman and the Emerging
American Woman
Woman and the First Woman1s Movement
Woman in Transition
Woman and the Second Woman's Movement
Summary
III. RESEARCH PROCEDURE ....................... 239
Delineating the Area of the Study
Reviewing the Literature
Developing the Research Instruments
Soliciting Opinions from Jury
of Distinguished Women
Soliciting Opinions from Students.,
Instructors., and Instructor-
Directors of Women's Studies
Collecting Position Papers of
Professional Associations
Treating the Data
iv
Chapter Page
IV. RESULTS AND ANALYSIS......................... 247
Introduction
Findings of the Questionnaire of the
Panel of Distinguished Women:
Purpose B
Findings of the Questionnaire to Instruc
tors,, Instructor-Directors, and
Students: Purpose C
Findings from Statement of Positions and
Actions Taken on the Status of Women
by Representative Professional
Associations: Purpose D
V. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . 38I
Summary
Conclusions
Rec ommendati ons
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................. 4l4
APPENDICES ............................... 441
A. Correspondence and Questionnaire
to Distinguished Women ..................... 443
B. Correspondence, Questionnaire, and
Interview Guide to Instructor-
Directors and Instructors of
Women’s Studies Programs ................... 449
C. Correspondence and Questionnaire
to Students in Women’s Studies ............. 456
D. Participating Colleges and
Universities ............................... 46l
E. Correspondence to and Names of Partici
pating Professional Associations ............ 463
F. Comparison of Academic Rank and Salaries . . . 466
between Men and Women in Institutions of
Higher Education in the United States
Percentage of Doctoral Degrees Awarded
to Women in Major Fields, 1920-1973
Chronology of Federal Executive Orders
v
LIST OF TABLES
Table Page
1. Professional Background of Women of the
Jury According to Current Position ........ 249
2. Professional Background of Women of the
Jury According to Highest
Conferred Degree ......................... 250
3. Professional Background of Women of the
Jury According to Academic Background . . . 250
Response of Jury:
4. Have you experienced discrimination in
terms of being a female?................. 251
5. What type(s) of discrimination have you
experienced? ............................. 253
6. What is the identity of the person(s)
encouraging you?......................... 255
7. What is the identity of person(s) trying
to blunt your aspirations?............... 257
8. What woman role model(s) did you have
when growing up., if any?................. 259
9. Would courses about women have made a
difference in your life?................. 261
10. What steps did you take to be better
prepared for a better position? .......... 262
11. Was the "Zeitgeist" of much importance
in helping you to achieve your current
status and/or position? ................. 264
12. Should Women's Studies be a separate
discipline?............................. 266
13. What are perceived weaknesses in the
program?................................. 268
vi
Table Page
14. What are needs of women as women in
higher education? ....................... 271
15. How may institutions of higher education
help the non-traditional women student?. . . 273
16. Background of Instructors and Instructor-
Directors According to Age, Marital
Status, Children, and Education .......... 273
Response of Instructors and
Instructor-Directors:
17. What is the identity of school-related
persons who encouraged y o u ?............. 275
18. What is the attitude of male students
in your classes?......................... 277
19. Should Women’s Studies be a separate
department?............................. 278
20. What do you perceive as the major strengths
of your program?......................... 279
21. What do you perceive as the major weaknesses
of your program?......................... 280
22. What do you perceive as the major obstacles
of your program?......................... 281
23. What do you perceive as the rationale of
Women’s Studies? .............. ...... 282
24. What weakness, if any, do you perceive
in the concept of W S ? ................... 283
25. How may institutions .of- higher education
help the non-traditional student? ........ 284
Students in Women’s Studies,
School A:
26. According to sex............................ 285
27. According to marital status ................ 285
28. According to age................. 286
vii
Table Page
29. According to being granted financial
aid or work opportunity ............... 287
30. According to need for childcare facilities. . 288
31- According to time elapsed between high
school graduation and entrance
to college............................. 290
32. According to reasons given for
attending college ....................... 291
33- According to the rationale for the
necessity of Women's Studies ........... 292
34. According to whether a male professor
could handle classes as well
as a woman professor................... 294
35* According to their ease in talking with
professors in this program as com
pared with professors in
other departments....................... 295
36. According to organization of program
into educational structure ............. 296
37. According to subject titles and
numbers of courses taken . . ............ 297
3 8. According to course satisfaction .......... 298
39. According to course strengths .............. 299
40. According to course weaknesses ............ 300
41. According to ways to improve program
of Women's Studies.........' .......... 302
Students in Women's Studies.,
School B:
42. According to sex . ...................... 303
43. According to marital status ................ 304
44. According to a g e .......................... 305
viii
Table Page
45. According to being granted financial
aid or work opportunity.................... 306
46. According-to need for childcare facilities. . 307
47. According to time elapsed between high
school graduation and entrance
to college............................. 308
48. According to reasons given for
attending college ....................... 309
4 9. According to the rationale for the
necessity of Women's Studies ............ 311
50. According to whether a male professor
could handle classes as well
as a woman professor................... 312
51. According to their ease in talking with
professors in this program as com
pared with professors in
other departments....................... 313
5 2. According to organization of program
into educational structure ............. 315
53- According to subject titles and
numbers of courses taken ............... 316
54. According to course satisfaction .......... 317
55. According to course strengths .............. 318
5 6. According to course weaknesses ............ 320
57. According to ways to improve program
of Women's Studies........... 322
Students in Women's Studies:
School C:
5 8. According to s e x .......................... 323
59• According to marital status ................ 323
60. According to a g e .......................... 324
ix
Table Page
61. According to being granted financial
aid or work opportunity................. 325
62. According to need for childcare facilities. . 325
6 3. According to time elapsed between high
school graduation and entrance
to college............................. 326
64. According to reasons given for
attending college ....................... 327
6 5. According to the rationale for the
necessity of Women's Studies ............ 327
66. According to whether a male professor
could handle classes as well
as a woman professor................... 329
6 7. According to their ease in talking with
professors in this program as com
pared with professors in
other departments....................... 330
68. According to organization of program
into educational structure .............. 331
6 9. According to subject titles and
numbers of courses taken ............... 332
70. According to course satisfaction........... 333
71. According to course strengths .............. 334
7 2. According to course weaknesses ............ 335
73. According to ways to improve program
of Women's Studies..................... 336
Students in Women's Studies:
School D:
74. According to s e x .......................... 337
75. According to marital status ................ 337
7 6. According to a g e .......................... 338
x
Table Page
77. According to being granted financial
aid or work opportunity................. 339
7 8. According to need for childcare facilities. . 340
79. According to time elapsed between high
school graduation and entrance
to college............................. 3^-1
80. According to reasons given for
attending college....................... 3^-2
81. According to the rationale for the
necessity of Women's Studies............ 3^-3
8 2. According to whether a male professor
could handle classes as well
as a woman professor................... 344
8 3. According to their ease in talking with
professors in this program as com
pared with professors in
other departments....................... 3^-6
84. According to organization of program
into educational structure .............. 347
8 5. According to subject titles and
numbers of courses taken............... 3^-8
8 6. According to course satisfaction.......... 3^-9
8 7. According to course strengths .............. 3^9
8 8. According to course weaknesses ............ 351
8 9. According to ways to improve program
of Women's Studies ............ ..... 352
Students in Women's Studies:
School E:
90. According to s e x ................. 353
91. According to marital status............... 35^-
92. According to a g e ......................... 354
xi
Table Page
93. According to being granted financial
aid or work opportunity................. 355
94. According to need for childcare facilities. . 356
95* According to time elapsed between high
school graduation and entrance
to college............................. 357
9 6. According to reasons given for
attending college ....................... 358
97- According to the rationale for the
necessity of Women's Studies ............ 359
9 8. According to whether a male professor
could handle classes as well
as a woman professor................... 361
9 9. According to their ease in talking with
professors in. this program as com
pared with professors in
other departments....................... 362
100. According to organization of program
into educational structure .............. 363
101. According to subject titles and
numbers of courses taken ................ 364
102. According to course satisfaction .......... 365
103. According to course strengths .............. 366
104. According to course weaknesses ............ 367
105. According to ways to improve program
of Women's Studies..................... 368
xii
CHAPTER I
THE PROBLEM AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE
Background of the Problem
In Main Currents in American Thought, Vernon Par-
rington wrote:
5
The humanitarian idealism of the Declaration
[of Independence] has always echoed as a battle
cry in the hearts of those who dream of an America
dedicated to democratic ends. It1 cannot be long
ignored or repudiated, for sooner or later it
returns to plague the council of practical politics.
It is constantly breaking out in fresh revolts. . . .
Without its freshening influence our political his
tory would have been more sordid and materialistic.
(1927, v. 3, p. 285)
At various times this nation has been rent with
stress or blood between those with property and those with
out , between the dominant ethnic group and the incoming
immigrant, by immigrant being pitted against immigrant and,
section against section--each striving to gain or hold to
the promises of the Declaration and the Constitution. But
within the overarching ideals under which this nation was
conceived, however, differences have become malleable and
have added strength to the inherent fiber of the social
contract.
There is one group, ever in an inferior position,
which has not resorted to the overt violence of some other
1
2
groups in order to gain equality. That group is woman.
Most women, accepting the heritage of the ages, have not
seen themselves as lesser beings, or they have accepted
the position by developing compensating defense mechanisms.
Relatively speaking, only a few have struggled against
their . status. Partly because of their own efforts and with
the help of sympathetic men, and partly as a result of his
torical accident, women have now gained, now lost, in their
struggle to obtain educational, civil, and social rights.
But as man, the dominant group, has climbed higher on the
rung of humanity, so has woman.
According to Kagan, and Haverman (1976), there are
five million people in the United States who are gifted--
2.28 percent of the population. At the top are those who
may be called ' ’ geniuses" with IQs that may range to 190.
The landmark study on giftedness was made by the late Lewis
M. Terman of Stanford University during the 1920s. Terman
(1925) assumed that boys and girls have equal intelligence
and tried to choose his test items accordingly. He found
more gifted boys in the elementary school than girls, and
the trend followed into high school. There were 857 boys
and 671 girls in the study. In a follow-up study 25 years
later, Terman and Oden (1947) found 47 men and 34 women
with IQs of 170 or above. The scores of the men ran from
170 to 194 and those of the women from 170 to 200.
3
Both Witty and Strang (Henry, 1958) questioned that
hoys are more gifted than girls and said that tests are
inconclusive, citing such elements as inadequacy of tests
and non-intellectual factors which affect scores. Girls
are taught to be submissive and not to compete; intellec
tual striving is a form of competition. Witty wrote that
several studies raise grave doubts about the validity of
tests that place boys higher than girls.
Horner (1969) said that when McClelland first began
studies on the motivation for achievement, he included
women. But because the initial findings were conflicting,
he abandoned that part of the study and concentrated on
men, where the findings fell into a neat pattern. After
considering some 15 cultures, McClelland (1953) concluded
that imagination and determination are not the province of
a single culture or race. Prima facie evidence bears out
1
such findings whether in culture, race, or sex, however.
Maslow (1954) looked at both women and men with more sensi
tivity than many of his contemporaries--or even psycholo
gists today. He said, "Men with high self-esteem in our
society are allowed to express this syndrome much more
overtly and in many more ways than are allowed to women
with high self-esteem" (pp. 44-45).
In countries where education is at a premium or the
need so crucial that every person contribute whatever
4
possible to the welfare of society., women have been promi
nent in all levels of government* industry* and the profes
sions. Examples are Sirimavo Bandaraneike* Indira Gandhi*
and Golda Meir* prime ministers or a former prime minister*
and Aggie Brooks* Secretary of State* Liberia* and former
president of the United Nations General Assembly. Perhaps
it is true that Indira Gandhi reached her position because
she was her father’s daughter* and it is true that she has
not used her position wisely* but in a land where women are
not valued in so many of its cultures* her rise to power
is still remarkable.
In the Soviet Union* 75 percent of the physicians
are women* and women are captains of ocean liners and pilots
of commercial planes. Nevertheless* there are few women
in the Supreme Soviet* and the average physicians do not
receive as much salary as factory workers. The point is*
however* that if women of the Soviet Union have the intel
ligence* so do women of other cultures* including our own.
According to Wortis and Rabinowitz (1972* pp. 13-
l4)* in 1971 only 6 percent of the doctors in the United
States were women (the same percent as was in Spain).
Other statistics showed that 2 percent of American dentists
were women* 3.5 percent of the lawyers were women* and only
1 percent of the engineers were women. In the same vein*
Shatto (1975) made further comparisons. In Sweden 24 per
cent of the lawyers are women* and in Denmark 72 percent
5
of the dentists are women. Women constitute 16 percent of
the physicians in Great Britain* 13 percent in Prance, 24
percent in Germany* and 24 percent in-. Israel. In 1972
Fortune .surveyed 1,220 large American corporations and
found that men outnumbered women 600 to 1 in management
("Women: Tyros and Tokens., " 1974). , r
Neither the United States nor any-other nation can
afford not to develop.and utilize talents; of' all of its-
citizens* including . women.;. The problems of’ the world are
too grave in every field. And what of. the lost songs and
the flowers "born to blush unseen"? As one of the ..world’s
great powers, and a nation founded on ideals of democracy.’
and individual rights* it Is especially incumbent . . . o n , this ; .
country to provide leadership in facing challenges and- . ■
providing opportunities. Furthermore*, the two hundredth ■
anniversary of the Declaration of Independence should.cause
every citizen to make a commitment to try to- effect the
promises of that document-.
Education is the sine qua non of a democracy and
the chief route by which citizens gain social' benefits..
For American women* however* education and rights of free
people have not been granted fully under the promises'of
our institutions. Overt prejudice about woman's inferiority
no longer prevails* but many barriers;- have been, placed
before women within academia and out. The rationale of;
6
education is that it frees one from superstition, enables
one to use the intellect, is a liberator. Ironically, it
is the hypocrisy of academia that has aroused the deepest
anger and frustration among women.
Many walls have cracked and tumbled during the
struggles and upheavals of social groups since World War II.
more especially during the period surrounding the Vietnam
conflict. Most violent was the anger of black people,
resulting in vast changes in all of our social institutions.
But white people, including women, were part of that move
ment. In a keynote speech at the first higher education
conference (Achieving Equity in Higher Education) sponsored
by the National Education Association in San Francisco in
October 1975* Herbert Hill, labor relations counsel for
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People, said that in almost every kind of discrimination
and in every bill or law or court decision on discrimina
tion which affects black people, one could substitute the
word "woman.”
But such was not entirely so until 1970, when
Bernice Sandler came across Executive Order 11246, amended
by Executive Order 11375.* signed in 1968 by President John
son. This order opened the door to an in-depth investiga
tion of ways that institutions of higher education have
discriminated against women. And once the evidence was out,
the way was clear for the federal government to begin to
consider the broad implications and the need for righting
long-standing wrongs.
But society’s response always lags behind legal
decisions. In order to come to grip with the problems,
Sandler (1972) said that both men and women are going to
have to learn to look at themselves and each other in a
different way. Millenia of experiences have posited that
the relationship should be father-daughter, husband-wife,
brother-sister, lover-beloved, boss-secretary.
In addition to tackling stereotypes all along the
%
way, special efforts must be made in higher education to
get at the roots of the myths. A central purpose of higher
education is to look at every issue with as unbiased a
scrutiny as is possible. The question of the etiology of
male-female relationships demands that the university dis
continue evading this responsibility, discontinue passing
on half-truths. It is more than a question of affirmative
action in striking down barriers such as quotas in admis
sions, discrimination in financial aid, low visibility of
women faculty and staff, and no visibility of women in
decision-making positions. It is a.question of reevaluat
ing the content of the curriculum and the assumptions on
which it is based. This is of crucial importance for both
men and women. According to Kanowitz (1969)>
8
When women will have achieved true and complete
legal and social equality with men* the problem of
men or women knowing who or what they are is likely
to disappear. For at that time, both men and women
will be able to recognize themselves for what they
have always been--people. (p. 203)
Many studies have been made of books and reading
lists that indicate ways schools and publishers reinforce
male-female stereotypes from preschool to university level
and relating to almost every subject and discipline (0fHara,
1962; Sarrio, Jacklin, & Tittle,, 1975; Slocum & Boles,
1969; U'Ren, 1971; Zimet, 1972). In 1972 a group of women
in Princeton, New Jersey called "Women on Words and Images"
(WOWl) studied 134 elementary textbooks from 14 publishers
and found that stories about boys outnumbered those about
girls four to one. Men were shown in 147 occupations mak
ing decisions and solving problems; women were depicted in
26 occupations, most of them extensions of home responsibil
ities. In addition, the texts of stories were liberally
sprinkled with such gender-biased expressions as "Look at
her, Mother. She is just a girl. She gives up." "She!s
almost as good as a real boy." "A woman driving her car
does not stop at the corner. She runs into a truck" (Dick
and Jane as Victims: Sex Stereotypes in Children's Readers).
Weitzman and Rizzo (1974) did a comprehensive study
of textbooks used in the average classrooms in the United
States in grades one through six for the previous five
years. An expert panel of educators was paid to determine
9
the books used, in mathematics* reading* science* social
studies* and spelling. The major focus had to do with
illustrations. Every person in each illustration was cate
gorized along 50 dimensions including race* sex,, and age.
With each successive year* the number of illustrations
depicting adults -rose and also more whites and fewer
blacks and other ethnic groups. Since about 53 percent of
the population is female* it might be expected that illus
trations would be about half of each sex. Not so. Of the
total 8*000 illustrations* more than 5^500 were of males.
Minority females were doubly disadvantaged. In terms of
occupations* men were shown in 150 with a wide choice of
roles. Almost all of the women were housewives* and the
housewife’s role was depicted so that everything ran
according to the television advertisements. Working women
were shown as teachers* nurses* librarians* and sales
clerks .
In her composition classes at Goucher* Howe
(Trecker* 1971) consistently found that female students
considered women writers (and -hence themselves as women)
inferior to male writers until they were encouraged to
express themselves as women and to challenge some of the
assumptions society has held about women. DeCrow (1972)*
former textbook editor* noted that about 15 major companies
control 90 percent of the textbook market. "They watch
10
each other closely and produce very similar products. And
they have the image of women . . . . . . as 'observer* of men's
activities in every book. This means that every girl 'must'
read about herself as passive citizen for twelve years--
by law” (p. 44).
Trecker (1971) also asked whether the removal of
discrimination in the structure of higher education will
end woman's inferior position* or must the curriculum
itself be reconstituted. For example* why have male psy
chologists and psychiatrists* especially those with Freu
dian biases* continued to define woman? What have women
psychologists such as Horney* De Beauvoir* and Weinstein
to say about women? Janeway (1971) pointed out that peo
ple's sexual attitudes are closer to superstition than to
truth* and it is difficult to modify new truths to fit old
patterns. Scully and Bart (1973) reviewed 27 gynecology
books from pre-Kinsey to post-Masters and Johnson. At
least half of the texts stated that the male sex drive is
stronger than the female's* most women are frigid* and the
vaginal .orgasm is the "mature response" (p. 283).
Similar questions may be asked about other disci
plines. Beard (1946/1962* pp. 64-85) charged that women
have been neglected by historians. The thrust of her book
is that women have always been more active than the record
indicates. She documents her thesis with leading names
11
such as Commanger* Nevins* Burgess* and Basset. In a
volume that he wrote in a series on American history* John
Spencer Basset mentioned one woman only--Martha Washington
at a reception. Completely ignored were Abigail Adams and
Mercy Warren* two distinguished women of the day. Mercy
Warren wrote a recognized history of the Revolution. Bas
set had previously taught history for 25 years at Smith
College.
In his well-known book* The Age of Reform* Richard
Hofstadter (1955) "discusses" the suffrage movement In
exactly eleven words--and seemingly as an afterthought.
After discussing various reforms* he wrote* "To attend to
the terms in which the various reforms intended to promote
democracy were debated--and to these one should add the
proposal for women's suffrage--one might think that the
issue was utopia versus apocalypse" (p. 265).
According to Degler (1973)^ David Potter challenged
Turner's thesis on the meaning of the frontier in American
history. It was Potter's opinion that men lost their inde
pendence when the city replaced the frontier as home but
that women gained independence and a wider choice of life
styles.
Carroll (1972) pointed out that# when Beard’s Women
as Porce in. History was published in 19^6* "Professional
historians met the book with attitudes ranging from marked
12
caution to outright hostility., and within a decade they had
seemingly consigned it to oblivion" (p. 125). Carroll also
said that when Mary Beard died,, in an obituary the American
Historical Review first identified her as Charles A. Beard's
wife., then in terms of works she had co-authored with him.,
and finally by a few books that came "from her own pen."
In reviewing the above book., R. A. Brown., in the Christian
Science Monitor (April I J j 1946), wrote that henceforth no
"sound historian" in the future would ignore the role of
woman. Carroll said., however, that 20 years later, Univer
sity of Chicago historian William H. McNeill published his
A World History and included the name of only one woman,
Catherine the Great, and there was not even a general index
entry for "women."
C. Vann Woodward (1955) made an analogy between the
Commissar (in Orwell's 1984) and historians. The Commissar
said to Winston Smith, whose job it was to keep updating
the records to conform with the party line, "Who controls
the past controls the future; who controls the present con
trols the past" (p. 10). Both historiography and hagiog
raphy are used by historians. When we cut our historical
roots with England, we invented myths and heroes and
learned to reinterpret changes in terms of our own history.
But in the case of women, historians and society disregarded
the flesh-and-blood American woman and her counterpart in
13
England./ wrapping them in the shroud, of what they perceived
as historical woman.
In the opinion of Roy Wilkins (197^0* "The idea of
equality of the sexes . . . will amount to little except
outward show-off incidents unless a way can he found to
get at the oft-hidden and oft-overlooked sex bias in text
books" (p. 3).
It is Learner’s view (Landy* 1972) that woman’s his
torical place is contradictory to the idea of equality. In
the first place., there has not been equality of opportunity
for the female to go on to higher education. But what is
more important is that by the time she does reach college*
she carries with her a heritage of injury to her self
esteem and is confused by the conflicting demands that
society and she herself make on her. This lack of self
esteem affects both choice of subjects and intellectual
performance. The young woman long before gave up thoughts
of theoretical work* law* engineering* and biochemistry.
There were few role models in these areas as she was grow
ing up and virtually none at the university where she is
now.
Raushenbush (1971) maintained that women's colleges
came from the "rib of men’s colleges" and that the business
of education for women for the most part is still unfin
ished. More than 125 years ago Margaret Puller saw the
14
Irony In the fact that young men, hut recently graduated
from college,, obtained positions in women’s colleges and
taught just what the men themselves had previously learned.
The first wave of feminists were deeply committed
to education for change.,. Mary Lyon had said that she
would not be satisfied until she had sent 200 teachers
into the world. Mount Holyoke was a secondary school dur
ing the first years. Martha Carey had vowed to make Bryn
Mawr as good as Harvard. But some place along the line.,
the feminine philosophy lost its direction and drive.
Gradually women’s colleges lost their feminine content,,
and their direction fell under masculine leadership. In
1959 Newcomer reported that most of the women's colleges
and their boards of regents were in the hands of men. In
1975; women presidents were at 71 women's colleges^ includ
ing Goucher* founded in 1885. » and Smith* founded in 1871*
neither of which had ever had a woman before.
It was in answer to the unfinished business and to
give women a different view of themselves that women began.
to press for courses about women and for women. In 1961
Radcliffe organized The Radcliffe Institute for Independent
Study for mature women who wanted to pursue creative or
scholarly work on a part-time basis without having to
abandon home responsibilities and without being pressed
for funds. Sarah Lawrence initiated a program of studies
15
specifically designed for the individual woman. The Uni
versity of Minnesota also set up a program of continuing
education for women. A number of women's colleges opened
their doors to men, but others backed away because they
feared the eroding position of women in a coeducational
institution. Applications and enrollments fell at most
coeducational colleges for 1975-1976., but there was a sharp
increase in both categories in women's colleges (nThe Women
Come Back,," p. 33)*
In 1969 there were perhaps 100 courses about women
in 20 colleges or universities. By 1972, over 1,000
courses were being offered in 70 institutions with five of
these conferring a master's degree. It is virtually impos
sible to keep track of the growth of Women's Studies. The
program may consist of courses, departments, or multidisci
plinary arrangements. Women also push for the modification
of existing disciplines to include information about women.
While this phenomenal interest in a new education
for women was taking place, in general the ferment made not
a ripple in the masculine educational power structure.
Either the men put what was happening out of mind or else
they must have assumed that it would soon pass as had pre
vious student demonstrations and the violent demand for
Black Studies. On the other hand, women working for
Women's Studies were not the disruptive force as were black
students.
16
The literature of the late 1960s and early 1970s
shows a growing awareness of the need for curricular
changes in terms of women--their past contributions* the
restrictions against them* and their future education as
humans rather than as female. Most articles (Landy* 1971;
Howe* 1971; Trecker* 1971) stressed the need for Women's
Studies* giving examples of the "hidden agenda" that condi
tions both boys and girls. They also listed types of
courses* e.g.* "Images of Women in Literature." In addi
tion in some instances* women engaged in research about
women in old newspapers and public records. Popular maga
zines began to include articles about Women's Studies.
There was nothing printed about what happened in classes
per se except such mimeographed material that came from
women’s centers and was passed through the "sisterhood."
Prom such* developed publications such as Women's Studies
Newsletter* published quarterly by The Feminist Press. It
is a respectable publication.
The first compilation of courses was published in
1970 by the Modern Language Association's "Commission on
the Status of Women." The first conference on changing the
curriculum to include women was held by Alverno College*
Milwaukee* in the fall of 1971. It was for their own
faculty to work on revision of curriculum and course con
tent. In 197^- the West Coast Women's Studies Conference
17
was held at California State University,, Sacramento. Vari
ous conferences and professional association meetings
include panels on Women's Studies.
In May 197^-j Uru Anderson published an article on
De Anza Community College's reentry program (California).
In the same year Spaulding wrote a dissertation on Women's
Studies at California Community Colleges. Her purpose was
to look at programs and attempt to develop a viable cur
riculum. As Spaulding noted., California community colleges
have lagged behind four-year institutions. Generally
speaking,, the West has not been as active as the East until
recently. But San Diego State University began its program
in 1970. Both Diablo and Foothill, California community
colleges, also began to offer courses several years ago.
There has been no published research on the percep
tions of students in Women's Studies concerning the
strengths and weaknesses of the programs, the possible dif
ferences such studies have made in their education, and
their recommendations about the future of the programs.
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study was the following:
A. To survey the status of women from early time
to the present with special reference to their achieve
ments and educational opportunities.
B. To secure the opinion of a panel of distin-
18
guished women as to the current status of women and the
need for Womenfs Studies.
C. To examine principal features of five typical
Women's Studies programs in California as reflected in the
attitudes of faculty and students.
D. To examine positions taken on the status of
women by representative professional organizations in the
United States.
E. To draw conclusions as to needs and values of
Women's Studies programs in light of the above purposes.
These major purposes can be stated for research
purposes in the following questions:
A. From a Review of the Literature--
1. What are the origin.and background of
the current practices and attitudes
toward women?
2. What have been some of the major achieve
ments of women as revealed in a study of
the literature?
3. What are the major changes that have
occurred in the general status of women
in history?
B. From the Perceptions of a Panel of Distin
guished Women--
4. What attitudes toward women have these
________________women experienced as individnalSL?__________
19
5. What do these women believe are the prin
cipal needs of women in higher education?
6. Do these women believe that there is a need
for Women’s Studies in higher education?
7. What status should Women’s Studies have in
the academic structure?
8. Would courses about women have made any
noticeable difference in the lives of
these women?
9. Did these women have role models when
growing up?
C. Prom Perceptions of Faculty and Students--
10. What were the chief influences that stimu
lated the development of Women’s Studies
programs in the institutions studied?
1 1. Are Women’s Studies an acceptable academic
discipline?
12. What students should be eligible and
encouraged to take these courses?
13. Who should teach these courses?
14. What are the principal strengths of
these programs?
15. What are the principal weaknesses of
these programs?
20
D. From Positions and Actions of Representative
Professional Organizations--
16. What stands have been taken in respect
to the status of women in position papers
and other official documents?
17. What actions have resulted from these
positions?
18. Do these organizations consider Women’s
Studies desirable?
E. From the Study--
19. What conclusions and recommendations do
answers to the above questions suggest?
Statement of Procedure
In order to achieve the purposes of the investiga
tion., the following research procedures were used:
A. A review was made of the history of male-female
relationships from prehistory to the present.
B. The dynamics of the current Women's Movement
were analyzed, and the reasons for the growth of Women's
Studies were explored.
C. A comparison was made between the movement for
Black Studies and that of Woman's Studies.
D. A group of distinguished women of different
professional fields answered a questionnaire about their
background as women and their perceptions of the needs of
women in higher education._________________________________
21
E. Institutions for study were chosen through pro
fessional contacts in California Women in Higher Education
(CWHE). Visits were made to two campuses* and either the
directors of the programs or representative instructors
were talked to vis-a-vis or via telephone. Questionnaires
were given to students* instructors* and instructor-
directors. Before any questionnaire was sent into the
field* a pilot study was made and questionnaires revised
accordingly.
E. Representative professional organizations were
contacted about their position on the status of women and/
or actions they had taken on this subject.
Significance of the Study
Education is one of the cherished institutions of
this country and a major channel for modifying the culture.
Traditionally* educational institutions have expanded to
meet the needs of society and of the individual. Today
more than ever there is a just concern for the pluralistic
nature of our culture. Women are receiving recognition
in their efforts to convince institutions of their obliga
tions to be responsive to them as a group. Every level of
education has been guilty of enforcing stereotypes about
women* but it is higher education that sets’the pace.
A major need in higher education is to reconstruct
the curriculum in such ways that women and men will become
22
free from cultural stereotypes so that they may grow toward
self-actualization. Women’s Studies developed from a
welling-up of a sense of the missing links in women's edu
cation. Hopefully., information collected and analyzed in
this study will provide insights for those institutions
planning programs, for those already concerned, and for
those who have not yet seen a need to revitalize the cur
riculum.
Basic Assumptions
For the purpose of this study, it was assumed that:
1. The research design was appropriate.
2. History would give pertinent insights on the
status of women that would help to clarify their present
position.
3. There was a need and a demand for a program of
Women’s Studies at the institutions chosen.
4. Opinions of distinguished women who had reached
a high professional level were an appropriate sounding
board against which to measure perceptions of students and
faculty on the need for Women's Studies.
5. Information obtained by questionnaires, visits,
and interviews was adequate to gauge whether the programs
are fulfilling the purposes for which they were instituted.
6. Position papers or actions of professional ■
organizations reflect possible changes in society's percep-
23
tions of the status of women.
Delimitations-of the Study
The delimitations of this study consisted of the
following:
1. Only a minute portion of historical records
could he examined.
2. An analysis of the program of Women’s Studies
was considered at only five institutions of higher educa
tion in California.
3. These institutions were two public state uni
versities., one private* church-affiliated university* and
two public community colleges. All institutions were coed
ucational .
4. Traditional women’s courses such as clothing*
nutrition* and interior design were not considered as
Woman’s Studies.
5. Questionnaires* interviews* and visits may not
have been adequate for examining the programs.
6. Questionnaires returned may not have been an
adequate sample for examining the programs.
7. Opinions of the panel of distinguished women
may not have been representative of such women at large.
8. The range of professional organizations may
have been too narrow to reflect cultural trends.
24
Definitions of Terms
Affirmative action. Development and implementation
of a systematic plan to eliminate discrimination in employ
ment based on sex,, race., or religion.
Anti-feminist. Man or woman opposing full and
equal rights for women such as the rights held by men.
Consciousness-raising (CR). A term used to
describe the process by which men and women reconceptualize
their relationship to each other and their roles in society.
A process by which a person acquires a higher sensitivity
to selfhood. It involves an understanding of how the
institutions of the culture have stereotyped men and women.
Criterion-criteria. A standard or standards by
which judgment may be made for purpose of evaluation.
Equal rights. Full social, political, and educa
tional rights, perquisites of a 'free people.
Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The proposed 27th
amendment to the Constitution of the United States granting
full rights to women such as men have under the Constitu
tion.
Feminism. An older term used to describe the first
Women's Rights Movement. The term is also used today and
25
indicates a conscious searching for full equality and
human rights.
Feminist. A person of either gender who does not
equate human rights with sexist rights and who believes
that intelligence,, creativity, integrity, and other human
istic characteristics are not peculiar to either sex to
the exclusion of the other, nor are they found to a lesser
degree according to the genre.
Gender bias. A term indicating assumptions or
judgments about a person based on gender. A connotation
of inferiority based on gender. In this study, the term
generally connotes inferiority of females. (See Sexism.)
Goal. A numerical target that an employer attempts
to achieve to counteract past discriminatory practices.
Institution. A sociological term referring to pat
terned ways of behavior. An organization having a social,
educational, or religious purpose. Context will indicate
meaning.
Interdisciplinary. A term referring to a course or
courses not based around a distinct discipline such as
history or psychology but Is a generalized area such as
the Behavioral Sciences.
26
Multidisciplinary. In this study., the term is
interchangeable with "Interdisciplinary."
Quota. The maximum number or proportion of persons
who may be admitted, as to a nation, group, or institution
(The American Heritage Dictionary).
Sexism. Conduct generally prejudicial to women at
the current time but may also be prejudicial to men. (See
Gender Bias.)
Sexist. A person or either gender who believes in
the denial of civil, educational, and human rights to the
other sex. At the current time, usually refers to men.
Woman ' s Movement-Women ' s Movement. A "co-optable"
network of communications among women and men intent on
helping women and men to gain equal citizenship in the
broad context. More often the terms have referred to the
activities and needs of women than men. (Definition para
phrased from Freeman, 1973.)
Women’s Lib-Women's Liberation. A term often used
synonymously with the "Women's Movement" but has a more
radical connotation.
Woman Libber. A term often used in criticism or
condemnation of a woman considered as more extreme in the
Woman’s Movement; also a stereotyped term referring to any
27
woman in the movement. The personal term has a more radi
cal connotation than "Women’s Liberation."
Women’s Studies. The systematic analysis of
women's role in history and culture.
Organization of the Study
Chapter I introduces the problem under considera
tion in this study. The background of the problem is dis
cussed briefly* followed by the purpose of the study* the
procedures used* the significance of the problem* basic
assumptions, delimitations of the study* and key terms.
Chapter II reviews research relevant to the study*
which has its roots in prehistory. The problem is consid
ered from the etiology of the relationships between male
and female and the subsequent crystalizing of these rela
tionships by taboos* social convention* and laws. It also
considers efforts by many women and some men to break down
these restrictions.
Chapter III contains explanations about the sources
of data collected* the development of the questionnaires
and interview guide* and the letters to instructors*
instructor-directors of Women's Studies programs* distin
guished women* and executive secretaries of representative
professional associations.
Chapter IV includes the findings based on the
various data gathered through the research.
28
Chapter V gives the summary and conclusions based
on the findings and makes recommendations resulting from
this study.
The Appendices contain copies of the letter and
questionnaire to distinguished women., the letter and ques
tionnaire to instructors and instructor-directors of Women’ s
Studies programs at the selected colleges., the letter and
questionnaire to students in Women’s Studies at the same
institutions* and a list of these participating institu
tions. There is also a copy of the letter to the executive
secretaries of representative professional associations and
a list of the associations responding.
In addition there are included tables of academic
rank and salary scales of men and women in the various
kinds of institutions of higher education and a table giv
ing percentages of doctoral degrees awarded to women in
major fields* 1920-1973* Finally* there Is a chronological
list of Presidential Executive Orders having to do with
discrimination in employment and a list of major civil
rights acts in chronological order.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OP THE LITERATURE
Historical Perspective
Primitive Woman
The fundamental question about the differences
between the sexes has its roots in the mists of the race's
beginnings. The meanings of those early experiences are
hidden in prehistory, now surfacing, now disappearing in
the convoluted folds of mythology. It is from myths and
the study of the primitive in people past and present that
we gain insight into the human race in its infancy.
According to Campbell (1968, pp. 4-5)* mythology
has four functions: to reconcile waking consciousness to
the mystery of the universe, to give an interpretative
total image, to enforce a moral order, and most important,
to foster a climate so that the individual grows in ful
fillment in himself and his milieu. Since society requires
that the individual be conditioned to- his locale and group,
nature is abandoned, and authority enters into the moral
and sociological sphere. This is especially true in such
areas as circumcision, subincision, suttee, and taboos
about menses and childbirth. If there is agreement in the
29
30
myth., the social order is in harmony., and authority is not
coercive. But widespread questioning causes the structure
to crumble, and coercion rages in. proportion.
Ancient myths are permeated with concepts of crea
tion, and looming large is the Mother Goddess. The male
looked with awe at the female because he did not know his
role in creation. Rites of circumcision and subincision
on boys which coincide with the onslaught of menses in
girls, and the maternal posturing of men when their wives
go into labor have been documented by Mead (1935/1963),
Malinowski (1927* 1962). Some anthropologists believe that
these rites have their roots in a desire to have the power
of woman. The woman held the secret to the continuation of
man and the tribe, and she could reduce man's sexual ten
sion.
Karen Horney (1967) enlarged on this concept:
It was this life-creating power of women, an ele
mental force, that filled man with admiration. And
that is exactly the point where the problems arise.
For it is contrary to human nature to sustain appreci
ation without resentment toward capabilities that one
does not possess. Thus, a man's minute share in creat
ing new life becomes, for him, an immense incitement
to create something new on his part. . . . State,
religion, art, and science are essentially his crea
tions, and our entire culture bears the masculine
imprint. . . . However, even the greatest achievement,
if born out of sublimation, cannot fully make up for
something for which we are not endowed. Thus there
has remained an obvious residue of general resentment
of men against women. (p. 115)
This elemental dependency of man on woman brought
forth a love-hate relationship that is still evident today:
31
Mother Goddess and Female Demon; Eve the Temptress and Mary
the Madonna; the woman who knows that her place is in the
home and the woman who is trying to take over man's world.
The German Catholic scholar, Hilda Graef, maintains that
women are placed on an inhuman pedestal., either in heaven
or in. hell ("Women at the Altar., " 1970).
Campbell (1968, p. 6 2 6) noted that fertility rites
played a greater role in richer environmental locales than
in more sparse ones. In the latter., tribal or family gods
predominated. Both strains went into Western Culture.,
e.g., the sacred prostitutes of Corinth (courtesans and
salonieres of a later age) and Yahwah, who gave a strict
moral code. Myths about the Mother Goddess began to change
in the Near East around 2,500 B.C. At that time stories of
warrior-gods appeared among the Aryans. Among desert peo
ples there was a trend toward a supreme tribal god whose
essence was not in the world, who was prior to the world,
and the world functioned in some kind of order. Since
woman was a part of nature, and "anatomy is destiny," she
could not participate in the orderly religious rites and
was forced to live according to nature. It was Engel's
view (1892/19^2, p. 49) that the female sex was defeated
when the mother-right was overthrown. Private property was
introduced with woman becoming a slave.
Elizabeth Janeway (1971* p. 10) questioned if
32
sexual differences are so natural and instinctive, why is
it that throughout all history society has had to spend
so much energy in stern education, so many laws to con
strain. John Stuart Mill (1970) asked, "But was there
ever any domination which did not appear natural to those
who possessed it?" (p. 13). Biological differences between
men and women were rationalized, becoming cultural ascrip
tions, according to Ashley Montagu (1953/1973). He wrote,
"When myths grow hoary with age, they are frequently
accepted as truths" (p. 8).
De Beauvoir (1952/1968) gave a different picture
of early woman. She maintained that the woman who gave
birth did not know the joy of creation, that she felt her
self to be the victim of obscure forces which caused the
painful ordeal of childbirth. Childbearing is a "natural"
*
function and cannot be compared with the hunt or battle,
which are deliberately planned actions. The man walked
ahead with his weapons and tools; the woman walked behind
with the child and a few possessions. Weakened by men
struation, childbearing, and nursing, she became further
dependent on the man. On the other hand, man solved prob
lems and found fulfillment; he put his life in jeopardy in
the chase and battle: "For it is not in giving life but in
risking life that man is raised above the animal; that is
why superiority has been accorded in humanity not to the
33
sex that brings forth life but to that which kills"
(p. 64).
Though differing with Horney about the joy of
bringing new life into the world., Beauvoir agrees with her
that man made accomplishments and grew toward self-
actualization because he was not so intimately involved
with the care of children (Supra,, p. 30) „
In his monumental study of myths, customs, and
religions, Frazer (1951* PP* 241-246) conjectured that the
reason so many primitive men refrain from any contact with
women before the chase, the fishing trip, or the battle is
that, on the principle of sympathetic magic, they would
become infected with woman’s weakness and cowardice.
Figes (1970, pp. 9-10) raised the possibility that
man’s generally more powerful physique might have been the
result of the division of labor. Since woman had great
physical demands on her body, she was not able to perform
some of the tasks that man did. Muscles not used did not
develop. Mead found that Balinese men did little heavy
work and were as slight in build as were women, but men
who worked as stevadores under colonial supervision devel
oped the physique usually associated with men (1949* p. 165) .
So many and varied were the tribes and cultures of
the American Indians that no composite picture can be
drawn of them. Some indications of male-female relation-
34
ships may be found in writings of Beard (1946/1962),
Brandon (1961), Hoebel (i9 6 0), and Marriot (1945). One of
the most romantic pictures in American' history is that of
the proud warrior-hunter Plains Indian on his horse, view
ing with contempt "squaw’s work," but that picture did not
materialize until the Spanish brought the horse to Western
shores. The woman in some tribes of Plains Indians made
the tepee. It was her personal possession, and she could
expel the man if she so chose. Among the Iroquois as well
as some other tribes, the adult male and female voted in
the great councils. A woman headed the Winnebago Nation,
In most tribes, property descended through the female.
Only in a few instances can we ascertain when the
division of labor occurred between man and woman. Once the
division was made, however, it was enforced with rigidity.
Concerning this, Mead (1949) wrote:
In every known human society, the male’s need for
achievement can be recognized. Man may cook or weave
or dress dolls or hunt humming birds, but if such
activities are appropriate occupations for men, then
the whole society, men and woman, alike, vote them
important. When the same occupations are performed
by women, they are recognized as less important. In
a great number of human societies men’s sureness of
their sex roles is tied up with their right, or abil
ity, to practice some activity that women are not
allowed to practice. Their maleness, in fact, has to
be underwritten by preventing women from entering some
field or performing some feat. Here may be found the
relationships between maleness and price; that is, a
need for prestige that will outstrip the prestige
which is accorded to any woman. (pp. 159-160)
Ashley Montagu (1953/1973) maintained that men have
35
been jealous of women1s ability to give birth and have felt
conscious and unconscious needs to convert this ability
into a disability by means of handicapping rituals and
taboos. He acknowledges that when man became hunter., he
had many experiences which enabled him to meet and solve
different problems. His tools had to be more refined.,
whereas women could use more simple tools for her food-
gathering. Perhaps it was the decoration of man's weapons
for magical purposes that art was born, first pure repre
sentation, and later abstract forms. But Montagu insisted
that it cannot be doubted that women first decorated pot
tery., learned to weave, and learned to make baskets. Fur
thermore, according to him, "The general myth is that it
is the male who provides most of the food in the food-
gathering -hunting society, but the truth is that some Q0%
of it is provided by the female" (p. 14).
Originally it was of crucial concern that man be
sure that the offspring was his in order that he might be
insured a measure of immortality. Later, woman's virginity
also became intertwined with property rights, and her vir
ginity was a matter of concern to the extended family.
Then it was of prime importance that property stay within
the blood lines. History gives ample evidence of marriage
between brothers and sisters, uncles and nieces, as well as
others of close kinship. In some instances, belief in a
36
family's superior or sacred blood caused inter-family mar
riage. The Pharoahs practiced incest* and the custom was
acquired by the Ptolemys in an effort to have the Egyptians
view them as a continuing link with the ancient rulers.
Brothers and sisters married each other among the Aztecs*
Hawaiians* Incas* and Mayans--both royalty and commoners.
According to Numbers 36:1-12* Moses said that
Yahwah ruled that heiresses must marry within their own
tribe to preserve the inheritance of the patriarchal tribe.
The five daughters of Zelophehad* who had no brothers* mar
ried their father's brothers. By Attic law* in ancient
Greece if there were no son* the father appointed his near
est male kinsman as his daughter's guardian. A guardian
could force his charge to divorce her husband and marry him*
thereby gaining her inheritance (O'faolain. & Martines*
1973* p. 1 3)- But a woman always kept her dower rights.
As early as the first decade of the fifth century B.C.*
Greek thought was struggling with the morality of kinship
marriages* however. This is the theme of Aeschylus's The
Suppliant Women* his earliest surviving drama (Bowra* i9 6 0).
Ancient Germanic tribes levied a fine on a man who
"violated" a woman. The amount was based on the degree of
violation* from how much clothing was removed to outright
physical assault. The fine went to the woman's male rela
tives. Tacitus (19^2* p. 717) said that the man brought a
37
dower to the wife and not she to him, hut the wife did give
the hushand a gift of arms.
Men have enforced these "property rights" in dif
ferent ways— harems, purdah, chastity belts, shackles, and
mutilation of the genitals. Such methods of bondage still
imprison countless women in the world. In many cultures,
religious and social taboos now reinforced, now replaced,
physical force to hold women in subjection. It may come
as a surprise to many to learn that even in central Europe
Moslem women fare little differently than some of their
sisters in the Third World ("Yugoslavs Find Brides Expen
sive," 197^-). "Though Yugoslavian Penal Code forbids the
sale of brides, through dowers, marriageable women in
these communities carry heavy prices on their heads." There
are more men than women in that area. A man must pay from
$2,300 to $3,500 to the father to set up the wedding and
a like amount afterwards.
Economists consider the question of women as prop
erty to be one of the major blocks to advancement in Third-
World countries. For example, Australia is trying to
reform laws and customs of Papua, New Guinea, where women
are little more than the property of their husbands and
clans. Though frowned upon, extra-marital affairs of men
are not strongly opposed, but those of a woman may bring
mutilation or death. According to a report from Port
Moresby ("Papua New Guinea," 1975)*
38
Sex with a married or betrothed woman is consid
ered a violation of property because a woman's capac
ity for sex belongs to her husband and his clan. In
a virgin the drop in the bride-price can be as high
as $9*000--a considerable sum when one considers that
average annual earnings are around $250.00.
The Ninth Commandment definitely categorizes the
wife as property: MYou shall not covet your neighbor's
house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife* or his
man servant, or his maid servant, or his ox, or his ass,
or anything that is hisM (Exodus 20:17). This verse adds
further insight about the status of women as held by men,
whether by whoever wrote or compiled Exodus, or the trans
lators, viz., the ’ ’ male" is a "man," but the ”f emal@: " is a
"maid.” This sexist language has many implications.
Another indication of the value attached to women as
against men may be found in the various prices for the two
sexes according to age (Leviticus 27:3-7). The going rate
for a woman was about half that of a man. In general, that
is about the same proportion in terms of salaries between
man and woman today. In addition to the value of woman as
woman, wives have added greatly to their husband’s wealth
through their industry. A picture of such a wife is given
in Proverbs 31:10-31.
In An American Dilemma (19^-4, Appendix 5) Gunnar
Myrdal drew a clear analogy between slavery and the condi
tion of women and children, in that the slave, the woman,
and the child were under the power of the "paterfamilias.”
39
But the woman became elevated as an ornament^ and the slave
became a chattel In the original sense. Children and youth
have long been subject to the whims of parents, especially
the father. Even in the United States in the last century,
the father could will his children to another man, and the
mother had no recourse regardless of her character.
Woman of Antiquity
One would need a multi-camera focus to gauge the
positions and roles of any culture within a culture. This
becomes more complex when the culture is in constant fer
ment. And so it was with ancient Greece. We generally
think of the lowly state of Grecian woman in strange con
trast to the high plane of masculine life, and we wonder
how it was at that golden moment in time that this flaw
was not detected and rectified. The position of women,
slavery, and sexual unchastity are considered the three
weaknesses of the golden age of Greece. But Murray (193^-)
firmly contended that "we imagine these things are charac
teristically Greek.’ They are just the reverse. They are
the remnants of that primaeval slime from which Hellenism
was trying to make mankind clean" (p. 15).
Charles Seltman (1956), late classical scholar of
Queen's College, Cambridge, gave a vivid vignette of
Grecian girls and women in the Heroic Age. He maintained
that they led a natural and largely open-air life as early
40
as the fifteenth century B.C. The epics depict daughters
and wives with affection and respect. Kingship came
through marriage with the queen. This may have been an
echo from a time of matriarchy. Bowra (1965) noted that
archaeological studies of the rich civilization of Mycena
ean Greece indicate that women of that age definitely were
in evidence. For example,, still extant is a mural depict
ing two noble ladies going to a hunt in a chariot. They
are alone., and one of the women is driving the horse. The
frescoes at Knossos show women at the arena both watching
and participating in bull-leaping.
Jaeger (1939/1965.» pp. 222-224) also spoke of the
high honor accorded to women during the Homeric Age of
Chivalry. During this period, however, though high-born
women had status, they shared their husband with other
women. Odysseus stayed away many years, but he expected
Penelope and all of his concubines to remain faithful to
him. Upon discovering that 12 out of the 50 he owned had
been unfaithful, he ordered his son Telemachus to kill such
erring ones with his long blade. Telemachus hanged them,
saying, "I’ll not give such as these a decent death, women
who have heaped dishonor on my head and on my mother’s by
sleeping with the suitors" (Homer, i960, p. 376). We are
reminded by Marrou (1956/1964, pp. 51-57) that homosexual
ity in Greek aristocratic society was one of the last sur
vivals of their Warrior Age, love between men being a
4l
recurring feature of military life. Among Greek nobles,,
however, it was far more than a matter of sensuality,
becoming the basis of excellence in all areas of human
endeavor. Gradually laws were passed against the practice.,
especially in Sparta. The stricter laws were against the
younger man.
Grecian scholars generally agree that female god
desses., especially the one equated with Mother Earth., were
prominent in early myths. Olympic gods came later, and
Zeus, the chief., supplanted the reigning goddess. During
the years when women were excluded as spectators at the
Olympic Games, one woman was present as a representative
of the Earth Goddess.
All of this was part of the heritage that relegated
women beyond the pale in terms of intelligence., education.,
and status at a later age.. Especially was this true of
Athens., whose patron was Athena, Goddess of Wisdom., Skills,
and Warfare. Symbolically, Athena had a virgin birth,
springing full grown from the head of Zeus. In Athens it
was the "hetaira" (educated slave-concubine) who stood out
by her intellectual and artistic culture, a position similar
to that of the Japanese geisha. This woman, not the wife,
held a status approximating that of the Spartan women in
terms of freedom of activities; however, neither Spartan
women nor men concerned themselves with the artistic
accomplishments of Athenians.
42
Aspasia* renowned for her beauty and learning* was
a hetaira and the mistress of Pericles. Edith Hamilton
(1930/1964) quoted Plato., who records a conversation which
Socrates has with an acquaintance. Socrates learns that
the Council is at the Agora choosing a speaker for a great
funeral and remarks that he himself could give the oration
because he had had an "admirable mistress" in the art of
speaking* the same woman who had taught Pericles to speak.
And Socrates continues by commenting on an oration-in-the-
making which he had heard this teacher make the previous
day* "partly improvising* partly putting together frag
ments of the funeral oration which Pericles spoke . . .
but which* as I believe* she composed" (p. 73). This
"admirable mistress" was Aspasia.
Bowra* on the other hand* suggested'.that* in spite
of the bad name Athens has for the seclusion and subjection
of women* some of the remarks of the day about woman's
place being in the home and her highest praise consisting
of her being silent was just wishful thinking. Though
Bowra (1957) acknowledged that Greek society was essen
tially masculine-oriented* he added* "Attic gravestones and
funeral vases show that Athenians were just as capable of
affection for their wives as other men" (p. 39).
Bowra (1957) also discussed other relationships
which marked Greek family life:
43
The comparative absence of the gentler and softer
affections from Greek life was to some extent com
pensated by the strength of its loyalties., especially
to the family. The family was an older unit than the
city and kept its prestige and even some of its powers
in the fifth century. (p. 4l)
This family loyalty is the theme of Antigone (Soph
ocles I, 1970). By defying her uncle., Creon the Tyrant,
Antigone is sentenced to be entombed alive because she
symbolically buried her brother by throwing dirt on his
body against Creon*s orders.
Even though the role of the upper-class woman was
circumscribed in Athens, except in religious festivals,
Spartan women had much freedom. It was in Corinth that
Paul told the women to be quiet in church (I Corinthians
14:33-34). This may have meant that Corinthian women knew
how to assert themselves. But some Biblical authorities
maintain that the congregation of Corinth expected the
Second Coming momentarily. Paul was advising caution in
the throwing-off of social restraints so suddenly. At any
rate, women below the aristocracy participated widely in
the commercial ventures of the day in all of the Greek
world.
Until the age of seven, sons received their educa
tion at home under the authority of their mother. Erom the
moment of birth, a difference was made between boys and
girls, the girls being guided toward home responsibilities
and the boys toward an intellectual life which encompassed
44
a broad spectrum. Efforts were made to have only educated
nurses., servants, or slaves around the children so that
they could hear the best pronunciation. Almost immediately
the great stories were told so that children might develop
a pride of kinship to those in the heroic tales.
It was customary for boys to enter formal education
after the home teaching. At first boys went to and from
school under the watchful eye of an attendant, but later
they lived at the school. Though not nearly so prevalent
as schools for boys., there also were schools for girls
modeled after boys' schools. Marrou (1964) wrote, "Any
society that allows one of the sexes to form a closed
fellowship must of necessity expect to see a similar closed
fellowship confined to the other sex, formed in opposition"
(p. 60).
Chief among such feminine fellowships was that of
Sappho of Lesbos about 600 B.C. Marrou (1964) said that
"this fellowship seems to have been in advance of its rival
insofar as its social institutions were concerned" (p. 60).
There girls could receive a complete education from the
time they left childhood until they were married. Sappho
called her school "the abode of the disciples of the Muses.'
Subjects included dancing., drama, the playing of musical
instrumentsj and athletics. It must be remembered that
music was part of the field of mathematics. Furthermore,
45
girls were taught to be "feminine" by learning about fash
ion,, charm, and coquetry. We know of Sappho's school from
a few precious fragments of her writings* but there were
schools rivaling hers. Also dating from the Hellenistic
Age and the Roman Period are many references to girls'
schools, inspectors of women's education* and the need for
a well-rounded curriculum for girls and women.
Beard (1946/1962* pp. 318-328) noted that both
Solon and Plato were affected by Sappho's poetry* which
stresses the healing power of love. Prom a Latin text of
1765 on women philosophers written by the Frenchman Grilles
Menage* Beard also discussed some 28 named Pythagorean
women philosophers. Among them was Theano* probably the
wife of Pythagoras* and a multi-talented* broadly educated
woman. Diotima* the priestess of Mantinea* was a teacher
of Socrates. Mill (1970* p. 6 9) mentions Myrtis* the
teacher of Pindar* and Corinna*who won the prize in poetry
five times in competition with Pindar.
Some of the greatest characters in dramatic history
are Grecian women--Antigone* Electra* Hecuba* and Medea* for
example. Had these feminine roles been too foreign to
Grecian concepts* Aeschylus* Euripides* and Sophocles would
not have created them since audiences would have rejected
them. Audiences were almost entirely masculine* however.
But* as Murray (193^) reminded us* "all of them were free
46
women., free in thought and in spirit, treated with as much
respect as any of the male characters, and with far greater
minuteness and sympathy. . . . Such characters cannot
surely have sprung out of a society in which no free women
existed" (pp. 20-21).
English novelist Samuel Butler (1922/1967) "believed
that the Odyssey was written by a woman. In l887.> he pub
lished The Authoress of the Odyssey, in which he contended
that the many woman characters in the story., so carefully
delineated, came from the pen of someone who knew women to
a degree that a man could not.
Euripides (Pitts, 1947) recognized the plight of
the Grecian woman in Medea’s speech to the women of Corinth:
Oh women, of all creatures that live and reflect,
certainly it is we who are most luckless. First of
all, we pay a great price to purchase a husband; and
thus submit our bodies to a perpetual tyrant. And
everything depends on whether our choice is good or
bad--for divorce is not an honorable thing, and we
may not refuse to be married. (p. 206)
Lattimore (Hesiod, 1962) said that Homer probably
was an older contemporary of Hesiod but that Homer wrote
of a much earlier age. When Hesiod was writing, eighth
century B.C., the woman of the Homeric tales had been
replaced by a woman representing evil. Pandora was the
counterpart of Eve. Hesiod said that from Pandora "origi
nates the breed of female women, and they live with mortal
men, and are a great sorrow to them" (Theogony, p. 158).
47
He gave this advice to young men: "Do not let any sweet -
talking woman beguile your good sense with the fascinations
of her shape. It's your barn she's after" (The Work and
Days, p.. 6 3).
In The Republic (Hamilton & Cairns, 1965) Plato
quoted Socrates as saying:
We meant, for example, that a man and a woman who
have a physician's mind have the same nature. . . .
If it appears that the male and the female sex have
distinct qualifications for any arts or pursuits, we
shall affirm that they ought to be assigned respec
tively to each. But if it appears that they differ
only in just this respect that the female bears and
the male begets, we shall say that no proof has yet
been produced that the woman differs from the man
for our purpose. (p. 693)
Socrates does say, however, that in general men are more
capable than women except in home arts. But he made allow
ances for individual differences and the overlapping of
characteristics. He believed that in those aspects in
which men and women share a common nature, they should be
equally educated in the gymnasium together. Women should
also share in the defense of the country. Some of the
country's philosopher-kings would be women.
Prom the above example, we deduce that Plato showed
a highly favorable attitude toward women, but in The Laws
(Hamilton & Cairns, 1965), he retrenched and upbraided
Spartan men for not forcing women to share a common table
as did the men: "No, the very half of the race which is
generally predisposed by its weakness to undue secrecy and
48
craft--the female sex--has been left to its disorders by
mistaken concessions of the legislators" (p. 1356). Plato
had become more conservative after witnessing the excessive
actions of democratic rule and the death of Socrates.
Under the laws of Lycurgus, Spartan women were equal to men
except for political rights. During the Peloponnesian War,
they had gained a high status and refused to relinquish
their position when that conflict was over.
In Politics Aristotle disagreed with Socrates con
cerning the nature of women (McKeon, 1941):
For although there may be exceptions to the order
of nature, the male is by nature fitter to command
than the female . . . but the temperance of a man and
of a woman or the courage or justice of a man or of a
woman are not, as Socrates maintained, the same; the
courage of a man.is shown in commanding, of a woman
in obeying.. . . As the poet says of woman, "Silence
is a woman’s glory," but this is not equally the glory
of man. (pp. 1143-1145)
Furthermore, according to Aristotle (History of Animals,
McKeon, 1941, p. 6 3 6), men have innumerable admirable qual
ities which he names in detail. Just as thoroughly he pin
points the bad qualities of women: more jealous, more void
of shame, more deceptive, more querulous, and more depend
ent. But since women are "softer" they are more compas
sionate. In addition, they have a more retentive memory.
Aristotle considered the named qualities as mental, saying
that nature makes a difference between the sexes.
Ancient Israel was a patriarchy, but some women
were treated with respect as prophetesses or leaders.
49
Examples are Miriam* Huldah* Judith* Esther* and especially
Deborah* who became a ruler and judge by common consent and
was a commander in battle. No woman could be a levite*
however. In general* the patterns of that long-ago culture
put women as inferior to men. As has been indicated above
(page 38)j > she was man's property on par with his ox. Even
though the wife was her husband's property* he could not
sell her. He could sell his daughter* however* if he
needed the money and in dire circumstances could also sell
his son (Nehemiah 5:5)*
There is at least one example of a break with the
custom about Hebrew women. "And in all the land there were
no women so fair as Job's daughters; and their father gave
them inheritance with their brothers" (Job 42:14-15). Fur
thermore* the names of the three daughters are recorded but
not the names of their seven brothers* also a break with
general custom.
Both Jewish and Christian religions use the story
of creation as justification for the supposed superiority
of man to woman. Those who espouse the masculine viewpoint
quote Genesis 2:7^ in which God first formed man from dust*
and Genesis 2:21-22* in which God formed woman from man's
rib to be man's helper and companion. The same viewpoint
includes the first part of Genesis 1:26: "Then God said*
'Let us make man in our image* after our likeness.'"
50
t
Another basis for the male perspective is the story of the
apple in the Garden of Eden: Since Eve tempted Adam., it
was she who was the instigator of the whole tragic chain
of circumstances, and that is why God said that man should
lord it over her (Genesis 3:16).
The counterargument continues from the part of
Genesis 1:26 quoted above to the command, "And let them
have dominion over" [all living things]. Genesis 1:27 says,
"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God
he created him; male and female he created them." The
Reverend Grace Moore (197^-) agreed with the opinion of
G. Von Rad, an authority on the Book of Genesis, who noted
that the Hebrew wording, "image of God," means "intelli
gence, liberty, and physical appearance." Moore also
pointed out the many times that the word "wisdom" is used
in the Old Testament in a personified sense. The Hebrew
word for "wisdom" is "hokmah" and is in the feminine gender.
Another synonym for God is "spirit, " also of the feminirie
gender. In Hebrew, the term is "ruah."
To man’s contention that males should rule and
govern, the counterview continues to Genesis 1:28, in which
God tells both Adam and Eve to conquer the earth and to be
masters of all living things. He did not promise to the
male alone the gifts of the earth. As for the apple epi
sode, at least since the first Woman's Movement women have
51
argued that the story is evidence that woman is stronger
than the man. And even so., the masculine position does not
take into account the question of free will.
Margaret Wold., Executive Secretary of the American
Lutheran Church., also wrote of the way male translators
have handled the scriptures. She told of Sister Margaret
Early, of Milwaukee, who telephoned to Israel to the Hebrew
sch'olar-translator of the Book of Deuteronomy for The
Jerusalem Bible. Sister Early challenged his rendition of
a passage by using masculine imagery when the Hebrew is
feminine. "I am the God who fathered you" should have been
"I am the God that gave you birth.M The scholar admitted
that he was in error (Dart, 1973)-
Early suffragists also were aware of the selective
use of the scriptures and their translations. In 1895
Elizabeth Cady Stanton edited The Womans Bible, a series
of commentaries on passages affecting women. She noted
that women scholars who knew Hebrew showed fear and hesi
tancy about being associated with the work (Kraditor, 1968,
pp. 113-114).
In Hebrew mythology, the "Eve” of the Bible was not
Adam's first partner. The first woman, Lilith, was created
from dust at the time that Adam was. She argued with Adam
about equality and refused to take the supine position dur
ing sexual relations. For this, Adam pushed her aside,
52
and she became an evil spirit and the wife of Satan. Then
God made another woman, the first "Eve." Adam saw God
make this woman from dust., and the whole process sickened
him. There is no record of what became of her. The third
time, God caused Adam to fall asleep, removed a rib from
him, and created the Eve as we know her (Ausubel, 19^8;
Figes, 1970).
Judaism has treated women with some ambiguity. In
the home, women are charged with definite religious duties,
and Jewishness is established through the female. In
Israel today because of Orthodox pressure, there have been
some complicated legal cases involving civil and religious
rights denied children born of Jewish fathers and non-
Jewish mothers. The same kind of orthodoxy prevents women
and men from worshipping together at the Wailing Wall, the
place most sacred to Jews. The age-old orthodox prayer is
still "Blessed be thou, Oh Lord our God, for not making me
a woman," and the woman's prayer is "I thank Thee, Lord,
that thou has created me according to thy will" (Friedan,
1963j P- 108). Traditionally, religious service may not
be held unless ten men are present. This still holds
except for Reconstructionist congregations. Also, there
has been a break-through for women to be cantors and rabbis.
In 1955 Betty Robbins became the first woman cantor. Sally
Priesand is the first woman to have been made a rabbi.
53
In some ancient cultures,, women ruled, alone or
jointly with a man. The royal families of Egypt and the
royal line in Ethiopia are examples. Eusebius (c. 260-340
A.D. ) writes of Sheba., who made her legendary journey to
visit King Solomon about 1,000 B.C. The Bibical account
is in I Kings 10:1-13. According to Eusebius, the firs't
Gentile to have been converted by Philip was a principal
advisor of the Queen of Ethiopia, ”a country traditionally
ruled by a woman” (p. 74).
The life of Cleopatra is well documented, but she
was the seventh to rule by that name. Her so-called sex
attraction actually is a superficial cloaking for her real
attraction (Hadas, 1965* pp. 83-85). Coins bearing her
visage show her with a jutting chin, a big, fleshy nose,
and a matronly figure. Beard (1946/1962, pp. 291-292) said
that Cleopatra attracted powerful and masterful men to her
because of her qualities of education, her ability to speak
many languages, and her skill in organization and business.
Ancient Britons made no distinction between male
and female in the line of succession. In 6l A.D. King
Prautagus of Iceni (Norfolk) died, leaving his family
under the protection of the Roman .-Emperor Nero. The
Romans treated the tribe with great brutality, even beating
Queen Boadicea and raping her two daughters. In despera
tion, the Queen led an attack against them, conquering
54
and sacking London,, Colchester* and other encampments in
62 A.D. The Roman governor* then in Wales* came back with
reinforcements. Boadicea* her daughters by her side*
placed her chariot in front and led her troops but lost
to the vastly more numerous legions. She took poison
(Columbia Encyclopedia. 1963; Beard* 1946/1962; Lunt*
1956) .
Zenobia of Palmyra also challenged the Romans after
the death of her husband* the king. It is said that she
had him killed. 'A woman of much intelligence and beauty*
she conquered Syria* Northern Mesopotamia* Egypt* and
almost all of Asia Minor before being defeated by Emperor
AureH.an in 272 A.D. She was led by a golden chain dur
ing his triumphal procession in Rome. Later Zenobia mar
ried a Roman senator and spent the rest of her life at
Tivoli* near Rome (Encyclopaedia Britannica* 1976).
Rome* of course* was a patriarchy. The ’ 'pater
familias" could kill his children or sell them into slavery.
A provision of the law stipulated* however* that should the
children be redeemed from slavery* he could not sell them
again. The husband could kill his wife for adultery* but
by law she could not lay a finger on him for the same
offense. These legal rights date from the most ancient
times* but by the first century A.D.* "the head of the
house would have been shocked at the thought of exerting
55
such rights," according to Moses Hadas (1965* p. 79). By
that time, family councils had begun to replace the "pater
familias" as the final arbiter. Later the state took over.
Rome had several kinds of marriage ceremonies dat
ing from the early days of the Republic. The "confarrea-
tio, " used only by patricians, made the wife a chattel.
In the "coemptio," the woman symbolically "sold" herself.
In the "usus," the couple would agree to live together
for a year without having a marriage ceremony. At the
end of this period, they were considered married. In this
marriage, the wife could keep her property rights by leav
ing the husband's bed and board three nights a year (Hadas,
1965* PP. 80-81).
In Rome male children were given three names. The
most important was the middle name, which established the
tribe, or "gen." The last name identified the branch of
the clan, and the first name identified the individual,
e.g., Gaius Julius Caesar. A daughter had but two names,
the feminine version of the clan name and her birth order
among girls in the family, e.g., Julia Secunda or Julia
Minor.
Eventually, the Romatn matron became a power with
social and property rights. It was on her that the moral
ity of the nation rested, but the high respect in which she
was held galled her at times because it limited her free
56
dom. As in Greece,, women of the lower classes had rela
tively great freedom, engaging in occupations and athletics.
Women athletes wore costumes resembling modern bikinis.
Chaffing at the restrictions imposed upon them,
some upper-class women declared themselves business women,
even prostitutes--though not necessarily engaging in pros-
titution--in order to be relieved of the duties of aristoc
racy. The Senate passed laws preventing noble or high-born
women from changing their status. Aristocratic men also
were restricted as to occupation. Farming, however, was
held in high regard. Rome had her roots in the soil, and
the story of old Cincinnatus leaving his plow to defend
Rome against the Aequians epitomizes this tradition. By
extension, brick-making also was considered a noble work.
But even with the laws that circumscribed them,
Roman women had wide freedom of movement and action. They
visited the Forum, attended banquets, and went to the
public baths. In the "belt-tightening" during the Punic
Wars, a law had been passed that limited the amount of gold
women could use or own and prevented them from riding in a
chariot except to religious festivals. After the wars were
over, the women wanted the dress code repealed. The moral
ist, Cato the Elder (234-149 B.C.) fought the repeal in the
Senate. Livy described the scene:
The capitol was filled with crowds of the popu
lace, some favoring the law and some opposing it.
57
The ladies could not he kept within their houses
either by authority, decency, or the commands of
their husbands; but all besieged all the streets
of the city, and the avenues to the forum; entreat
ing the men as they passed to it . . .to permit
the ladies to wear their ancient ornaments. This
meeting of the ladies increased daily; for they
assembled even from the villages and market towns.
Nay, they went so far as to address and petition
the consuls, praetors, and other magistrates; but
they found M. Por. Cato, one of the consuls, alto
gether inexorable. (1815* Book 34, p. 266)
Livy continued by giving the speech of Cato as he
argued against the repeal and against women:
Recollect all the laws by which our ancestors
have restrained their licentiousness, and subjected
them to men. By all these you can scarce keep them
within bounds. What, then will be your case if you
put them on an equality with the men? Do you think
they will quietly rest there? NoJ If once equals,
they will soon become superiors. (p. 267)
Then L. Valerius, a tribune who had introduced the
motion to repeal the law spoke, saying that the distin
guished M. Porcius "has spent more time in casting reflec
tions on the ladies than in invalidating the petition"
(p. 270). The next day "the ladies appeared in public in
greater crowds than before: in a body they beset the gates
of all the tribunes, who opposed the motion of their col
leagues; neither did they withdraw till they desisted"
(p. 273). The ladies won the day, and the laws were
repealed 20 years after having been passed.
Also from Livy (i960, Book 3* P* 215)* we know that
girls attended school even before the days of the empire.
He writes of Verginia, a beautiful girl who is seized by
58
the Tyrant Appius while on her way to school in the Forum.
She had previously resisted his advances. Though of common
origin,.her father was honorable and a distinguished sol
dier. The Tyrant, intent on possessing Verginia, declared
that her mother had been a slave of one of his dependents,
and hence the daughter belonged to the dependent. This was
not so, and the father killed his daughter in midst of the
crowd gathered around the Forum. Appius killed himself
rather than face trial, but no harm came to the father.
This episode typifies the power of the father and the
price put on virginity.
As Rome grew into the empire, boys and girls were
educated at home under the tutelage of educated Greek
slaves. When a bit older, boys went to school and girls
continued to study at home. But Hadas (1965j p. 82)
pointed out that this did not mean that women were not as
well educated as men. Juvenal (1958, pp. 6 3-8 0) devoted
an entire satire against women. After writing of every
thing about them that he considered offensive, he said that
even worse was the educated woman. He urged men not to let
their wives acquire the style of the orator nor to know
too much of historical matters. Furthermore, there should
be some books in the house that the wives could not under
stand.
59
Germantic and Celtic Woman
Much of what we know about the Germanic tribes
comes from the writings of Tacitus (1942--55? A.D.-
177? A.D.). Since they all looked alike., he believed that
they did not mix with other tribes. They had a belief in.
individual freedom and responsibility. Kings were chosen
in times of.emergency., and the position was not hereditary.
They owned slaves,, but slaves led their own lives. "The
master requires from the slave a certain amount of grain,,
of cattle or clothing . . . and that is the limit of sub
jection'7 (p. 721). The hospitality of the Germans knew no
bounds. They thought it unholy to exclude any human from
their roof. "When his supplies are exhausted„ he who was
but now the host becomes the guide and companion to further
hospitality., and without invitation they go to the next
house" (p. 719)•
In this atmosphere,, it would seem that women would
have a more equal status with men. Women were under the
control of men, but their "inferiority" was due more to
general lack of physical strength rather than to innate
moral inferiority. Marriage was monogamous though at
times the king had several wives. According to Tacitus.,
"Almost alone among barbarians they are content with one
wife" (p. 717)- Tacitus said that those of noble birth
had many offers of alliances„ and that was why a few had
60
more than one wife. At marriage the groom gave the wife
oxen., a steed with equipment* a shield* lance* and sword.
She presented him with a gift of arms. During the cere
mony* the wife-to-be was reminded "that she is her hus
band’s partner in toil and danger* destined to suffer and
to dare with him alike both in peace and war" (p. 718).
Tacitus wrote that adultery was very rare for men
and women in such a numerous population. He does not say
what happened to men adulterers* but the woman who strayed
had her hair cut off by her husband* was stripped naked*
driven from their home in the presence of her relatives*
and then flogged through the village streets (p. 718).
Wives and children went to battle with the husbands.
"'They’ are to every man the most sacred witnesses of his
bravery--’they’ are his most generous applauders" (p. 712).
When lines wavered in battle* the women would bare their
bosoms* symbolically showing the men the horrors of captiv
ity* and this would rally the men. Tacitus continued:
They even believe that the sex has a certain
sancity and prescience* and they do not despise their
counsels* or make light of their answers. In Vespa
sian's days we saw Veleda* long regarded by many as
a divinity. In former times* too* they venerated
Aurinia* and many other women* but not with servile
flatteries* or with sham deification. (p. 713)
The Franks* a G-ermanic tribe that settled along the
Rhine valley to the West* gave fewer rights to women.
Girls and women were married without their consent. Adul
tery was not brooked for women* but the same rules did not
61
hold for men. Furthermore, men had several wives.
The oldest code of law extant concerning the Ger
manic tribes, including the Salian Franks, is the so-called
Salic Code, compiled by Clovis circa 510 A.D. It became
the code of the Holy Roman Empire and spread almost through
out Europe with far-reaching results. Part of the code
forbade females from inheriting titles, offices, and land.
The purpose of this provision was to prevent women from
marrying outside the family and taking property with them.
Attempts to enforce or evade this law gave rise to bitter
rivalries and war, being one reason for the Hundred Years
War between England and France (1339-1^53) in which England
lost all of her possessions in France except Calais. Cer
tain perquisites came to the British throne through the
House of Hanover under the Georges but were lost when Vic
toria became Queen. In Spain the section affecting women
was secretly abrogated in 1833 to favor Isabelle II and to
keep the throne from the French. Today the Spanish Carlist
Pretender bases his claim on the Salic Law (Columbia Encyclo
pedia, 1972, pp. 344, 731).
Although Charlemagne had several wives and concu
bines, he refused to allow his daughters to marry. Their
sexual promiscuity was notorious, but he accepted the chil
dren born to them. It has been conjectured that since
Charlemagne was a wise and fair man, he did not allow his
62
daughters to marry because he would have given them pos
sessions contravening the Salic Law., thus dividing the
empire. It has also been suggested that he did not want
to run the risk of having sons-in-law challenging his rule.
He divided the empire among three sons. When nobles were
killed* Charlemagne married off their widows to strengthen
bonds to himself and with no regard to the wishes of the
women.
The Celts were tribes occupying Southwest Germany
and Eastern France as early as 2*000 B.C. They spoke Indo-
European dialects. They spread all over Europe and as far
as Asia Minor. The Apostle Paul's Letter to the Galatians
was to descendants of those settlers. Eventually the
tribes were pushed into Brittany and sections of the
British Isles* and their history became blurred with other
tribes. As has been seen above (p. 5 3) in the story of
Boadicea* there was more equality between men and women.
Christian Woman.
Western thought had Its roots anchored In Hebrew
traditions* was watered by Greek culture* and spread under
the aegis of the Roman Empire. Out of these cultures loom
two monumental figures* Aristotle and the Apostle Paul.
Their beliefs and writings fixed woman's place in Western
thought for centuries and still hold dominion over her
today. In Paul* three male-dominated cultures found a most
63
able spokesman. Indeed., it was Paul more than any one
person who laid out the path for Christianity. Also Aris
totle himself came back through the translations of Arabic
scholars in the ninth century A.D., becoming further
entangled in Christian, dogma.
Of Aristotle's vast influence., Ulich (1947) wrote:
For it is no exaggeration to say that he laid the
basis of our scholarly vocabulary in the whole broad
field of humanities, and that from his work issued the
development of the higher curriculum as was customary
from the times of the university of Alexandria up to
the beginning of the 19th century; even the essential
categories of natural philosophy have sprung from his
mind. (p. 6 2)
Because of the strength of his reasoning and scientific
leadership, everything that Aristotle wrote took the force
of authority. In History of Animals (McKeon, 194l), he
placed women in a scientific mold: "We should look upon the
female state as being as it were a deformity, though on
which occurs in. the ordinary course of nature" (p. 6 7 6).
Another damaging contribution was that woman presents only
a kind of raw material, the ground as it were, in the crea
tion of life; man contributes the principle of form or
movement--of life or soul. This is the theme in Aeschylus's
Eumenides and depicts the final victory over the Mother
Right.
By extant Grecian literature and plastic art, Selt-
man has depicted the joie de vivre of Greek girls and
women--their prowess, in the dance and athletics, the
64
expression of love between couples,, and. the unassuming
pride in the human body. He wrote, "A long farewell to
happiness for almost all girls and women was fated to come,
for real hostility was on. its way” (1956, p. 155)- The
reference was to the role of the Apostle Paul, who appar
ently disapproved of the activities of the G-raeco-Roman.
woman.
Paul’s pronouncement on marriage and his own marital
status have long been debated. According to I Corinthians
9:5^ all of the apostles, Jesus’ brothers, and Cephas, the
brother of Peter, were married. Jewish law and custom had
for many ages stressed marriage and kinship. Indeed,
according to Deuteronomy 24:5j a newly married man. could
not go out with the army or be charged with any business:
"He shall be free at home one year to be happy with his
wife." For Paul to have been unmarried would have been
the exception, and it would seem that more would have been
written about this exception. Be that as it.may, Eusebius
(1965) quoted Clement of Alexander, who first rebukes those
deprecating marriage and then adds, "While Paul himself
does not hesitate in one of his epistles to address his
yokefellow, whom he did not take round with him for fear
of hindering his ministry" (p. 140). Some commentators
translate "yokefellow" as "companion." Clement lived 150-
220 A. D.
65
But whether married or not before beginning his
ministry,, Paul definitely was not married when he was
writing and speaking on the subject. He advised the
unmarried and the widows not to marry: "But if they cannot
exercise self-control, they should marry. Bor it is better
to marry than to be aflame with passion" (I Corinthians
7:9)- He said that a man should not divorce his wife nor
the wife her husband., but if the wife should divorce her
husband.,. she should not remarry (I Corinthians 7:10).
Apparently widowers and divorced* men could remarry., but
the widow and the divorced women were to remain single.
But Paul did tell husbands not to divorce their wives. In
I Corinthians 11:.7* Paul wrote, [."Man] is the image and
glory of God; but woman is the glory of man." One wonders
why Paul ignored Genesis 1:27 which says that God created
both male and female in his own image. In Ephesians 5:24,
Paul admonished, "Let wives also be subject in everything
to their husbands."
Paul's philosophy set the course for the Christian
Church and became a powerful basis for the restriction of
women in social and political life as well as in. religious
and educational spheres. In Galatians 3:28, he reminded
the community that there is no male and female in Christ.,
but Paul did not believe that women, should be allowed
leadership roles in the Church. He did praise contribu
tions of women, however, especially complimenting Phoeba
66
and Prisca (Romans 16:1 3). And he certainly knew that
the four daughters of Philip the Evangelist were accepted
as prophetesses (Acts 21:9).
Paul could not divest himself of his cultural
biases even as he embraced the new religion. As far as
women were concerned,, Jesus, sometimes called "The First
Feminist," was overshadowed by Paul. Jesus' whole ministry
is marked by his friendship with women. That he believed
in marriage is shown by his being a guest at the wedding
feast at Cana (John 2:1-11). Jesus loved children and
rebuked the disciples who tried to keep the children from
him (Matthew 19:13-15; Mark 10:13-16). We must assume that
about half of the children were girls, and it is not
recorded that Jesus asked only male children be brought
to him.
Further evidence that Jesus accepted women as not
beneath men is found in the encounter with the Samaritan
woman at the well (John 4:7-26). Ordinarily she would
have been scorned on several accounts: She was from a
despised people, she was a strange woman, and she had loose
sexual morals. Yet Jesus first revealed his identity to
her (Moore, 1974).
It seems evident that Jesus did not define women
merely because of their biological function and "in woman's
place." For example, when the woman in the crowd called,
67
"Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that you
sucked. " Jesus answered., "Blessed rather are those who
hear the word of God and keep it" (Luke 11:27-28). Once
when Jesus was visiting Mary and Martha., Martha complained
that Mary would not help her with the housework, choosing
instead to talk with Jesus. He said, "Mary has chosen the
good portion, which shall not be taken from her" (Luke
10:42).
That women have been the housekeepers of the Church
cannot be denied. In fact, until recently, they had
greater leadership roles in Paul's day than in subsequent
centuries.
This is not to say that women have not been a vital
part of the Church. Indeed, the Church as we know it could
not have existed without the multiplicity of women's activ
ities. There were great women religious in the Middle Ages
whose intelligence and creativity were not allowed in the
Church proper. Saint Teresa of Avila, Saint Clare, Heloise,
and Saint Catherine of Sienna are but four. Women reli
gious have founded schools, orphanages, and hospitals
throughout the world.
In the Protestant Church during the seventeen and
eighteen hundreds, the Women's Board of Missions sent out
many married and unmarried women to spread Christianity and
education. For example, Presbyterian Marcus and Narcissa
68
Whitman started their long trip from New York to Washington
in 1836, being killed in 1847. Amanda McFarland was the
first full-time Protestant missionary in Alaska., arriving
there in 1877* Mary Wise Ramsey and her husband William
were the first American Presbyterians to go to India as
missionaries, reaching there in 1831. Dr. Mary Pierson
Eddy worked in Syria from 1893 until 1923^ the first woman
doctor to practice in that ancient land, then controlled by
the Turks. In 1884, the Women's Executive Committee of Home
Missions, Presbyterian Church, had 86 schools and 175 teach
ers under its care (Homrighouse, 1971)* Catherine Booth
(1829-1890) played a leading role in establishing the
Salvation Army in England, and Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910)
founded the Christian Science Church in the United States.
The Society of Friends (Quakers) from the outset recognized
the right of women to be teachers (preachers). The founder,
George Fox (1624-1691) maintained that the operation of the
Spirit "was not limited to an individual and admitted the
ministry of women not as an exception to the rule but as a
permanent principle" (Spruill, 1966, p. 248). There were
many famous and intrepid women Quaker preachers in the
colonies. Benson (1935* p. 265) said that a list of minis
ters and elders at Burlington, New Jersey in 1767 showed 25
of the 60 names to be women.
In New England, Anne Hutchinson (1591-1643)
attracted men and women, alike because of her brilliance and
69
kindness, but she was banished for espousing the covenant
of grace over that of works and for holding meetings
attended by women. She was a founder of Rhode Island, a
colony which attracted people of various religious beliefs.
Churches that are most resistant to change are
those most highly organized and those most fundamental.
Pope John XXIII seemed to have had an extraordinary sensi
tivity to the new forces stirring among the world's people
and opened the doors by which such forces could be
expressed more freely and creatively. Women religious were
among the first Roman Catholics to look at their position
in the Church and to make a determination of their personal
role. At first it was a question of allowing individual
women a vote about their clothes and whether they desired
to stay in the convent or to work and live in the field.
The cry arose from churchmen and laymen alike that if a
change were made, "the sisters would not seem like sisters."
But religious orders of both men and women have an
earlier precedent than the Church's authority in their
efforts to use their intelligence and gifts in other than
the prescribed roles. The orders grew from associations
of intelligent men and women who came together in an effort
to preserve a measure of the precious civilization that all
but disappeared during the Dark Ages. It was later that
the Church, growing in its power, began to control associa
tions. Some famous schools were attached to some of the
70
convents, and at times the Church limited their scope. The
habits worn by the nun or monk were but variations of the
clothes worn by people of the day. The simple clothes
became an. institution, and the personal restrictions
against some orders were as ancient as their dress. During
the Middle Ages, habits of some nuns could not be distin
guished from those of high-born women at large. Power
(1975) wrote that ’ ’ for more than six centuries, the bishops
waged holy war against fashion in the cloister and waged
it in vain" (p. 9 8).
Pope Paul VI drew back from Pope John XXIII's posi
tion. He is against the granting of leadership roles to
women in the church and is for maintaining the rule of
celibacy. In 1970, Pope Paul refused to accept Elizabeth
Muller as part of Bonn’s diplomatic mission's clerical staff
even though the Vatican employed women clerks and typists
("Women at the Altar," 1970). In 1975.? Bernadette Olowo of
Uganda was accepted as ambassador, thus breaking a 900-year
unwritten rule ("The Woman as Trailblazer," 1975).
In 197^-^ the Vatican announced that abortion should
not be performed in any circumstance, even to save the life
of the mother. In September 1975.? Italy passed a law giving
women equal rights with men to handle the family finances.
The Vatican fought the law. But so deeply engrained is the
machismo of Italian men that only a minute number of Italian
71
women are likely to be affected by the law. Pope Paul con
tinues to insist that it is the Church’s role to regulate
sexual morals and maintains that the essential role of
women is motherhood and of preparing the generations of
tomorrow.
The recent ordination of eleven women in the Epis
copal Church became a cause celebre. Though the hierarchy
has denounced the act as void., some responsible voices are
heard in favor of it. The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints (Mormon) is definitely masculine in
structure. It has taken a public stand against the Equal
Rights Amendment. The Eastern Orthodox is probably the
church that is most resistant to change, however. Pope
Paul has said that a favorable consideration of women in
priestly functions by the Anglican Church is a block to the
union of the two congregations.
Fundamentalist groups take the Bible literally,
falling back on the masculine view as exemplified by the
Apostle Paul. Billy Graham’s theology of sex has its roots
in the story of Adam and Eve, mankind being conceived in
sin but saved through grace, redemption, and repentance.
Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Methodists, and American
✓
Lutherans are among denominations which allow women to be
ordained ministers. In 1970, the World Council of Churches
reported 70 denominations throughout the world who had
72
admitted women to full ministry. Being accepted by the
public as a figure in the pulpit., however, is difficult for
women ministers ("Women at the Altar," 1970).
Martin Luther wrote about the various kinds of mes
sages in the Bible and their focus .(Towner, 1971) :
There are two kinds of words in the Scripture.
The one does not apply to me, nor does it concern
me. The other does concern me, and upon this one,
which concerns me, I may venture boldly., and depend
on it as upon a strong rock. (p. 24)
Many feminists of all faiths--both men and women--say that
what was written for another day with meaning for that cul
ture and time may not apply today. But broad religious
principles speak as clearly to both sexes as they did long
ago., according to Towner (p. 24).
In a speech in 1854 at the Women’s Rights Conven
tion., Lucretia Mott argued that priesthood., not Christian
ity., had subjected women. She also mentioned that Paul did
not indicate that his recommendations be applicable for all
time (Kraditor* 1968* pp. 109-HO).
Theologian Emil Brunner (Bulloch & Bulloch., 1973^
Chap. 5) asserted that the conception of sex as being low
and not worthy of intelligent people came into circulation
from conditions in the Eastern Mediterranean* an amalgama
tion of Platonic-Hellenistic-Oriental ideas. Enlightened
Greeks began to reject the old gods. The Greek world was
coming apart because of the spread of Roman power* and the
73
uncertainty of the times influenced some Greeks to turn to
other-worldly asceticism. Many cults sprang up, becoming
increasingly concerned with duality--good and evil, light
and dark, man and woman, etc. Traditional Greek thought
did not turn on duality but postulated a continuum between
virtue and vice. Part of the belief of these cults had to
do with sex, ranging from a stand of limiting sexual rela
tions t,o procreation, along the continuum to abstinence,
and finally equating woman with Satan.
In competing for members, and at a time when the
Church was in its infancy, it seems reasonable to assume
that some congregations modified their beliefs to include
asceticism, either to gain members, to protect themselves,
or because they were genuinely persuaded. Brunner felt
that the Idea of sex as being base was contrary to Jewish
philosophy and the Bibical conception of creation.
There is evidence to substantiate the thesis that
most of the background of discrimination against women does
not come directly from the Bible, in spite of the views of
St. Paul. The writings and beliefs of early Church Fathers
reveal a pathological preoccupation with the evils of sex
on part of some of them. St. John Chrysostom (3^-5?-407
A.D.), among others, blamed women for "rousing" in men their
sexual desires, a most simplistic belief based on the phil
osophy that if there were no women, men would not have
iSexual desires. He did not believe that Jesus blotted out
74
the sins of the female sex by his death and said that,
among all savage beasts,, none is found so harmful as women.
St. Jerome (340?-420 A.D.) enjoyed the company of women as
spiritual companions, but he thought pregnant women revolt
ing and did not care for children. St. Augustine (354-430
A.D.)* though he had previously lived with a mistress, con
sidered sex a threat to spiritual freedom. He had to com
promise with the Bibical approval of marriage and his own
beliefs. To Augustine., intercourse except for procreation
was a sin. In spite of a mother of superior qualities and
a brutal father., Augustine also generalized that women were
inferior to men. St. Thomas Aquinas combined all the views
listed above in addition to embracing Aristotle’s views
about women (Bullooh & Bulloch., 1973; He Beauvoir, 1968;
Moore, 1974).
Centuries later* the diaries of Leo Tolstoy seem
but echoes of the Church Fathers (Figes* 1970):
From whom* indeed* do we learn voluptuousness*
effeminacy* frivolity in everything and many another
vice* if not woman? ... I have wondered why so many
intelligent and good men live so blindly and badly.
The reason lies in the power that women have over
them. (pp. 163-165)
The second and third sentences in the above quotation were
written 40 years after the first. During the interim* Tol
stoy had impregnated his wife Sophia at least thirteen
times* nine of the children living until maturity. In addi
tion* he was the natural father of at least one of his
75
serfs,, whom he continued to regard as a serf. Besides
rearing the children,, making their clothes* and helping to
manage the great estate,, Sophia found the time to put into
\
legible form Tolstoy's writings. She had to copy War and
Peace seven times,, working at night with a magnifying glass
in order to see his corrections.
During the Middle Ages the widespread killing of
"witches*" at which time thousands perished* has been
attributed in part to the fact that men blamed women in the
way that St. John Chrysostom had. The witch hunts occurred
at a time when the Church was stressing celibacy. Folk
lore* black magic* and superstition became entwined with
the Inquisition and institutionalized by the Roman Catholic
Church as dogma. Far more women than men were executed.
Between 1484 and 1782* approximately 300*000 women were
put to death in Europe* a handful suffering the same fate
in North America (Coleman* 1976* p. 30).
A difference often was made between a man who per
haps attempted to heal by use of a given herb and a woman
who did the same. He would be called a "wizard*" somebody
who could inspire awe and respect* but a woman would be .
called a "witch*" someone to be feared. Midwives were
favorite targets* 'accused of bewitching babies who were
stillborn or deformed* or of casting a spell on a mother
suffering from post-partum depression or other problems.
76
Witches were said to cause impotency and nocturnal emis
sions,, the latter attributed to the demoness "succubus."
Women had sexual relations with the demon "incubus.M
Witches caused frigidity and barrenness. Though witches
also caused crop failure and natural phenomena of a fright
ening nature,, it is striking how many of the accused so
stood because of some act associated with sex.
i
Furthermore, for the woman death was generally
infinitely more cruel--by burning; for the man, however, a
more common method of death was by hanging. The exception
was in England, where the witch craze came later under
James I; there death was likely to be hanging for both
sexes. However, a given person convicted as a witch may
have been mutilated before being burned or hanged, or made
to undergo other kinds of torture just as on the Continent.
Whether death came by dismemberment, hanging, or burning,
it was felt that the fire was needed to "finish off" the
evil spirit.
Undoubtedly, hundreds of condemned wretches were
suffering from emotional disorders and/or disease. This
was the period of the Black Plague, rampant syphilis, fear
of the Moslems, armies of people on the move to escape
slavery and serfdom, and the rise of nationalism and Pro
testantism. There was a need for many scapegoats to
account for the changes and unrest.
77
On December J, 1484, Pope Innocent VIII sent forth
his bull exhorting churchmen to wipe out witches. Two.
German Dominican monks, Heinrich Kraemer and. James Sprenger,
were assigned to write the manual of directions, called
The Witches Hammer. ' This book was revered for ages in both
Catholic and Protestant countries., according to Coleman
(1976* p. 34). Martin Luther was born the year before
Innocent’s bull., but he too believed in devils. They were
in the streams and woods ready for the unwary.
O’faolain and Martines (1973) pointed out that the
age "produced a perfect climate for misogyny . . . this
ancient clerical disease" (pp. 207-208). The hatred for
woman per se by the Church., coupled with the budding unrest
against the power of the Church., gave clerics a chance to
fight witches and heresy simultaneously. Among the first
victims seem to have been the Waldensians, a thorn since
1170* and especially abominable in that they allowed women
to be preachers. For their own protection, Waldensians
met at night and in secret places. It did not take much
imagination to connect habits of witches, who are active
at night, and the ceremonies of Waldensians. Kraemer and
Sprenger elaborated at length why it was that there are
more witches among women than among men: "All witchcraft
comes from carnal lust, which is in woman insatiable"
( p . 209).
78
The late Margaret Murray (1921/1967)* distinguished
Egyptologist,, made a strong case that the battle between
"the witches" and the Church actually was a struggle betweer
old fertility cults and the new religion of Christianity.
She used original documents of trials in Great Britain and
the records involving Joan of Arc. Concerning records of
Joan’s trial, she said that translations give an entirely
different picture than the original Latin and French.
Murray believed that Joan was a member of a fertil
ity cult and that was why she was able to identify certain
people at the Court who were also members. Joan considered
herself divine in the old faith and so did the French com
mon people. Murray felt that this was why they did not
make an effort to ransom or save her: She was doomed as
God to suffer and die. Joan recanted, saying she had
learned Christian principles at her Mother’s knee. Thus
there were no charges against her. But she put on male's
attire on a Sunday. For that she was doomed. On Monday,
she was tried, on Tuesday she heard the sentence, and on
Wednesday she was burned. Her ashes were collected and
thrown into running water, a ritual of the "Lower Culture"
after the sacrifice of their Incarnate God (p. 276).
Another point that Murray made was that the trial was at
Rouen, one of the French cities where human sacrifices were
still a living tradition. Four other charges were made
79
against Joan: attacking Paris on a feast day., taking the
horse of a bishop., leaping from the tower of Beaurevoir,
and consenting to the death of Franquet d'Arras. These
were all minor charges.
Gilles de Rais was also convicted as a witch. When
the King originally asked Joan whom she wanted for her
escort to the battlefield, she obviously chose one of her
own faith, according to Murray. Gilles still attended Joan
when he became Marshall of France and stayed with her all
day when she was wounded in Paris. They both rode black
horses. Gilles was descended from families with the names
of "Tiphaine de Champtoce and Tiphaine de Husson." Murray
said the "Tiphaine" seems to be related to "Fein," "Finn,"
and "Fian," all meaning "fairy" in Great Britain and prob
ably in Brittany as well (p. 276). Gilles could have
resisted the Church because of his high position, but he
did not. He was hanged above a pyre, but before his body
could be burned, his sisters saved it and prepared it for
burial. Where Gilles was executed, his daughter erected a
monument, to which nursing mothers came to pray for an
abundance of milk, also another connection to the fertility
cult. Within two years, the King had given letters of
rehabilitation to Gilles for the unjust death. It-tob.k
25 years for the same to happen for Joan.
Murray believed that high officials realized that
they were facing a formidable organization when Joan was on
80
trial. In her opinion* actions of those involved gave
evidence of this. In the first big trial between the two
religions* the Church won. "'We have caught her now* ' said
the Bishop of Beauvais* and she was burned without even the
formality of handing her over to secular authorities"
(p. 27l). Letters of explanation were sent to every king
and prince in Christendom* to every noble and town, in
Prance* and to all high-level groups. Officials conducting
the trial were given letters of indemnity by the Great
Council. The University of Paris sent letters to the Pope*
the Emperor* and the College of Cardinals explaining that
Joan had been executed through zeal for the Christian, faith
(p. 271).
Murray also published the names of those convicted
of being witches in Great Britain. Among her findings
(p. 255) were that none with Saxon names was convicted*
none with the name of "Mary" was convicted before 1645*
and the preponderance of those convicted bore the name of
"Joan" or a derivative such as "Jane*" "Janet*" "Jeanne*"
"Jonnet*" etc. She drew no conclusions about this last
finding. Murray did say* however* that the scarcity of the
name of "Mary" before 1645 would indicate that at that time*
Christianity was not the dominant religion.
De Beauvoir (1952/19 6 8) unerringly encapsulated the
issue:
81
It is Christianity which invests women anew with
frightening prestige; fear of the other sex is one
of the forms assumed by man’s uneasy conscience. . . .
Evil is an absolute reality; and the flesh is sin.
And, of course., since Woman, always remains the Other,
it is not held that reciprocally male and female are
both flesh. (p. 16 7)
It is obvious that De Beauvoir was not speaking of the
philosophy of Jesus but rather of the Church as an institu
tion because she continued by describing the paranoia of
the Church Fathers on the subject of women.
The myth., which in. primitive times was the basis of
awe and fear,, was protean. It came to include Eve the
Temptress and Eve the Helpmate. But with Paul’s stress on
celibacy and the growth of asceticism, Eve the Temptress
grew to gigantic proportions. The conflict was intolerable.
Churchmen were caught in the theological question of
Jesus' having been born of a woman who herself had been
born of a sexual union. Furthermore, she had given birth
to "mortal" children. These factors were suppressed or
rationalized into nonexistence. G-reat stress was placed
on Mary the Virgin, who became a docile, sexless apparition
of a woman. Gradually the belief of the immaculate concep
tion developed because Churchmen needed to believe that.
De Beauvoir said that Mary lost on two accounts--
her status as a wife and her position as a mother when she
accepted the subordinate role of being inferior to her son.
She continued, "The supreme masculine victory was in the
82
Cult of the Virgin* in which women, were rehabilitated by
being defeated” (p. 1 7 1)•
The counter-reaction culminating in the Cult of
the Virgin did begin to lift the burden of guilt* and the
harsh brutalities of life began to soften. Knighthood and
chivalry spread new values. Also some learned men in the
Middle Ages were known for their belief in the humanity and
intelligence of women. Three of these men were the Arabian
scholar* Averroes (1126-1198); the reformer Petrus Bosco
(c. 1230-1342); and William of Ockham (? - c. 1440). Such
men urged freedom for women* gave recognition to their
potential for government when educated and praised their
competence in the professions when allowed to study (Hardee*
p. 3 6 0). Also Erasmus (1466-1536) believed that high-born
women should be educated.
During the height of the Cult of Mary* powerful and
learned women rose to be heads of the abbeys. They were
the intellectual equals of the best men of the time. Many
women congregated in the abbeys* which gave them opportu
nities for education and service to God. Power (1975* PP«
8 5-9 1) says that in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries
the education of nuns must have been good. Sisters in the
convent of Helfta* in Germany* wrote scientific treatises
in Latin* for example. Though famous women stand out by
name--Christina* Euphemia* Julian* Gertrud the Great*
Saint Claire* Saint Agnes* and Saint Douceline--numerous
83
nuns found, opportunities within, the convent that they could
not have found outside. Convents provided women of gentle
birth a respected career when the only alternate was mar
riage to a man almost never of their own choosing. Fur
thermore,, nunneries were a boon to families with several
sons and daughters to launch into the world and to dower.
Daughters of the poor became lay sisters. Convents also
made substantial contributions to the surrounding villages
or towns other than education and social work. The needs
of the convents themselves gave work to villagers. Some
of the congregations also were run somewhat as manor houses.
At times the Church tried to limit the influence of
the abbeys* ordering them not to start schools or to accept
pupils. In 1970* Paul VI belatedly acknowledged the stat
ure of two great women by giving them the title of "doctor
of the Church"--Saint Catherine of Sienna* and Saint Teresa
of Avila. Hitherto* such titles had gone only to men.
Power (1975* P* 30) wrote that it has been argued
that the prominent role women played in heretical or near
heretical movements was a reaction against their lot as
women. A manifestation of this in a religious order was
the Bbguin.es* founded in France by Saint Douceline* an
order that took no vows. The Waldensians^ the Lombardians*
and the Albigensians were three heretical groups in. which
84
women were active. Innocent III, aided by the Capetian
king, with great brutality suppressed the Albigensians and
wiped out nthe vibrant civilization of Southern France,n
according to Hollister (1964, pp. 171-172).
In addition to women such as above, during the
Crusades women virtually ran the countries, which were
drained of men. They managed the great estates, operated
schools, and performed governmental functions. Of course
many names are outstanding, but the mass of lesser women
were always doing the innumerable jobs necessary for the
survival of society in trades, crafts, shops, and commerce.
One of the most remarkable people ever to have
lived was Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122?-1204). She was the
granddaughter of William IX, Duke of Aquitaine and Count
of Poitou. William became the First Troubadour, and his
court a literary center. Eleanor married King Louis VII of
France and took troubadour ideas to the northern court.
She went with Louis on the Second Crusade. They had two
daughters. Eleanor and Louis were divorced, and she mar
ried Henry Plantagenet of Normandy, heir to the British
throne as Henry II. To this marriage were born three
daughters and five sons, two of whom became kings, Richard
the Lionhearted and John. Her vast interests made a defi
nite impact on English life.
85
Wearied of Henry’s infidelities,, Eleanor left him
and established a literary center at her court in Poitiers.
Later she supported her sons in an attempted coup against
Henry., who had her confined for many years. Then her
daughter Marie, child of Louis VII, took her place as chief
patroness of courtly love. Marie’s husband., Count Henry of
Champagne* was the head of the most powerful feudal house
in France. He himself was interested in chivalry. Their
court became a center for men such as Chretien de Troyes
and Andrew the Champlain (Painter, 19^0, pp. 123-125).
When Richard became king of England, Eleanor
resumed her active life and interests. While he was on
the Third Crusade and during his capture, she ruled England
and her French possessions, worked to raise the ransom for
his release, and forestalled a plot against his throne by
John. Later she brought about a reconciliation between
John and Richard (Columbia Encyclopedia, 1963, p. 6 3 8).
A younger contemporary of Eleanor was Blanche of
Castille (II8 5?-1252), who ruled France during the infancy
of her son, the future Louis IX, later Saint Louis. She
also exerted much power during his reign and while he was
on the last Crusade in Africa, where he died. Blanche then
ruled with her son Alphonse until her death two years later.
She helped to thwart the attempts of Henry III, son of King
John of England, to regain some of his parents' possessions.
86
Blanche was instrumental in founding the Cult of the Virgin
and in sponsoring courtly love (Columbia Encyclopedia,
1963, p. 229).
Christine de Pisan was a French poet and writer of
Italian descent (1364-c.1430). Her father had believed in
education for women., and she was deeply enmeshed in the
ideas of the Renaissance. Left a widow with three children
at the age of 25, she was able to support herself by writ
ing. She wrote lyric poetry., verse romances, and prose.
Also she grasped the importance of granting rights to the
poor in order to foster a sense of nationhood. Christine
formed an association composed of men and women to fight
against the open and veiled misogyny in literature. She
used her great talents to dignify women and to plead for
their education, pointing out that it was clerks who wrote
wicked books against women and asking where in the Bible is
there mention of a woman who forsook Jesus (Power, 1975,
pp. 31-34; Columbia Encyclopedia, 1963, p. 1671).
Chaucer (l340?-l400) had the earthy Wife of Bath to
say (Nicolson, 1934, p. 329):
By Cod, if women had but written stories
As have these clerks within their oratories
They would have written of men’s more wickedness
Than all the race of Adam could redress.
The dawn of the Renaissance saw the birth of human
ism, and there gradually emerged a Renaissance woman as
well as a Renaissance man. Beard (1946/1962) gave a
ST
veritable catalog of distinguished women, of the late Middle
Ages and Renaissance. According to her., the reason that
subsequent centuries did not know of these women was "due
in no small measure to the neglect of women by historians,
both Catholic and Protestant, and their persistent habit of
publishing men as if they had made all the history worth
noting" (p. 255)-
One of the most famous women of the day was Olympia
Morata, considered the intellectual equal of any man of that
period. She died at a young age on her way to Heidelberg
to teach the classics. Women also taught at the Universi
ties of Bologna and Padua.
Queen Isabella sponsored the birth of the Univer
sity of Salamanca and the University of Alcala., commission
ing Lucia de Medrano to teach at the former and Francisca
de Lebrija at the latter. In Catherine of Aragon, Mat
tingly (1941) described Isabella, a ruler in her own right
and called "King of the Castilles." Neither she nor Ferdi
nand had much formal education, but she became well-
schooled in handling troops on the battlefield and diplo
mats at court. Isabella was determined that the Crown
Prince Juan and the three princesses become educated.
Since Isabella was a ruler herself, she saw no difference
between the intelligence of men and women and organized a
court school. In addition to an intellectual education,
88
the princesses had to learn the graces associated with
high-born ladies as well as the skills of the common people
and how to manage great households. Isabella herself stud
ied whenever possible, becoming proficient enough in Latin
to handle official documents., but she never grasped the
essence of humanism.
Thus it was that Catherine, the youngest daughter
of Ferdinand and Isabella, and future wife of England's
Henry VIII, became one of the best educated women of her
day. Her parents' court had been a court-in-transit in
their attempts to bind their kingdoms and prevent secession.
Catherine's formal and informal education helped her to
weather the years of misfortune in England. Once when
Henry was at war in France, Scotland invaded England.
Catherine led the army and repulsed the attack. A few days
later, she lost a baby boy by miscarriage.
Catherine also organized a court school, employing
the humanist Luis Vives, whose ideas on feminine education
were revolutionary for that day. The Queen asked Thomas
More to translate Vives' treatise on feminine education into
English so that the ideas would be more widespread. More's
daughters doubtless were among the best educated women in
England. Catherine also urged noble women to begin or to
broaden their education.
Henry VIII too was well educated and a musician.
He personally instructed young Mary Tudor in music. We can
89
only speculate what forces in Mary's life enabled her to
withstand the pressures to have her half-sister Elizabeth
executed when the former became queen. Once Elizabeth was
in the Tower and near to the scaffold.
In spite of strong opposition from learned socie
ties^ Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia entered the presti
gious University of Padua at the age of 26. Her parish
priest had discovered that she was a child prodigy. By
the age of 17* she could play several musical instruments
and compose. In addition she spoke five languages fluently
other than her own. Later she became proficient In Hebrew.,
Arabic,, and Chaldaic, languages she learned to help her
with her theological studies. It was said that Elena mas
tered the entire body of knowledge of that day.
The Bishop of Padua and Chancellor of the Theologi
cal Faculty would not allow Elena to stand for the well-
deserved Doctor of Theology degree because she was a woman.
He did allow her to receive the Doctor of Philosophy on
June 25* 1678. , the first woman in the world to receive a
doctorate (Fusco, 1975* p. 37)* In addition to her studies,
Elena also did much social work. Her health failed, and
she died at the age of 3 8.
Eventually Elena's memory sank Into oblivion. For
the three-hundredth anniversary of the awarding of her
degree, plans are being made to restore her tomb and to
display the statue of her which her father commissioned for
90
her grave but which has long been stored in an out-of-way
place at the University. One cannot help but wonder if
Elena Cornaro Piscopia would have fallen into oblivion had
she been a male with those priceless gifts., or would they
have been recognized and cherished from infancy. What
philosophical writings., inventions, or musical compositions
might the world now possess had eons of restrictions not
conditioned both society and Elena about woman’s role?
According to Beard (19^6/1962, p. 267) . , the artist
Van Dyck said of Sophonisba Anguisciola that he learned
more from her even in her blind old age than he had learned
from any man. But Beard fails to mention that Sophonisba
as well as Marietta Tintoretta* both daughters of famous
artist fathers., were not allowed to attend the academy and
were taught by their fathers. Their self-portraits show
strong women, not the usual passive and clinging stereotypes
of women painted by most male artists of that age (Edwards.,
Heath., & Baskins., 1972., pp. 188-190). Did prejudice and
social convention rob the world of great works of art?
In A Room of One’s Own (1929/1957) j Virginia Woolf
succinctly creates a vivid picture--and self-portrait--of an
artistic temperament striving for an opportunity at expres
sion. She concluded that a "Mary Shakespeare" would have
been impossible because woman's work is cut out for her in
the nursery. Though with inherent genius, she "would have
91
been thwarted and hindered by other people, so pulled asun
der by her own contrary instincts, that she must have lost
her health and sanity” (p. 5 1).
Woolf committed suicide in 19^1 at the age of 59*
More than thirty volumes of her work have been published,
some posthumously. This gifted and sensitive woman had a
tortured life, and suffered from bouts of insanity. Some
of her earliest memories were of being sexually abused by
a teenage half-brother, and she was too frightened to tell
of these occasions. Her mother died when she was 13. Her
father would not let her and her sister receive an intel
lectual education, but eventually he did allow them to use
his library. It was when her aunt left Virginia 500 pounds
a year that she was able to stay in London to study and
write.
The Protestant Reformation was a giant step in
raising women toward equality with men. But Martin Luther
believed women to be inferior to men and that their place
was in the home as mother and helpmate. Not only did
Luther make sweeping generalities about the physiques of
men and women, but his non saquifurs are ludicrous:
Men have broad shoulders and narrow hips, and
accordingly they possess intelligence. Women have
narrow shoulders and broad hips. Women ought to
stay home; the way they were created indicates this,
for they have broad hips and a wide fundamental to
sit upon, keep house, and bear and raise children.
(Moore, 1971* P« l)
92
John Calvin raised women above the level of mere
procreation though he was rigid and puritanical. John Knox
was the misogynist of early Protestantism; especially was
he vitriolic in his denunciation of women in power. Mary
Tudor first drew his diatribe: "A woman, [that is] promoted
to sit in the seat of God, that is to teach., to judge., or
to reign above man is a monster by nature" (O’faolain &
Martines, 1973* p. 263). Reminded that Elizabeth I might
aid Protestants against Catholics, Knox agreed to support
her if she admitted that God had given her an "extraordinary
dispensation which both nature and God's laws deny to other
women" (Ridley., 1968, p. 309). Knox long kept a running
battle of actions and words against the Queen, but he was
afraid of her and avoided direct confrontations.
In 15^1* Henry VIII had proclaimed that the Great
Bible, an authorized English version, be made available in
every parish church. Two years later Parliament forbade
"women and ignorant persons" from reading the Bible, even
In the home (Ridley, 1968, p. 30l).
In his study, The Elizabethan Woman, Camden (1951)
wrote:
The Elizabethan woman was a special representative
of her sex. The rise of the middle-class, with its
own culture together with the changing attitudes
implicit in the Reformation, brought forth a new kind
of woman who could not be ticked off and classified
in the same easy way as her medieval sister. (p. 9)
93
Elizabeth I, on the throne for 45 years, was highly
cultivated and educated. She learned well the lessons
taught by the lives of her mother, step-mothers, and half-
sister. Her intelligence and actions had a profound effect
on the spirit of the times and the roles of women. Writ
ings of the period indicate that men were starting to look
at women with new eyes. There was a growth of educational
opportunities for girls at all levels and an acknowledgment
that women needed higher education. Extant records show
that women managed great estates, ran breweries, dairies,
printshops, and bakeries. Some belonged to guilds and were
allowed into the guilds of their deceased husbands if they
could do the work. Some women took out patents to operate
coal mines. In most instances, the home and places of work
were coterminous. Women were beginning to appear as people
and legal entities. Shakespeare's plays reflect the vibrant
spirit of the age and depict witty resourceful women such as
were found in ancient Greece. But the themes in The Taming
of the Shrew no doubt show the expected attitudes of the
good wife.
James I, coming from the more backward Scotland,
embittered, prejudiced, influenced by John Knox, and
asserting the divine rights of kings, tried to contain the
ferment of the period. There was a sharp rise in the con
viction of "witches. , T In 1590, when a storm endangered a
94
ship on which his bride was coming from Denmark., witches
were blamed. In this instance the hapless witch was a man.
After having been brutally tortured,, he confessed to having
sent 100 witches to sea in a sieve to cause the storm
(Coleman, 1972., p. 33)* James ranted constantly against
the insolence of women, their clothes, and their short hair
For a woman to be cultivated and educated was not as impor
tant as for her to be able to spin (Figes, 1970, p. 69).
As James could not block the tide of change,
neither could his son, Charles I, enforce High Church con-
formacy by procedures that violated common law. Opposition
to his efforts brought cruel punishment, even mutilation.
Queen Henrietta Maria, a Catholic from France, was pressing
for relaxation of laws against her religion. Fearing sup
pression of liberties and a return to Catholicism, many
Puritans fled England, 20,000 coming to North America.
Charles was decapitated in 1640, and Great Britain became
a fiefdom of Oliver Cromwell and his council of narrow
Puritans.
Colonial Woman and the Emerging
American Woman
The Great Milton, often pointed to as the intellec
tual giant of England, considered that God made a mistake
when he formed woman. In Paradise Lost (Book X) Milton
expressed his prejudice in lofty and poetic lines:
95
0 why did god
Creator wise, that peopl'd highest Heaven
With Spirits Masculine, create at last
This noveltie on Earth, this fair defect
Of Nature, and not fill the World at once
With Men as Angels without Feminine,
Or find some other way to generate
Mankind? (p. 3^6)
When Milton had to depend on his wife and daughters
to read to him and to write for him during his blindness,
one cannot help but wonder what he then felt about the
inferiority of women. Did he ever reverse his opinions?
Did he ever wonder how much more comfort they could have
given to him had he allowed them full opportunity to grow
intellectually? Obviously, Milton shared some blood with
the Church Fathers.
But notwithstanding, Protestantism in all of its
shades helped to advance the cause of the common man,
bringing into the world for the first time a middle class
of people, and women played an important role. In North
America this role was to flourish because of the confluence
of a number of fortunate circumstances. Benson (1935)*
O'Neill (1969)* Smith (1970), and Spruill (1938) pointed
out that the role of the Colonial woman was multifaceted.
Under the Puritans, marriage became a social contract, and
woman was considered man's helpmate rather than just his
shadow. Women worked in almost every kind of craft and
work, especially if they were widows. They operated tav
erns, ran printing presses, published newspapers, and
96
objected when they did not have a voice in the laws that
affected their business.
Spruill .(1938* PP« 272-275) wrote of the women in
the Southern Colonies and the broad scope of their activi
ties in medicine. Midwifery was considered one of the most
important professions in the colonies. Men did not begin
to include - obstetrics in their practice until medical
schools started to rise in the eighteenth century. At
least one midwife sat on every case involving accusations
of infanticide, and the midwife’s work was accepted in
cases involving illegitimacy. Women also practiced surgery
and handled other medical problems.
Spruill based her research almost entirely on pri
mary sources. She found that from the beginning adventure
some women came to the colonies of their own will, not as
wives or future wives. In Maryland, for example, women
heads of family were treated as men. They were given 100
acres of land and a certain number of acres for each child
and servant. In 1638, the Maryland Assembly voted to take
away land from "spinsters" who did not marry within seven
years, but Lord Baltimore vetoed all bills passed by the
colonials.
"Mistress Margaret Brent, Spinster" was one of the
most remarkable women of the Colonial Period or since. She
arrived in Baltimore with a sister and two brothers in
97
1 6 3 8. Between 1642 and 1650, her name appeared In public
records at least 134 times. She was often called upon by
family and friends in power of attorney. Margaret saved
the colony from insurrection when Lord Calvert * brother of
Lord Baltimore, was in England. Before Calvert’s death,
he made Margaret his executrix. During this time, she
demanded the right to vote, but the Assembly refused her
request, this in spite of the fact that the delegates had
written to Lord Baltimore a letter praising her: "We do
Verily Believe and in Conscience report that it was better
for the Collonys safety at that time in her hands than in
any mans else in the whole Provence after your Brothers
death" (Spruill, 1938, p. 24o).
For political reasons, Baltimore upbraided Margaret.
It had become expedient for him to show some animosity to
prominent Catholics because of the Puritans in English
government. His excuse was that Margaret had sold some of
his sheep without permission, but she had needed this money
to pay the soldiers of the colony. The Brents moved to
Virginia with no public record of their activities there
after extant.
The most outstanding woman planter was young Eliza
Lucas, whose father put her in charge of his South Carolina
plantation while he was on military duty in the West Indies.
Eliza was only 17 years old. She practiced scientific
98
farming* analyzed soil conditions* developed new plants*
set out hardwood forests* and processed indigo from plants
grown on the plantation. Through her efforts* indigo
became a major source of income for the colony.
Throughout the colonies* unmarried women and widows
had relative freedom* but married women became one with
their husbands. This concept had its roots in the Bible
and was compounded by Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws
of England. Upon marriage man and woman became one flesh*
and the wife lost herself in every sphere because her hus
band could act for her. From this came the law that a
wife could not be forced to testify against her husband;
to do so would be tantamount to the husband's testifying
against himself. In Blackstone's opinion* a woman's very
being or legal existence was suspended during marriage* or
at least Incorporated into that of the husband (Beard*
1946/1962, p. 89).
The Puritans’ concern that each person be able to
read the Bible encouraged education for all* but a different
kind of education was adopted for boys and girls. Many
fathers took a special Interest in the intellectual educa
tion of their daughters* but in most instances it was
believed that girls had a different kind of intelligence*
and such intelligence was to be trained for one purpose--
wifehood and motherhood. For example* Cotton Mather care
fully planned his daughters' education* but it was quite
99 .
evident that he did not consider their intelligence equal
to that of boys. Systematic moral training and housewifely
skills constituted education for girls. Arithmetic, pen
manship (in order to write on pious subjects), the healing
artSj and perhaps music and language if such did not make
a woman vain were recommended (Benson, 1935^ pp. 110-112).
The Restoration of the Stuarts saw the pendulum
swinging from Puritan concepts of austerity to a round of
relaxed--even dissolute--living. There were bourgeoise
pleasures along with opera and theater. Men of letters
such as Joseph Addison., Alexander Pope., Samuel Johnson,
and Jonathan Swift satirized the shallow society women
whose intelligence had not been developed to participate
in a different kind of existence. They argued for a
broader kind of education for girls and women.
Women of letters appeared in French salons, a cus
tom copied with less success in England. French women
played' a major role in the Revolution, but afterward the
National Convention suppressed their clubs. The Napoleonic
Code completely encased French women, and it was well after
the end of World War II before cracks began to appear in
that wall. This residue of feeling against females was
due in part to the Salic Law, still strongly in evidence
during the eighteenth century as De Goncourt and De Gon
court (1 9 2 7) so vividly depict:
100
The birth of a girl in the eighteenth century
is no welcome event for her family. The house holds
no holiday at her coming; her parents know no rapture
of triumph; she is a blessing accepted as a disap
pointment. For in a world., remember, ruled by Salic
Law, she is not the answer ■ to their prayers and
their hopes; she is not the heir destined to prolong
the name, the fortunes, and the honors of the family;
no, the new-comer is merely a girl, and as such,
before the cradle that contains nothing but a woman's
future, the father stands unmoved and the mother
grieves like a Queen who has looked for a Dauphin.
(p. 3)
O'Neill (1969b, p. 18) challenged the commonly held
belief that the Colonial woman was substantially different
from her English sisters because of the scarcity of women
in the new land. Benson (1935* p. ll) took the same stand:
"The truly American woman, uninfluenced by European ideas,
if she is to be found at all, was found on the frontier,
not in the comfortable homes of the Atlantic seaboard."
It was some years before enlightened thought from France
and England found its way to the American colonies. The
frontier woman was held in higher value, according to
O'Neill. Her courage and capabilities were ever in evi
dence, and it was harder for men to keep repeating the
myth of woman's place, woman's weakness, and woman's dif
ferent --if not lesser--intelligence.
According to Benson (1935* pp. 127-135)* as early
as 1722 young Benjamin Franklin picked up the question of
woman's position and education in his Dogwood Papers,
modeled after the style of the Spectator. He argued,
101
debated., and proposed various ideas relevant to the sub
ject; however, his writings were mainly for the sake of
argument rather than from a belief of woman's equality
with man. But Franklin was more liberal and pragmatic
than most of his contemporaries. The education and advice
that he gave to his daughter reminds one of what was to be
expected of the wife of "Corporation Man" more than a
hundred years later: She was to prepare herself to help her
husband in whatever he undertook in order to get ahead, but
she was to do this in woman's sphere.
Franklin's sister, Jane Franklin Mecom, a woman of
remarkable abilities and personal spiritual resources, had
to persevere through incredible hardships and under burden
some restrictions on women of the day. She died at 86,
four years after Benjamin. Her own life should have been
evidence to him that her intelligence had come from the
same font as his.
Nock (1926/1956, pp. 55-60) encapsulates Jefferson's
philosophy on women and education. Franklin had enjoyed
and used to this nation's advantage his association with
French women, but Jefferson must have looked at them in
much the same way that Greek men looked on Roman women
centuries ago. He was scandalized about their involvement
In politics and their unchaperoned walks. He especially
iisliked Madame de Stael but was forced to be civil to her.
102
Once when discussing republican principles, and
using a town meeting for an example,, Jefferson said:
There would yet be excluded from their deliberations:
(l) Infants until arrived at years of discretion
(2; Women, who to prevent depravation of morals and
ambiguity of issues, could not mix promiscuously in
the public meetings of men (3) Slaves. (p. 57)
Ironically, Jefferson had no sons, only three girls.
Once he wrote to his daughter Martha that her happiness
would depend upon her continuing to please a single person,
her husband. To daughter Maria he advised that she should
never differ in will from her new husband. According to
Jefferson, "American women have the good sense to value
domestic happiness above all other, and the art to culti
vate it beyond all other" (p. 5 8).
In her letters Abigail Adams (Rossi, 1973&) showed
her concern for the rights of all people and a chaffing
against the power of husbands over their wives. She was
especially concerned for the vast mass of women with uncul
tured husbands or drinking husbands, realizing how even
women of her own status felt under restrictions the husbands
held over them by law. Wife-beating was still legal then,
and for decades afterward. When John was at Philadelphia,
she wrote to him (pp. 7-1 5).
In the new Code of Laws, I desire you would remem
ber the ladles and be more generous and favorable to
them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited
power in the hands of husbands. Remember that all
men would be tyrants if they could. (pp. 10-11)
103
John answered., "Depend upon it. We know better
than to repeal our Masculine systems" (p. ll) . He added
that he could not help but laugh at Abigail's suggestions
and linked women with "disobedient children, apprentices,
Indians, and insolent Negro slaves" (p. ll). He ended his
letter on a patronizing note., telling Abigail that men did
not dare give women any more power because they already had
"ascendancy over their hearts" (p. ll).
Abigail Adams often expressed her feelings about
the position of women to her friend, Mercy Otis Warren.
Mercy wrote plays and satires about issues surrounding the
Revolution, and her history of that struggle was long con
sidered one of the best. John Adams was angry with her for
the way she depicted his part during those years.
What role did the Colonial woman play during the
Revolutionary War? They were politically active with meet
ings and writing letters and pamphlets. They talked to
women whose husbands were undecided about the change. They
pledged not to buy English goods. At times as many as 60 ■
would meet to spin so that homespun and linen woven in the
colonies would cut down on British imports. One organiza
tion based in Philadelphia but with branches in New Jersey
and Maryland had raised $300,766 by 17 80. They had planned
to give the money to the soldiers, but Washington suggested
that they buy cloth and make shirts instead. This they
did (Benson, 1935* p. 252).
104
Furthermore* women served in Washingtonrs army.
Linda DePava* George Washington University history profes
sor* said* "Officials tried to keep the ratio to no more
than one or two women for every fifteen men* but they never
could" (California Commission on the Status of Women*
August 1975 Newsletter* p. 5). Women foraged for clothing
and food* were scouts* spies* and logistics officers as
well as medical workers. Perhaps these particular activi
ties stayed alive in the oral tradition for awhile* but it
never reached the history texts of American children or
youth.
Thomas Paine probably was the first American to
argue openly for the rights of women. In the August 1775
issue of The Pennsylvania Magazine* he deplored the condi
tion of women in this vein (Hahn* 1974* pp. 20-21):
Even, in countries where they may be esteemed the
most happy* women are constrained in their desires in
the disposal of their goods* robbed of freedom and
will by laws* the slaves of opinions* which rules them
with absolute sway and construes the slightest appear
ance, into guilt* surrounded on all sides by judges*
who are at once tyrants and their seducers. . . . Who
does not feel for the tender sex?
In 1790* Judith Sargent Murray published a satire*
"On the Equality of the Sexes" in the Massachusetts Maga
zine. The wife of a Unitarian minister* she wrote under
the name of "Constantia." Her arguments echoed those of a
few enlightened people before her and many after her. The
work grew into three volumes before she acknowledged her
105
authorship (Benson., 1935.* pp. 175-177; Rossi., 1973&.J
pp. 16-24).
At the end of the seventeenth century, a small
anonymous volume appeared in England titled An Essay in
Defence of the Female Sex: In a Letter to a Lady. The
author wrote that man's power first grew over woman Because
of his superior strength. In a style somewhat like that of
Aristotle., she clearly reasoned that education is the key
for differences and praised the educated Dutch women.
Though never identified., the author was reputed to be one
"Mary Astell" (Gurko, 1974,, p. 9).
The promises of the American and French Revolutions
struck a sensitive response in the hearts of English femi
nists. They believed in the force of reason and its culti
vation. To them, male supremacy was but another type of
political tyranny. The pioneer voice of feminism from a
woman’s pen was that of Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797).
Her life and writings were a passionate plea for human
rights.
Wollstonecraft first wrote A Vindication of the
Rights of Man in defense of a male friend and the French
cause against an attack by Burke. In his Reflections on -
the Revolution in France, Burke had attacked democratic
principles and wrote that "a woman is but an animal, and
an animal not of the highest order" (Wollstonecraft, 19 67).
106
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman soon followed in
1792--300 pages in six weeks. Though needing some editing.,
the book gives ample evidence of Wollstonecraft1s vast
knowledge., and insight of personality. The book became the
bible of American feminists.
According to Figes (1970., p. 102)., one reason for
the writing of the volume on woman’s rights was that Woll
stonecraf t was attempting to reconcile the dichotomy
between Rousseau’s Social Contract and his Emile. The
ennobling concepts of the former contrast * strangely with
the concepts of the latter in terms of "woman's role." In
Figes ’ opinion., Wollstonecraf t could not wholeheartedly
disagree with Rousseau because she was his "child."
Wollstonecraft blamed women for allowing themselves
to be kept in an inferior state. She pleaded for education
of women that they might be better teachers of children and
thereby advance noble causes. She advocated universal
public coeducation and the teaching of physical education.
She asked for the recognition of normal sexual feelings of
women and that dignity be returned to them. This perceptive
woman clearly saw the possibility that the woman who had
been taught nothing but how to please a man would turn to
other men when she no longer pleased her husband. In
essence., she asked a trenchant question: "When summer is
oast., what dominant faculties could woman cultivate to
comfort herself?" (p. 60). Wollstonecraft believed that
107
"Women have missed the useful fruit of civilization"
(p. 104). She also recognized the analogy between women
and slaves: "Is one half of the human race, like the poor
African slave, to be subject to the prejudices that brutal
ize them?" (p. 218).
Wollstonecraft became the wife of socialist William
G-odwin four months after a child was conceived by him. The
/
child., Mary., became the future wife of Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Previously Wollstonecraft had given birth to another girl
child., the result of an unwise love affair which caused her
to attempt suicide. Wollstonecraft died of complications
from Mary's birth. Her troubled personal.life fed the
fires of anti-feminists, who saw in her death a just reward
for her beliefs and actions. After her death., G-odwin pub
lished her memoirs, including her love affairs and suicide
attempt.
Tomalin ("Ms. Prometheus, " 1975) believed that G-od
win misunderstood the meaning of Wollstonecraft 1 s life and
death. Though considering her a tragic heroine, Godwin
failed to give credit to her intellectual development and
to the quality of her ideas. One hundred and fifty years
later, De Beauvoir (1952/1968, p. 190) was to write that
the woman who would not follow the rules of society was
felt to have returned to nature and demons, and cruel pun
ishment is heaped on her.
How did European visitors see American women?
Frances Trollope., a cultivated Englishwoman, spent three
years In the United States from 1827 to 1 8 3 0. One of her
purposes in coming here was to set up a business to recoup
the family fortunes. This project did not come out as she
planned, however, but she traveled widely through the
states.
In these meanderings, she observed actions and
characteristics of people in various sections. These she
recorded in Domestic Manners of the Americans (1832/1949).
She noted that single women had amazing freedom to travel
any place alone and unafraid, but that married women became
helpless nonentities, not allowed to handle their property
or earnings, ignored by their husbands at balls and dinners,
and spending an extraordinary amount of time in attending
revivals, reading novels, and fretting over clothes.
Trollope viewed middle-class American women as behind their
English sisters. She wrote, T , In America . . . women are
guarded by a seven-fold shield of habitual insignificance"
(p. 6 9).
Harriet Martineau, an English liberal and sociolo
gist, was in America in 1832-1834. She indicted the coun
try in this manner (Rossi, 1973h):
If a test of civilization be sought, none can be
so sure as the condition of that half of society over
which the other half has power, from the exercise of
the right of the strongest. Tried by this test, the
American civilization appears to be of a lower order
than might have been expected from other symptoms of
109
its social state. The Americans have., in the treat
ment of women, fallen below* not only their own demo
cratic principles* but the practice of some parts of
the Old World. (p. 125)
Martineau recognized that women’s intellect was
confined by lack of education* and nothing was left for
them except marriage. Women were given indulgences as a
substitute for justice. Martineau also was struck by the
inordinate amount of time women spent in religious activi
ties and saw the analogy between the position of American
women and that of slaves. She visited the mills at Lowell*
Massachusetts during their "model" days (Weisberger* 1961*
p. 84).
Although interspersed with trips abroad and to the
West Indies* Fanny Wright spent several years in the United
States. A wealthy Scotchwoman* she was intelligent* charis
matic* restless* beautiful* perceptive* and a powerful
speaker. Even as a girl she had read all that she could
find about this country. Born into a poor but socially
minded family* her wealth came through relatives who cared
for her when her parents died. It- was interest in democ
racy that made her go to France to visit LaFayette. When
he came to the United States in l823.» she visited with him
and Jefferson at Monticello.
Wright discussed with Jefferson plans for freeing
the slaves and educating them. Later she stumped the
country tirelessly* lecturing as many as three times a day
110
against slavery and revivals and for the education of
women. She was bold enough to say that interracial mar
riages would help to wipe out racial prejudice. In Ten
nessee she set up a school to teach Negroes., but it failed
because of the swampy location and the pronounced senti
ments against her and the school. In New York this dynamo
of a woman helped to organize free public schools for the
poor, founded Sunday schools, set up medical clinics,
sponsored political action groups, and founded and edited
a newspaper.
Wright was the first woman to speak openly in
America on free love, rights of women, and freedom for
slaves. She was not considered respectable because of her
viewpoints, and at times her life was in danger. A favor
ite epithet hurled at her was "harlot.” Frances Trollope
heard Wright speak and commented on her brilliance, elo
quence, and beauty. Of Fannie Wright, Rossi (1973b) said:
"Two decades before sermons and lectures of northern abo
litionists, Fannie Wright saw slavery, not as a sin but a
social cancer that would corrupt the young democratic
nation" (p. 99).
Wright died in Scotland in 1852 of complications
from a fall. Previously her husband, a Frenchman, had
tried unsuccessfully to gain possession of her estate under
American law. A girl baby was born of this union.
Ill
Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America was
published in 1835* In this long and perceptive study of
America,, the author gave a penetrating insight into customs
and attitudes surrounding girls and women. It is impos
sible to reduce his analyses to a few lines. Like^Trollope,
he was struck by the differences between single and married
women, describing them in this fashion (1835/1986):
In America a woman loses her independence forever
in the bonds of matrimony. While there is less con
straint on girls there than anywhere else, a wife
submits to stricter obligations. ... I have no hesi
tation in saying that although'the American woman
never leaves, her domestic sphere and is in some
respects very dependent within it, nowhere does she
enjoy a higher station. ... If anyone asks me what
I think the chief cause of the extraordinary prosper
ity and growing power of this nation, I should answer
that it is due to the superiority of their women.
(p. 579)
Margaret Fuller (1810-1850) has been called Amer
ica’s counterpart to John Stuart Mill, but Parrington called
her the female counterpart to Cotton Mather, "precocious,
domineering, moody, given to long hours of greedy reading,
gorging herself on books" (1927, v. 2, p. 428). Her father
worked his way through Harvard and was knocked from first
place in his class because he espoused some unpopular cause.
He was a stern man. Though allowing no deviation in the
role of women as far as his wife was concerned, he recog
nized Margaret's precocity and pushed her beyond the limit
causing her health to break. He supervised every aspect of
her life, even her clothes. She was not allowed to play
112
with children. After her death., one of her brothers tried
to rationalize some about their father’s actions. He also
i
wrote that Margaret’s intelligence was such that their
- father did not thoroughly comprehend, that she needed to
be dissuaded from books rather than prevented from partici
pation in sports of children (Rossi* 1973b* p. 146).
Margaret became friends with intellectuals on both
sides of the Atlantic. She was the first editor of Dial* a
literary journal* being followed by Emerson. She became
a reporter for Horace Greeley. Later she went to Rome to
cover the Italian Civil War* but Greeley helped to finance
her until gossip reached him that she was living with a man.
This man was a minor Italian nobleman* Ossoli* 10 years
younger than herself. He was penniless* but he apparently
filled some void in her life. The two* along with their
baby son* were drowned off Fire Island* New York* when
their ship sank. Margaret refused to go to a lifeboat
without Ossoli. Her manuscripts were lost* including the
history of the war in Italy* which she thought to be her
best work.
Fuller’s book* Woman, in the Nineteenth Century
(1855/1971) is said to have been the first American book to
recognize that the liberation of man and of woman both are
part of the same cause. She wrote* "As men become aware
that few men have had a fair chance* they are inclined to
113
say that no women have had a fair chance'1 (p. 24). She
deplored the implications of sexist language, arguing that
such terms as "old maid" and "old woman" are contemptuous,
and pointing out that one did not hear "old bachelor"
(pp. 98-99).
Parrington (1927* v. 2) wrote that Margaret Ful
ler’s defense of the rights of women was the first reasoned
exhortation since Wollstonecraft's 50 years before. In his
opinion, Fuller’s written work is inadequate to explain the
impact she had on her time:
Her quick mind seems to have been an electric
current that stimulated other minds to activity. . . .
The deeper failure of her career . . . was a failure
that may be charged against the narrow world that
bred her. Perhaps no sharper criticism could be
leveled at New England than that it could do no bet
ter with such material, lent it by the gods.
(pp. 426-427)
Margaret was several months pregnant before she was
married, and bits of gossip had already reached the United
States. After her death and before those who opposed her
ideas could besmirch her, distinguished men of letters
came to her defense, in effect saving her reputation. Of
this Fuller Parrington wrote: "Her sex was a heavy handicap
for the experience of Fanny Wright and Lucretia Mott had
revealed that American chivalry had definite bounds; it
did not shield the woman who ventured beyond the pale"
(p. 428).
Undoubtedly, the best-organized and most eloquent
114
plea for complete equality of the sexes came in final form
from the pen of a man. John Stuart Mill published The Sub
jugation of Women in 1 8 69* In his introduction to a cur
rent edition., Robert Carr says that the book "stands
unchallenged as the most distinguished intellectual monu
ment the cause has yet produced" (1970, p. v).
According to Duncan Crow (1971* P* 186), Mill had
been persuaded to support the woman's cause by his wife and
her daughter. Harriet Mill had previously published an
article on suffrage for women. Mill incorporated her ideas
into the book, written with her help between I85I-I858 but
not published until after her death in 1 8 69* In 1965* Mill
had introduced the question of woman's suffrage in Parlia
ment. The bill was defeated 196 to 73* but the prestige
of Mill's name and his persuasive words caught the attention
of educated minds on both sides of the Atlantic. Long
before as a teenager, Mill had run afoul the law by passing
out material on birth control on street corners.
It is difficult to choose a thought from Mill, so
succinct is the writing and with every sentence a quotation.
According to him, the whole gamut of woman's problems may
be attributed to the type of education that she received--
brought up either as an "odalisque" or as a "domestic ser
vant." De Tocqueville had remarked on the willingness of
women to accept their lot, but Mill explained why this is
so (1869/1970):
115
All causes, social and natural, combine to make
it unlikely that women should be collectively rebel
lious to the power of men. They are so far in a posi
tion different from all other subject classes, that
their masters require something more from them than
actual service. Men do not want solely the obedience
of women, they want their sentiments. All men, except
the most brutish, desire to have, in women most con
nected with them, not a forced slave but a willing
one. . . . They have therefore put everything in prac
tice to enslave their minds. . . . The masters of women
wanted more than simple obedience, and they turned the
whole force of education to effect their purpose.
(p. 16) .
Beard (1962, pp. 117-132) has traced the effect
that common law has had on the subjection of women. The
erosion of women's rights began under the tug between the
people and the Crown after the Restoration of the Stuarts.
Sir Edward Coke, a leading jurist of the day, compiled
arguments in favor of common law against chancery law,
under which equity had a stronger hold. Blackstone picked
up the argument in his Commentaries on the Laws of England,
the bible of governmental and political leaders of Colonial
America. Beard wrote that Blackstone deceived generations
of laymen and lawyers of both sexes by the way he treated
married women and pronounced their civil death.
Spruill (1938/1966) found that the custom of keep
ing property in possession of the male was so strong that
fathers would sometimes will it to brothers or nephews
rather than to daughters. She also pointed out that anti-
nuptial laws also protected husbands at times. For example,
an older Charles Carroll, who signed the Declaration of
116'
Independence, had enough influence in the legislature to
have a special act passed so that a minor girl he was
marrying could "enter into and accept a marriage settle
ment" (p. 365). Carroll explained that the girl came of a
good family but was not favored with money. By law she
would have received one-third of his estate., but Carroll
did not want his property to go to another family.
Furthermore, Spruill found ample legal records to
show how thoroughly women were dependent upon their husbands
during the Southern Colonial Period. And since the same
common law prevailed elsewhere, her findings would apply
to women throughout the colonies. Upon marriage, every
thing that a woman owned, even the clothes on her back,
belonged to her husband. He could use her property to pay
debts he had made before marriage. He too had to make good
her debts, but such seldom happened because girls married
too young to have incurred debts, or else they had none
because women could not obtain credit except as a matter of
good will among friends.
The husband could not sell his wife's land, but she
was not able to sell it without his permission. And once
the land was sold, the money belonged to the husband. The
husband had rights to all rents collected from his wife’s
property. The wife could make no will.
Because of the laws of primogeniture, Washington
had a small estate. He became wealthy through his marriage
117
with the rich widow,, Nellie Custis. Jefferson also married
a wealthy widow., who brought with her personal slaves and
land worth $40.,000. A year later., her father died., leaving
her 40., 000 acres of land and 135 slaves. Within a few
years, Mrs. Jefferson had died. She could leave her three
daughters nothing (Spruill., 1966. , p. 358)- Arlington came
into the Lee family through the same way, marriage.
While excoriating Blackstone and the common law,
Beard maintained that equity was kept alive by prenuptial
agreements, mutual concern of parents for their children.,
and love of husband and father for wife and girl children.
This„ of course, must have been true in varying degrees,
but few people go very far from prevailing customs. In a
critique of Beard's Woman as Force in History. , Carroll
(1972. , p. 1 2 9) wrote that equity provided a limited avenue
of escape for particular individuals who had property or
knew of equity. , but that it did nothing for the vast major
ity of women who were poor, ignorant, and without property.
Woman, and the First Woman' s Movement
Mill (1869/1970) asserted that "everything which
is usual appears natural" (p. 14). Thus it was that the
nuclear family appeared natural in the nineteenth century
when there was the culmination of a changing family struc
ture brought on by urban life and the capitalistic system.
And in this twentieth century, the belief is still that
118
women have always been in the home,, a constantly prevailing
stereotype in spite of ample evidence to the contrary.
Aries (1962, pp. 411-412) contended that before
the sixteenth century people lived in society and not in
the family. The family unit as we know it evolved at that
time., a middle-class with bourgeois standards. By the
nineteenth century, these standards had been thoroughly
assimilated. Men who defended their position and "rights"
thought such had belonged to them for eons. Under this
"natural" system, women stayed home, and men brought in the
livelihood. If the man brought' in enough, the woman became
an object for ornamentation in the Veblen concept. Woman's
home crafts were taken over by factories, her home by ser
vants, her children by governesses, her civil and property
rights by her husband. It is from such women that the
first Woman’s Movement began.
But the myth did not allow room for the poor women
who still had to survive by scrounging for work or selling
themselves--the unmarried women, widows, women and their
abandoned children, and married women whose husbands did
not earn enough to support a family or who were disabled
themselves. The same myth is still believed openly or
unconsciously by many men and women today, i.e., most women
work for luxuries or just because they want to. Deep down,
many men and women feel that "Things ought to be different,
119
like In the olden days when, women stayed home and men
brought in the venison.M That vision never existed.
Today one-half of the labor force consists of
women, and 66 percent of these women are married. There
are six million., six hundred thousand women heads of family.,
an increase of one million since 1970 (Mock, 1974). It is
estimated that only 50 percent of divorced men support
their children. The median pay for women has declined even
as their number in the work force has increased. Women
workers average $4,000 a year less than men, and the gap has
widened considerably over the past 10 years (r , Women Losing
in Wage Race," 1974).
As early as 1914, Walter Lippman wrote that "the
mere withdrawal of industries from home drew millions of
women out of it and left millions idle within it" (p. 1 2 3).
Industrialization affected woman, two ways: It opened doors
to her, and it exploited her. Mitchell (1971* P« 104)
asserted that the rise of capitalism was the root cause of
modern social and economic discrimination. This was the
view posited by Marx and Engels (1888/1967) . *
The less the skill and exertion of strength implied
in manual labour, in other words, the more modern indus
try becomes developed, the more is the labour of men
superseded by that of women. Differences of age and
sex have no longer distinctive social validity for the
working class. All are instruments of labour, more or
less expensive to use, according to their age and sex.
(p. 88)
120
But Karl Marx spoke from a position of hindsight
and from observation of the obscene conditions in Great
Britain. There., it must be remembered, an ancient class
system brought about the abject brutality that Dickens
depicted in his social novels. In no way were conditions
in the United States comparable, unconscionable as they
were.
At least from the earliest days of our country
there were two competing philosophical outlooks about the
way the nation should go in terms of economic survival.
One has but to recall the stance of Hamilton and that of
Jefferson and their separate group of followers. Hamilton
felt the government should protect the infant industry., but
Jefferson pointed to England's system. He believed that
factory workers would be reduced to paupers because of the
workings of human nature'and economic law to "the maximum
of labor which the construction of the human body can
endure, & to the minimum of food . . . which will preserve
it in life" (Weisberger., 19&1* p. 44).
The first factory in the economic sense was set up
at Waltham., Massachusetts. , in 1815 by Francis Cabot Lowell
and his brother-in-law., Patrick Tracy Jackson. For labor.,
they first looked to daughters of farmers. The farmers
were not peasants, and their daughters were not domestic
drudges. They were sturdy and resourceful women who could
121
handle expertly the multiplicity of chores needed in running
a farm. Still., it was hard to eke a living from the thin
New England soil. There was not the idea that they would
work forever in the mill, and hence there would be no "mill
class" such as had evolved in England. The women could,
and did, return to the farm, followed by their sisters.
Respectable boarding houses--like dormitories in
modern colleges--were built near the mills. The matrons
were older women of good name and family. The girls col
lected books, attended lectures by men such as Emerson and
Whittier, edited and published a magazine of their own
literary works, and at least in one instance, bought a
piano. Some of those who contributed to the magazine con
tinued to write after leaving the mill. Others became
teachers, missionaries, and suffragettes (Weisberger, 1961,
pp. 86-87) .
These young women helped to support their families
and to pay off mortages on their father's farms, sent their
brothers to college, and had spending money too. Initially,
they were able to save about nine dollars a month, a con
siderable amount for that day. Still, as far as the posi
tion of women stood under the law, the farms that they
helped to pay for would not come to them upon the death of
their father, and the schools they helped to support through
tuition for their brothers would not admit them because of
122
their "lesser and/or different intelligence."
Factory work was generally more desirable than
domestic service because factory hours allowed for freedom
once the work shift was over. In addition., there was the
stimulus of being part of a group and its camaraderie. But
as Handlin. (1970) noted, perhaps the main reason was that
Americans abhorred the term "servant," insisting on being
called the "hired help," and receiving relatively high
wages. They lacked "the essential attributes of servility
and loyalty" (p. 6l). It was the coming of the Irish that
enabled domestic service to flourish.
And it was the coming of the Irish that caused a
change in the mills. Within 20 years, the idyllic picture
of mill life was distinctly different. Owners found in the
immigrants a constant supply of cheap and docile labor
because of the abject poverty of the Irish. Men began to
replace the native American girls, men who would work at a
lower wage and not demand decent working conditions as did
Americans. As immigrants invaded the textile mills, the
mills lost status; girls and women who could do so went
home.
The first strike by women workers was in Pawtucket,
Rhode Island in 1824, where 105 women struck in support of
fellow men weavers. In 1845 Sarah G-. Bagley founded the
Female Labor Reform Association. She went to the legisla
ture at Boston from the Lowell area to argue for a 10-hour
123
work day for women so that they would have time to cultivate;
their minds (Fogg, 1975).
In The Age of Reform (1955)* Richard Hofstadter
wrote perceptively of the American personality:
A great part of both the strength and the weak
ness of our national existence lies in the fact that
Americans do not abide very quietly the evils of life.
We are* forever restlessly pitting ourselves against
them, demanding changes, improvements, remedies, but
not often with sufficient sense of the limits that
the human condition will in the end insistently impose
upon us. This restlessness is most valuable and had
its most successful consequence wherever dealing with
"things" is involved . . . but in dealing with human
beings and institutions, in. matters of morals and
politics, the limits of this undying absolutist rest
lessness quickly becomes evident, .... While it is
always both feasible and desirable to formulate ideal
programs of reform, it is asking too much to expect
history to move, so to speak, in a straight line to
realize them. (pp. 16-1 7)
In Miller’s opinion (1971)* in that era of reform
several circumstances intermingled and accelerated the
feminist movement:
(l) A socially sanctioned opportunity for exercis
ing their "feminine" virtues outside the confines of
the home, (2) a chance to develop, then exercise, their
talents for organizational and political activity, (3)
a firsthand awareness of the exploitation of the black
race and other social classes--an exploitation to which
they soon compared their own subservience and lack of
suffrage, and (4) a vision of male supremacy and chau
vinism operating even among the reformers themselves. .
. . Because charitable and philanthropic activity was
presumably an emotional sort of thing, and because its
participants received no financial rewards, it seemed
a proper undertaking for women of good standing.
(pp. 6-7)
During that period, especially the pre-Civil War to
the post-Civil War, it became acceptable and laudable for
124
those of "Brahmin lineage" to enter philanthropy without
the deeds being classified as those of the noveau riche.
The noblesse-oblige outlook among the elite in American
society dates from that time. Women moved from being "do-
gooders " and angels of mercy into working for universal
suffrage., higher education for women, abolition, free
public education, temperance, and protective labor laws for
women and children. In addition, they tried to show that
the factory system fostered prostitution, and they strove
to have laws passed that might ameliorate the condition of
prisons, alms houses, and institutions for the emotionally
disturbed.
The ferment of the times brought forth a remarkable
group of men and women who threw themselves wholeheartedly
into the reform movement. It must be said, however, that
many more women were in the vanguard than men. Among the
women were Susan B. Anthony, Lucretia Coffin Mott, Julia
Ward Howe, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Carrie Chapman Catt, and
the five Blackwell sisters along with their sisters-in-law,
Antoinette Brown and Lucy Stone. Others included the Rev
erend Olympia Brown, Frances Gage, Dorothea Dix, and the
redoubtable Jane Swisshelm, who kept up a running battle
with her husband, and was fired from a position in the War
Department by Andrew Jackson.
From the South came the wealthy and aristocratic
125
Grimke sisters, Sarah and Angelina, both of whom worked
tirelessly for years for abolition and women’s rights.
There was also old Sojourner Truth, a freed slave from
New York. The G-rimke sisters were the first "respectable"
women to speak publicly against slavery and for women’s
rights, but they both were denounced by the clergy for not
keeping "their place." Their arguments, especially Sarah’s,
were so clearly thought out that after a time some of the
Protestant clergy began to soften their stand a bit, becom
ing the most open to change of any organized group (O’Neill,
1969a, p. 12).
Among the men in the movement were Samuel and Henry
Blackwell, Richard Hunt, James Mott, Henry Stanton, and
Theodore Weld. Horace Greeley was initially in the group,
but he later fought against the granting of suffrage to
women. Frederick Douglass too was a friend of women and
their causes, but he also retreated about the ballot. Wil
liam Lloyd Garrison was the firebrand, but Theodore Weld was
the brilliant leader and organizer, a huge man with a
magnificent voice which he ruined in speaking (Gurko, 197^.*
P. 43).
Sarah Grimke, the older of the two sisters, had
begged her father to let her receive an intellectual educa
tion, but in vain. He would not even let her use his
library, certain books, e.g., Latin, being especially for
bidden. Neither would he allow her to listen when her
126
brothers were tutored. Angelina was 13 years younger than
Sarah., who was her sister's godmother. Sarah sublimated
some of her frustrations into caring for and teaching
Angelina. As a child,, Sarah had secretly taught her little
slave-companion to read. Every effort was made to impress
on her the enormity of her wrong-doing. The Grirnk^ sons
became men of affairs as their father. Thomas attended
Yale. When the father became ill and had to go North for
treatment., it was Sarah., the dutiful daughter., who traveled
alone with him,, later taking him to the shore in New Jersey.,
and staying alone with him until he died. Sarah never mar
ried., but Angelina became the wife of Theodore Weld and
gave birth to seven children (Lerner„ 1 9 67).
As a girl Elizabeth Cady Stanton became an excellent
horseback rider and mastered the Greek language in an
effort to console her father., who was desolate because his
only son had died. But her father would only shake his
head and say., "If only you were a boy., Elizabeth" (Howe.,
1971* PP- 76-77). Even in her 80s., Elizabeth remembered
the bitter tears she shed about this. Her father did
recognize her intelligence., however. He sent her to Johns
town Academy, where she was the only girl to study Latin.
For three years she stood second in her class and won one
of the two prizes given for Greek. Judge Cady also let her
sit in his law office (Gurko, 197^-). But the fine mind of
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was sacrificed to the culture.
127
De Tocqueville had been deeply Impressed with the
American penchant for associations,, and it was through
associations that thousands of women found outlets to
counterbalance their domestic life and to give some intel
lectual stimulation. Though all women were not necessarily
interested in all reforms or to the same degree, abolition
and suffrage served as umbrella organizations. According
to 0fNeill (1969bj p. 20) , more than half of the 500,000
signatures on the Great Petition to Congress to consider
the question of slavery came from women.
Women naively thought that rights for themselves
and freedom for the slaves were tied together. Those
attending the meeting of the Society for the Abolition of
Slavery in London in 1840 were stunned to learn that they
could not be seated as delegates., and furthermore, they
could listen to the proceedings only by sitting behind a
curtain in the balcony. Some of the American male dele
gates objected vigorously against the refusal to seat the
women. Surprisingly., Henry Stanton., husband of Elizabeth
Cady St ant on j voted against the women. James Mott., husband
of Lucretia., voted for them. Garrison was not there to
vote, but he objected to the decision and sat with the
women. Black delegates but recently freed from slavery
voted against seating the women (Rossi^ 1973th PP. 241-242).
The refusal to seat the women was indeed an irony.
128
But the supreme irony was that some of the men who were so
vocal about freeing far-away slaves and against the seating
of women owned coal mines in which people worked under con
ditions as bad as any slave. In Sybil or The Two Nations
(UNESCO Courier, 1968, pp. 24-25) Disraeli wrote:
Naked to the waist., an iron chain fastened to a
belt of leather running between their legs., English
girls., for twelve, sometimes for sixteen hours a day.,
on hands and knees haul and hurry tubs of coals up
subterranean roads, dark, percipitous and plasy:
circumstances that seem to have escaped the notice
of the Society for Abolition of Slavery. These
worthy gentlemen too appear to have been singularly
unconscious of the suffering of the little Trappers
. . . which is remarkable as many of these unhappy
children are in their employment. See too these
emerge from the bowels of the earth. Infants of four
and five years, many of them girls . . . the earliest
to enter the mine and the latest to leave it. Their
labor ... is passed in darkness and solitude.
Neither did these gentlemen see the children, many
of them paupers from public institutions, run crying to the
factories at 5:30 A.M. with but a bit of bread in their
hands, all they could have to eat until noon, and working
until 7:00 P.M. or later, their fingers bloody from hand
ling the thread, and being clubbed by a man if they wavered
or fell asleep, a man whose job it was to walk up and down
between the rows of machines for just that purpose (Thomp
son, 1969, pp. 126-127). And the gentlemen did not see
the thriving business of prostitution among girl children,
many of whom were sold to the continent.
It was during that London meeting that women began
129
to think more realistically about the obstacles facing
them,, and plans were made to organize women for the work of
helping women. The outcome was the Seneca Falls Convention
of July 19-20* 1848. There was an amazing turnout even
though some women had had to travel several days by foot
or wagon. Because of the large number attending* the meet
ing was adjourned to a nearby Methodist church. No one
would unlock the church door* however. Finally* some man
found an unlocked window* crawled in* and opened the door.
Efforts were made to break up the meeting. Although the
vast majority attending were women* some 32 men came; among
them were Frederick Douglass* Richard Hunt* James Mott* and
Samuel Tillman. Susan Anthony had not become deeply
involved in the Woman's Movement at that time and was not
present*but her parents* sisters* and cousins were there.
Susan's father was a warm-hearted man who believed in
equality for women.
Douglass had long given publicity in his newspaper*
North Star* to the causes supported by the women* including
their own* when many other editors had denigrated them*
calling them "sour old maids* " "childless women*" or
"divorced women." Most of the women were married and had
children* and they certainly were not divorced. Lucretia
Mott had six children* and Elizabeth Cady Stanton had
seven. Sarah Grimkd helped with Angelina's children.
130
Anthony never married but had many offers. She was a
second mother to Elizabeth Cady Stanton's children. The
Blackwell women did not marry. Two became doctors. All
five were well educated.
The Woman’s Declaration of Independence was read
and approved at the Seneca Falls Convention. The document
closely followed that of the National Declaration. One
hundred men and women signed the document., which brought
forth a rash* of calumny from the press. Later some of
those who signed withdrew their names.
During the Civil War., the organizational talents of
women were put to good use. Thousands served in various
capacities., especially in factories., nursing., and relief
work. But men were careful to keep women from leadership
positions. Even though some women actually did all the
high-level thinking and management, men held the titles.
Elizabeth Blackwell and Clara Barton worked on the battle
fields. The experiences of women during the war enabled
them to put some of their knowledge and restless energy to
good use. It was a unifying force for them and a source
for a "heroic myth which echoed down the generations"
(0 •Neill, 1969a, p. 15). O’Neill also noted that Southern
women served their cause in more traditional ways but
idealized them also. Later it was the shared memories of
Northern and Southern women that made it possible for them
131
to unite in organizations such as the General Federation
of Women’s Clubs. In general, however, the Civil War made
little difference in the status of women. Like their
Spartan sisters of old, the women refused to be pushed
entirely back into obscurity, but the analogy stops there.
Disillusion soon swept over them when it became
increasingly apparent that freedom for the slaves did not
mean freedom for them. From the men came a cry that was
to rise to a crescendo: The hour belonged to the black man,
the recently freed slave.’ There was no answer to the
trenchant question put by old Sojourner Truth: ' ’ What about
the black woman’s hour? Ain’t I been a slave too?" At
that time Sojourner was more than 80 years old, having
been free for 40 years. In this speech in 1867. , she said
that if colored men got their rights and not the colored
women, things would be just as bad as before. She reminded
the audience of the many chains binding women, noting that
in the years when she worked in the fields she and "the
German women" kept up with the men but received one-half
as much pay. Of men she said, "You have been having our
rights so long, that you think, like a slave-holder, that
you own us" (Schneir, 1972, p. 131)•
Though he was to write in his diary later that
freeing the slaves had been peculiarly the work of women,
even the liberal Frederick Douglass opposed suffrage for
132
them at this new twist of the myth, the prejudice being
camouflaged again.
After the Civil War, alliances were dissolved and
realigned* Some prominent women, Catherine Beecher, for
example, never believed in the ballot for women. Though
she never married, she saw women's role as mothers and
moral examples for their children. She worked indefatigably
for the setting up of the common school system and believed
teaching to be the best work for women. T , Less radical suf
fragists" such as Julia Ward Howe, Lucy Stone, her husband
Henry Blackwell, Wendell Phillips, and Abby Foster, among
others, agreed to give the black man his hour, but they
envisioned woman’s hour as coming soon. This group focused
on obtaining the ballot at state level. With headquarters
in Boston, they united under the American Woman’s Suffrage
Association led by Henry Ward Beecher.
The more determined group, based in New York and
led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, attacked the system that made
women economically dependent upon men. They perceived that
no real value was placed upon women’s domestic work because
it could not be defined in terms of economic value, a view
that is but now being dimly perceived and appreciated.
This group aimed at an amendment to the Constitution to give
the ballot. Their organization was called the National
Suffrage Association. To this group belonged Susan B.
Anthony., Anna Howard Shaw* Carrie Chapman Catt* and
Sojourner Truth.
The women had split into two groups in 1 8 6 9. They
reunited in 1890 as the American National Woman Association
with Susan B. Anthony as first president* followed by
Carrie Chapman Catt. It had become apparent that the
piecemeal approach had been wrong and that the "radical"
group had been on the right track. Especially after the
defeat in Kansas, many women developed a deep distrust of
men's true feelings about the inferiority of women.
Some women became better known for their work in
the social arena than the political one. Among them were
Jane Addams, founder of Hull House in Chicago; "Red" Emma
Goldman* who fought the causes for prostitution* felt by
her to be the result of the industrial system; the immi
grant Ernestine Rose* a woman of rare beauty* active in
trying to ameliorate the conditions of the working woman
and reviled as being worse than a prostitute; Abby Kelly
Foster* also in the labor movement; Mother Jones* ready for
a good fight any time but especially interested in the sub
human lives of miners* among whom were children; sociolo
gist Florence Kelley* widely known for her efforts in
behalf of women and children; Dorothea Dix* renowned for
her work with prisons* institutions for the emotionally
disturbed* and alms houses; and somewhat later* Margaret
Sanger* who fought for birth control.
134
O'Neill (1969b,, p. 130) called Charlotte Perkins
Gilman the most intellectually gifted women in the move
ment. Gilman (1860-1935) 'had a desperately poor childhood.,
and her educational opportunities were not such to help
unleash her potentials. G-ilman's forte was economics.
Her volume, Women and Economics (1898/1 9 6 6) took note of
the changed society of the day but a society still clinging
to old myths. Thousands of women were employed outside
the home,, and the wheels of industry could not turn with
out them. The myth still shouted that woman's place was
in the home, however. Gilman recognized the failure of
society in not providing childcare centers and service
industries that would put cleaning and cooking on a profes
sional basis. Two books among others were: Home: Its Work
and Influence (1903/1970) and Man-Made World (l91l/l970).
Gilman was not able to Integrate role expectations of wife
and mother that denied her selfhood. Psychologically 111,
she left a good husband Charles Stetson and went to Cali
fornia. Later she returned East and became reconciled
with the daughter. At the age of 40, Charlotte married her
cousin, acquiring the name of "Gilman."
Gilman anticipated some of the root causes of the
current welfare system and its attendant evils: women
having to work, their children becoming "door-key kids"
with the key around their neck, often unsupervised after
135
schools becoming petty crooks or worse. It seems Incred
ible that almost four decades after the passage of the
Social Security Act; a deserted wife with children; a wife
with a crippled husband; or a family in which both husband
and wife had to work in order to survive could not make
deductions for childcare on their income tax--reality again
denied. At the same time business men could deduct from
their income tax elaborate entertainment of potential cus
tomers or business friends. This was not rectified until
1974.
For women or families who did not make enough money
for childcare or who had no facilities available; all too
often welfare became the only answer. Even today there
are not enough childcare facilities; and it is a constant
battle with state and national governments to provide money
for them. The economic picture has given rise to the
spectre of the absentee father and the subsequent breaking
up,of the family with ever-mounting social problems.
The same forces that kept women in economic bondage
also kept men there because industry appealed to the male
ego and frightened them with loss of job or lowered wages
by the simple device of suggesting the dire consequences of
equal economic rights for women. Myrdal (1944; Appendix 5)
pointed out that the capitalistic system is guilty of
playing women against men as it played the poor white
136
against the black. During the current 1973-1976 economic
recession, there is a legitimate fear among women that
this same argument will cut into the gains already made.
Furthermore, many black men still ask for "their hour" at
the expense of women, especially black women. And black
women must struggle with their priorities.
When the two factions of the women's movement com
bined in 1890 under the banner of the National American
Women's Suffrage Assocation, Elizabeth Cady Stanton became
the first president. Kraditor (1968, p. 113) called her
the boldest thinker and the most outstanding leader of the
first generation of suffragists. She was the mother of
seven children, editor and writer of part of The Woman's
Bible, and a freethinker who held that the condition of
women was due to the evil influence of organized religion.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony wrote the his
tory of the suffragist movement because they did not think
that a man would do it justice. Anthony had kept every
record and clipping. She did the organizing and Stanton
did the writing (Gurko, 197^-* PP« 278-279).
O'Neill (1969^^ p. 123) believed that Carrie Chapman
Catt was the most admired and most capable suffragist, how
ever. She had broad interests and great executive ability
but relinquished her role as president after four years
because of the illness of her husband. Later she again took
137
a major role in the movement and also founded the League of
Women Voters.
Catt was succeeded by Anna Howard Shaw, personally
recommended by Susan B. Anthony because of her great ora
torical abilities, but that was a mistake. Shaw had little
executive ability, if any. A born rebel, she had not
fitted the stereotype of the picture of what a farm girl
from Michigan should be. She ran away from home and went
to college. Later she went to Boston and studied theology,
becoming ordained. Tiring of the ministry, she entered
medical school and became a doctor at the age of 35- Soon,
however, this restless woman lost interest in that field.
Short, fat, and physically unattractive, Shaw fitted the
stereotype of the unfeminine "man-hating suffragist"
(O’Neill, 1969aj PP- 120-121). The coalition began to fall
apart, and Carrie Chapman Catt again picked up the reins.
O’Neill (1969b, p. 49) succinctly stated the
rationale of the struggle and the reasons for the "expedi
ency " argument s:
The soundest reason for woman suffrage was that
in a free country to deny women the vote solely because
of their sex was unjust, undemocratic, and ought prop
erly to have been unconstitutional. There were, how
ever, only so many ways to state this elementary prop
osition, and having said them, suffragists had to
seek other arguments which would keep the public's
interest and advance their cause.
Suffragists used every argument at their command to gain
the ballot. To the patronizing contention that women
138
should not he soiled by the ballot and its attendant evils
because women are so pure and morally better than men,,
women wholeheartedly agreed. Since women were so much more
pure and morally better than men, that was precisely the
reason why women should become involved in government.
Since there was concern about the vast numbers of immi
grants flooding the country, women candidly pointed out
that their votes would offset those of ignorant immigrants.
On the other hand, women found that the immigrant vote was
turning in their favor. The same argument was used by them
against the Negro vote in the South, viz., that more white
women would vote than black men. Manifest Destiny was in
the air, and some women aligned their thinking with men who
were intrigued by that heady idea. Appeals based on
the Bible were constant.
Rossi (1973b* pp. 47^-^75) gave some indication of
new interests of the second wave of feminists. One of
these was Florence Kelley whose father, a congressman from
Pennsylvania, was deeply interested in industrial processes.
In 1871* he took his 12-year-old daughter with him to visit
the steel mills and glass factories. The young girl found
ner life's work, the helping of people who were considered
of less value than the products that they made. For exam
ple, the "blower’s dog" was a young boy who sat at the
mouth of a blazing furnace in a glass factory. It was his
139
job to keep the blower supplied with hot glass. All day
long the child ran between inferno and blower., who sat back
somewhat from the fire. Twenty years later Florence Kelley
was to see this and similar situations repeatedly.
Rossi (1973b., p. 475) wrote that Kelley was the
first to translate Engel’s The Condition of the Working
Class in England. When Engel visited the United States in
1889^ however,, he refused to meet her, taking her work for
granted and denigrating the Woman’s Movement. His words
belied his professional sentiments.
Florence Kelley and others with her interest in
labor and consumer groups appealed to factory men to under
stand how their own wages were debased because wages of
women were so low and because of child labor. They
believed that the ballot for women would force social
changes. At that time, one-fifth of all workers in fac
tories and "commerce" were women. In a 1905 address
(Kraditor, 1968, p. 277) Kelley asked, "If the mothers and
the teachers in Georgia could vote, would the Georgia Leg
islature have refused at every session for the last three
years to stop the work in the mills of children under
twelve years of age?"
In several states, girls and boys were allowed to
work all night in factories. Children as young as eight
years worked long nights in telephone offices, putting the
I2fO
plugs Into the right openings as the lights flashed a call.
Boys as young as 12 worked 10 to 12 hours a day in coal
mines.
In 1903 a book appeared titled The Woman Who Toils.
It was the account of two well-to-do women, Bessie Van
Vorst and her sister-in-law, Marie Van Vorst. They assumed
the identities of working women, taking various jobs in
New York, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Columbia, South Carolina,
and Lynn, Massachusetts. Bessie's first job was in the
Heinz Pickle Factory in Pittsburgh. On her first day,
she made 70 cents for standing 10 hours, fitting 1,300
corks, and hauling and filling 4,000 jars of pickles. At
that wage, it would take two-weeks 1 pay to buy one outfit
for a working woman.
Bessie wrote of the people she met on the street,
in the boarding houses, and at the places where she worked.
She noticed right off that her very clothes evoked a dif
ference in the way she was treated by merchants and street
car attendants. Among her many observations were these:
"The tragic faces one meets with are of women breadwinners
whose burdens are overwhelming and of the children in whom
physical fatigue arrests development and all possibility
of pleasure" (1974, p. 131).
Marie Van Vorst's father was a New York judge who
was involved in the reform movement which helped to over
throw the Boss Tweed Ring. Bessie, a graduate of Mount
l4l
Holyoke,, had married her brother John. Marie returned from
the mills of South Carolina somewhat more radicalized than
her sister-in-law. She found children as young as six
working in the mills. Her writings are not in the reprint
of the articles by Bessie in the edition listed above.
Previous to the publication of the book, Bessie had
written an article for some journal, and President Theodore
Roosevelt had read it. He wrote her a letter., which she
included in the preface to the volume. She was against the
practice of some women's working who did not need to do so.,
women who worked for pin money or for ornaments. She
recognized that such debased wages. Roosevelt picked up
that theme and excoriated women who did such rather than
marry and have children. He wrote:
But the man or woman who deliberately avoids mar
riage, and has a heart so cold as to know no passion
and a brain so shallow and selfish as to dislike hav
ing children, is in effect a criminal against the race,
and should be an object of contemptuous abhorrence by
all healthy people. (Van Vorst & Van Vorst, 1903/1974,
PP. 1-3)
Increasingly the question of the ballot for women
became inextricably involved with marriage, divorce, pros
titution, and free love. Many men accused the suffragists
of being anti-marriage, pointing as proof to the number of
educated women who did not marry. It was true that edu
cated women had been reluctant to marry or married later,
thus having fewer children. As women’s property acts were
142
passed* educated women showed less hesltance about mar
riage. Women could not escape noticing the high correla
tion between a high birth rate and a high infant and
maternal mortality rate., however. Margaret Sanger was not
the first to speak of this nor to advocate birth control.
Whatever the reason for divorce,, the divorced woman suf
fered great social condemnation and was not free to dis
appear into another state or city as was the man. Some saw
the rise in prostitution as a function of the miserly wages
and hum-drum lives of working girls and domestics* e.g.*
Emma Goldman and Havelock Ellis (Goldman* 1917/1970* p. 22).
A new concept of "purity” gradually crept into the lexicon
of feminists: more continence in the family and out.
Parrington encapsulated the essence of the complex
question:
Freedom for black slaves was one thing* but free
dom for women— the loosening of social convention--
suggested terrifying eventualities like free love and
the disruption of the family. They would countenance
no such immoral freedom and under the leadership of
young Anthony Comstock the forces of reticence and
respectability made ready to do battle with the new
liberations. (1927^ v. 3* p. 75)
The cries about the sanctity of the home* the moral
force of the woman* and the great responsibility of the
woman as the savior of society by staying home and out of
degrading public life became a mounting crescendo. The
hysteria of Comstockery was to be matched only by the hys
teria of McCarthyism more than a half century later. The
143
country could, not look calmly at the sexual Issues even in
marriage. There was ruthless censorship of books; discus
sions of dead literary figures who had had extramarital
flings or alliances were decried even, in "literary socie
ties." Social unrest involving immigration and religious
bias, rising unionism, the Pullman strike, Manifest Des
tiny, war with Spain, evolution, and a move from the coun
try to the city were part of the forces that made the need
for -home to remain a symbol of security.
During this time, two remarkable sisters appeared
on the scene, mercurial Tennessee Claflin and her beautiful,
talented, and unstable sister, Victoria Woodhull. They
entered politics under the aegis of Commodore Vanderbilt
and edited a magazine, Woodhull and Claflin's Weekly.
Victoria was the first woman to speak to Congress. She
spoke on woman's suffrage. They were interested in free
love for both sexes, bizarre philosophies, and feminism.
During the rising wave of anti-Catholic feeling, engendered
in part by the large number of Irish immigrants, the two
sisters spoke out against such prejudice. They were for
the principles of Manifest Destiny. Victoria ran for the
presidency against Grant. Frederick Douglass was her run
ning mate. Because she could speak so eloquently, she was
taken into the woman's movement with open arms, another
mistake on the part of leading feminists--and of.-a moreharm.;-
ful consequence than the welcoming of Anna Shaw.
144
Victoria did not hesitate to carry the battles over
her interests in person or via the press. When Horace
Greeley said that he was against the ballot for women
because,, in his opinion., the position of feminists was tied
to free love, Victoria accused him of wrecking his wife and
causing death to five of his seven children. Then she
attacked "lecherous editors" who had tried to seduce her
because they knew of her.views; however, she said that
Greeley had not been one of them (O’Neill* 1969b* p. 26).
The cause celebre was in 1871 when Victoria spoke
in Carnegie Hall. By that time* many of her former friends
and acquaintances were hesitant to be associated with her*
but she was introduced by Theodore Tilton* a respected man
and still her friend. Victoria talked of her position in
regard to the double standard: She was against it. Next
day and for weeks afterward* waves of vitriolic attacks
were launched against her. The opprobrium apparently
tilted her psychological balance.
Several months later* Victoria wrote an article
attacking the hypocrisy of many of those who had attacked
her* specifically telling of an affair between the most
famous minister of the day* Henry Ward Beecher* and Eliza
beth Tilton* the wife of Theodore. Tilton sued Beecher and
lost. A broken man* he went to England* as did Tennie and
Victoria. The latter married a wealthy Englishman. At
145
intervals* she visited the United States. Parrington
(1927* v* 3) said* r ! Little Libby Tilton . . . would go
blind with weeping before the candle of her life went
out" (pp. 13-14). The affair apparently did not hurt
Henry Ward Beecher., however.
This episode was the death knell for a national
amendment, and many women turned again to the state level
for the ballot and also spent more time on social reforms.
Some women, however, continued to push for the national
amendment, Susan B. Anthony among them. As it turned out,
her judgment was the wiser. Western states adopted suf
frage ^ but such made little, impact because there were few
women in the Western states. Wyoming had granted suffrage
as a territory in 1890* Colorado in 1894., and both Idaho
and Utah in 1 8 9 6. Fathers of the Church of Latter-day
Saints (Mormon) did not give the ballot to women because
they believed in woman's equality with man; it was a matter
of expedience in hope of keeping political control at a
time when many non-Mormons were moving into Utah.
Many voices continued to be raised against the bal
lot* using whatever argument they thought would prevent
such a calamity. The fields of psychology and psychiatry
were coming into fore* and these new sciences set the cause
of women back beyond calculation. One of the most powerful
voices against the ballot was from a traditional enemy* the
146
liquor interests. Women's antipathy to alcohol was closely
tied to the legal restraints against them in that they and
their children were virtually owned by the husband. He
could spend his money for drink., and few jobs were opened
to women. Even if they worked, and even if the children
worked, the money belonged to the husband. Countless men
brutalized their wives and children under the influence of
alcohol, and society provided little or no protection.
Many respectable and socially prominent women also organ
ized and petitioned against the ballot, e.g., Mrs. William
T. Sherman.
The first property act for women was passed in
Mississippi in l839.> the next in New York in 1848. Gradu
ally all states passed some kind of laws, but the first
one considered a landmark decision was in New York in 1865*
It gave women the control of their earnings and a say in
decisions concerning their children. Even now ancient laws
discriminate against women. In some farm states, e.g.,
Nebraska and Illinois, a woman has to pay state income
taxes on the property of her husband at his death on the
basis that her work, even on the farm, is of no monetary
value. The husband pays no taxes on her share.
As the clouds of World War I appeared, women argued
that the granting of suffrage would aid the war effort.
They threw themselves into all the activities related to
the war. Wilson was at first hostile to giving the ballot
147
but was gradually persuaded that Its passage would be
timely. Even then much effort went into the struggle for
ratification. In 1971* the age of 7 8. , Suzanne LaFol-
lette wrote a brief account of her life for Rossi (19735)*
Of a woman’s parade in which LaPollette participated in
Washington the day before Wilson’s inauguration, she wrote:
The view was appalling. There was no division
between the parade and the crowd., and the crowd was a
seething mob of men who surged around the struggling
marchers, shouting obscenities. There were few police
in sight, and those who were in sight were making no
effort to control the crowd. It was an obscene spec
tacle., and it lasted for hours. (p. 539)
Six months later, 600 policemen lined Pennsylvania
Avenue while 300 women marched relatively undisturbed.
Though not treated so brutally as their English sisters,
94 American women, were jailed for chaining themselves to
the White House fence. Some of those who would not eat;
were force-fed. Charges against them were dropped.
The closing years of the struggle was like a monu
mental finale with all the excitement, energy, and exhila
ration pouring into a final, tremendous assault. There
were countless meetings, speeches, articles, confronta
tions, and the women grew as individuals and groups. On
August 26, 1920, 131 years after the ratification of the
Constitution, women received the right to vote.
Only one woman from the original suffragists lived
to cast her ballot, Antoinette Brown Blackwell, the woman
denied a degree in theology from Oberlin. Born in 1825
148
and dying in 1921* she stayed active during her long life.
The majority of the women from both the first and second
waves .lived to ripe old ages* keeping their zest for their
interests. Though hampered by cataracts* Elizabeth Cady
Stanton wrote until her death in 1902 at the age of 85.
Her last week was spent in writing a paper to President
Roosevelt in argument for women’s suffrage. At age 84*
Susan B. Anthony spoke to a great audience in Berlin. At
age 8 5* she made a trip to Oregon. She died at 86 years
(G-urko* 1974* p. 299). O’Neill (1969b) estimated that
two million women took part in the struggle* "making it the
greatest independent political movement of modern times"
( p . 7 7).
But the ratification of the ballot seemed anti-
climatic. Women’s emotions had been at such a high level
for so long and the chase so exhilarating that when the
goal was accomplished* they felt a psychological letdown
that was perhaps analogous to that of the slaves after
having been emancipated. Martha Griffiths* Congresswoman
from Michigan for the past twenty years* said that the big
gest mistake that the women made was not having gone right
into politics and running for office.
Emma Goldman was one of the very few who clearly
saw the distinction between suffrage and liberation. She
noted that* though women in Colorado had had school suffrage
149
since 1876. , the salaries of women teachers were lower than
in California. She pointed out that it was a horrible
indictment against woman's care and interest if there were
in Denver alone 15^000 defective school children. She
reminded suffragists that in 1903 mine owners had waged a
guerilla war against the Western Miners' Union and that
there was a reign of terror, under the command of the
National Guard, but that women had helped to defeat the
liberal Governor Waite and put in a man favoring the mine
owners, Governor Peabody. Emma also said that woman's true
emancipation would not be through the courts nor the polls.,
but that woman would have to loosen herself from prejudice,
traditions, and customs through inner regeneration (Gold
man, 1917/1970).
Emma Goldman was jailed and fined many times for
advocating birth control, sexual liberation for men and
women, and social justice. Born in a Russian ghetto in.
1869^ she was brutalized by her father and mother and made
to feel responsible that she, the first-born, was not a
boy. When her father tried to marry her off at age 15.,
she ran away, eventually finding her way to the United
States. She became a radical after the Chicago Haymarket
Square bombing. In 1920 her citizenship was revoked when
her former husband's was taken away. Emma fought the Bol
sheviks in Russia and participated in the Spanish Civil War.
150
She died in Canada in 1940 and is buried in Chicago by
those killed in the Haymarket shooting (Shulman*. 1970).
Before the women could rouse themselves from their
slump* the Great Depression set in* however* and the need
for survival blotted out any reforms promised by the ballot.
Women whose families are near to starvation do not think
first about political office* but certainly they did not use
their ballot wisely. Almost immediately the holocaust of
World War II claimed all the energies of the nation. Once
that was over* the stress was again on the security of the
home* and women who had made airplanes and taught men to
fly them again settled into their traditional roles.
Though the ballot did not bring the expected
reforms* an accomplishment may have been that protective
laws were passed for women and children. Some women fought
against such laws* seeing in them an admission of inferi
ority* and the language of'such laws often reflected such
prejudice. In Muller vs. Oregon 208 U.S. 412 (1908)* the
Supreme Court upheld an Oregon law of 1903 providing a
maximum hour protection for women* citing woman's "maternal
function*" and her "disposition and habits of life*" and
the need to "protect her from greed as well as the passions
of men" (Van Vorst & Van Vorst* 1903/1974* p. iii). In
1926 Suzanne LaFollette wrote:
One would naturally expect that the conditions
which move people to seek protective legislation would
151
move them to question the nature of an economic sys
tem which permits such rapacity that any class of
employees require to be protected from it. (Rossi.,
1973b, P. 541)
Other women saw working conditions so brutal that
they felt the laws were justified. An amendment against
child labor passed Congress,, but there was such an outcry
against it by factory owners and business and mining inter
ests that the Supreme Court declared the amendment uncon
stitutional. The National Catholic Welfare Organization
had worked for the amendment, but the Boston archdiocese
had fought it. Eventually, the Supreme Court was persuaded
to strike down all laws protecting women, and it was not
until the Second New Deal that the Court again ruled in
favor of them (O’Neill, 1969b, pp. 232-239).
Franklin D. Roosevelt appealed in person to thir
teen governors to help pass minimum wage laws for women and
children. A study of Mrs. Roosevelt’s life clearly testi
fies that many of the reforms advocated by the President
were the result of Mrs. Roosevelt's prodding and interests.
Roosevelt also appointed the first woman cabinet member,
Frances Perkins. Social conditions have changed greatly
since the passage of protective laws under the Roosevelt
Era, but those same laws have become the basis for new dis
crimination against women and children, and indirectly
against men also.
152
Women have worked for an equal rights amendment
since 1920. In every Congress since 1923, such an amend
ment has been introduced. The drive was not so intense
during the Great Depression, World War II., and the ’ ’ domestic
fever" following the war. But a new Woman's Movement picked
up steam in the early 1960s. New laws, court decisions,,
and reinterpretations of existing laws have caused a revolu
tion in civil rights for minorities., including women. Con
trary to what is claimed by some, the Woman’s Movement is
not a by-product of the push for civil rights for blacks
and other ethnic minorities. The fight of the women,
originally white., middle-class women as in the first move
ment, did not involve the violence of the ethnics' strug
gle., and thus did not attract widespread attention.
From the days of the Puritans, there has been a
commitment to education in this country. Boys and girls
attended common schools, dame schools, and academies. A
very few girls attended Latin grammar schools, the basic
school for college. Opportunities for girls were vastly
different from those of boys. When boys were tutored at
home, some fathers allowed girls to sit in on the lessons.
Higher education for women was impossible for decades.
Curti and Nash (1965^ p. 88) listed a number of
factors conducive to the growth of higher education for
women: (l) the acceptance of natural rights spread from
153
the political to the social sphere, (2) the influence of
Quakerism, (3) increasing need for public school teachers,
(4) more lucrative fields for men, (5) heady social ideas
of Jacksonian Democracy. Curti and Nash contended, how
ever, that even such magnetic factors as these could have
done little to advance education for women had it not been
for philanthropy. Paradoxically, in some instances the
men who had exploited the factory girl now became the
benefactors in establishing colleges for women.
It is difficult to pinpoint the date for the first
college for women because of the curriculum. In all too
many instances, contributions would not have been forthcom
ing had the donors suspected that collegiate level courses
were being taught. Sometimes both secondary and collegiate
courses were offered. Emma Willard opened a secondary
school in Troy, New York in 1821. The first woman’s col
lege to award degrees was the Wesleyan Female College in
Georgia in 1836, but the courses probably were not of col
legiate level. Mary Lyon founded Mount Holyoke Seminary in
1837. Initially it was a secondary school whose head had
the title of "principal.M Mary Lyon worked indefatigably
to collect money for the school. Donations ranged from
six cents to a thousand dollars, and she was criticized for
"improper behavior" for asking for money. She envisioned
the school as a school for teachers.
154
Oberlin.., founded in 1833^ was the first college to
admit blacks and women. Much is made of this* but the
truth is that the college was in dire financial difficulties
and needed students and money. Black males were admitted
before women., and both black and white males rebelled when
women were allowed to enter. Women were admitted in. 1837.
The previous year was the only year in which there was no
college catalog., presumably because the school could not
afford it. According to Brubaker and Rudy (1958., p. 402)*
women, students were promptly put to work scrubbing* waiting
tables* and mending the clothes of male students.
Lucy Stone went to Mount Holyoke for 3 months but
had to leave because her mother was still distraught over
the death of two of Lucy's sisters. It was four years
later before she could continue her education., entering
Oberlin at the age of 25 with 70 borrowed dollars. At the
age of 12* Lucy had taken over the doing of the family
laundry,, among other chores., was apprenticed to make shoes
at four cents a pair., and had to give the money to her
father. This money helped to send Lucy’s brothers to col
lege. Prior to going to Mount Holyoke* Lucy had picked
berries to buy books which her father would not buy. She
began to teach at age 16 for four dollars a month and board.
At Oberlin* Lucy worked in the kitchen for three cents an
hour., tutored blacks., and taught men but recently freed from
155
slavery. They rebelled at being taught by a woman. Even
ignorant black men felt superior to an educated woman,,
but she eventually won them over. Lucy nearly starved at
Oberlin. Her father was not a cruel man; he just believed
in woman's inferiority and the laws that kept her there.
When Lucy Stone was at Oberlin,, women were not
allowed to speak in public. She used to go into the woods
to practice secretly. Years later when her own daughter
was a student at the same institution, Lucy was asked to
write a speech for a man to deliver for her since women
still could not speak in public (Flexner, 1968, p. 30).
At Oberlin a dual degree was offered for women.
In 1856, 229 women were enrolled in the ’ ’ladies ’ course,, "
and only 20 in the college course (G-oodsell, 1924, p. 25).
No doubt, some of the women took the ladies’ course because
they did not have the financial backing of their parents.
This course entitled the women to teach in public schools,
but the system had not then gotten underway. Few positions
were open to women, and those that were paid from one-third
to one-half the salary of men. The degree in theology was
not open to women either. Antoinette Brown (Blackwell) did
all the work for the degree, but it was not conferred.
Antioch (founded in 1 8 52) was coeducational from
the beginning. Horace Mann was the first president. Both
Andrew C. White and Ezra Cornell were willing to admit
156
women upon the founding of Cornell (1 8 6 5) but were afraid
to do so. Some students and faculty thought that the school
would be discredited in the view of older universities if
women were admitted (Brubaker & Rudy., 1958j p. 68). Roches
ter (founded in 1 8 5 0) did not want women at all but agreed
to admit them if they could raise $100., 000. Eventually the
trustees were persuaded to lower the amount to $50.,000., a
sum they still believed impossible for the women to raise.
The money was to pay for the "innovation" of teaching women
students. Women raised $40., 000. The money was due in the
nands of the trustees by a certain day. Susan B. Anthony
hurriedly worked and got pledges to finish the amount. The
trustees looked over the pledges and disavowed one worth
$2.,000. In anger, Susan put up her life insurance for the
amount, and the trustees had no alternative but to accept the
funds (Curti & Nash, 1965* p. 103).
Johns Hopkins (founded in 1 8 7 6) resisted the
entrance of women as long as it could. There was concern
because the medical school had not opened. Dr. Martha
Carey, daughter of a Johns Hopkins trustee, saw a possible
chance for women to be admitted on an equal basis as men.
She and some friends organized a committee whose purpose
was to raise a large amount of money and offer it to the
aniversity for the medical school provided women were
admitted. By the latter part of 1890, the fund amounted to
$100,000. The trustees accepted the money on the terms set
157
by the women., but Gilman did not think that it was enough
for a first-rate medical school. He suggested $500., 000.
By 18'92 the amount was in hand, more than $354., 764 of the
total amount having been given by Mary Garrett. , daughter
of the president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
Seventeen students made up the first class, three of whom
were women (Curti & Nash., 1965^ pp. 103-104).
Martha Carey had graduated from Cornell in 1877^
but no graduate school would admit her for the doctorate.
She received a Ph.D.' summa cum laude in Zurich in 1 8 8 3.
When Bryn Mawr opened in l885.> she applied for the presi
dency., but the trustees were afraid to appoint a woman.
They appointed a man; Martha was made dean with the under
standing that she would be the president behind the scene.
The second year she became president in name.
Martha Carey had been burned as a child., and she
was disfigured and crippled,, physically and psychologically,
A precocious child., she read widely and deeply. The visions
of the "evils" caused by women in history haunted her -and
affected her future relationships with men. She dis
trusted men as presidents of women's colleges. It was her
aim to make Bryn Mawr the equal of Harvard, and all of the
early faculty except Woodrow Wilson had doctorates. One
may wonder if Wilson's experiences around Martha Carey had
something to do with his hostility to the ballot for women
years later.
158
In endowing Vassar (1861)., Matthew Vassar said
(Curti & Nash., 1965^ p. 92): "It occurred to me that woman
having received from her Creator the same intellectual con
stitution as men, has the same right as man, to intellectual
culture and development." This certainly was not the pre
vailing philosophy of the day. Deaf and a spinster, Sophie
Smith received an inheritance of several hundred thousand
dollars from her brother. A minister advised her to open a
school for women and wrote to Yale, Harvard, and Williams
for suggestions. Answers came back promptly: A college for
women would be "foolish., " "hazardous, " "even wicked" (Curti
& Nash., 1965. » p. 92). Smith was founded in 1 8 7 1.
Charles W. Eliot was the President at Harvard when
Sophie Smith was thinking about a college for women. In
his inaugural address of 1869.* Eliot considered the ques
tion of higher education for women in this manner (1869/
1969) :
Equality between the sexes, without privilege or
oppression on either side., is the happy custom of
American homes. . . . The world knows next to nothing
about the natural mental capacities of the female sex.
Only after generations of civil freedom and social
equality will it be possible to obtain the data neces
sary for an adequate discussion. (p. 1 7)
But it was apparent that Eliot was not going to take a step
to help women to gain freedom and social equality. Martha
Carey did not hesitate to tackle Eliot about his prejudices.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology was
founded in 1861., the same year as Vassar. Just as they
159
fought against higher education for women., traditional col
leges fought the concept that useful knowledge has a place
in higher education. The first degree awarded from M.I.T.
was to a woman graduate of Vassar, Ellen Swallow (Mattfield
& Van Aken., 1965^ p. xi).
G. Stanley Hall., graduate of Williams in 1867^
teacher at Antioch., Harvard, and Johns Hopkins (where he
organized the first psychological laboratory in the United
States which was officially connected with a university). ,
and first president of Clark (1889-1920)3 had an incalcul
able influence on psychology and education in this country.
He was the author of several books on children., education,
teaching, and psychology* and he was one of the founders of
the American Psychological Association. Unfortunately for
women and their children., Hall believed that the intelli
gence of women was quite inferior. He cloaked his objec
tions to higher education for them by sweetening the
beliefs of Aristotle and by reinforcing those of Freud
(Goodsell., 1924., pp. 62-64):
Our modern knowledge represents woman as having
. . . differences from man in every organ and tissue. .
. . Her whole soul is best conceived as a magnificent
organ of heredity. . . . Biological psychology already
dreams of a new philosophy of sex which places the wife
and mother at the heart of a new world and makes her
the object of a new religion . . . that will give her
reverent exemption from sex competition and reconcen
trate her to the higher responsibilities of the human
race . . . where the blind worship of mere mental illum
ination has no place.
Hall maintained that higher education would unfavor-
160
ably affect girls and women in regard to menses, and he was
against physical education for them. His influence and
philosophy helped to spread the stories that higher educa
tion was detrimental to a woman's sexuality. Martha Carey
called Hall a sexist.
Prior to i860, only two state universities were
open to women--Iowa and Utah. The Morrill Acts of 1862 and
1890 enlarged opportunities for countless young people,
including women. A perusal of the curricula of the state
colleges and universities, however, often showed that many
institutions still offered only "ladies courses" or dis
criminated in other ways, including admission. By the
early part of the twentieth century, all state universities
except Georgia, Louisiana, and Virginia admitted some women.
It Was not until 1970 that the University of Virginia was
open to women after the United States District Court ruled
that women were denied equal protection of the law.
In addition to separate women's colleges and public
universities, another method for educating women developed.
This was known as the "affiliated or coordinated college."
The first of these institutions was the "Society for the
Collegiate Instruction of Women" at Cambridge, later called
"Radcliffe College." Professor James Bradstreet is credited
with having been the founder of the "Annex for Women."
This institution opened in 1879. Instruction was given by
Harvard faculty even, though the institutions were separate.
161
The idea was borrowed from England,, where the first such
college for women, Girton College, was attached to Cam
bridge (Patton & Field, 1927.? PP. 64-65).
A close look at both schools shows that women were
tolerated more than welcomed. In A Room of One’s Own,
Virginia Woolf (1929/1957.? pp. 10-18) described the affili
ated women’s college at a hypothetical "Oxbridge" where
women could not use the magnificent libraries; where women
could not walk on the grass but men could; where women
dined on soup, greens, potatoes, prunes, custard, and water,
but men dined on soup, sole, duckling, partridge with many
sauces and salads, small potatoes, a special pudding, and
wine. The difference between Harvard and Radcliffe food
may not have been so great, but it was not until 1964 that
Radcliffe women were allowed to use the Harvard libraries.
For the first college women, the difficulty of
attending school was such that only a persevering girl
could make it through. Thus, a feeling of peer support
developed among them, and they were encouraged by their
teachers. But society was not ready to accept the woman
with educated intelligence. About the only positions open
to them were teaching elementary children at salaries much
lower than those of men. Some women entered social work.
A sense of depression usually engulfed the newly graduated
woman.
In 1882, Marion Talbot, a recent graduate of Boston
162
University, organized the Association of Collegiate Alumnae
in an attempt to renew the sense of identity that the women
had felt in higher education institutions. The ACA grew
into the American Association of University Women, now an
organization with more than 187*000 members in 1813 chap
ters. Young women were encouraged by AAUW members to con
tinue their education, and one of the first projects was
the establishment of the scholarship fund. Chapters imme
diately became engaged in improving the quality of life in
various areas. For example, in Boston, the chapter worked
for a better sewage system; and even then, the quality of
the air was of concern, especially in Cleveland and Chicago.
For 30 years Marion Talbot was dean of women and a faculty
member at the University of Chicago, retiring in 1925
("Talbot: Years ahead in women’s equality, 197^").
Woman in Transition
It was during the Victorian Age when industrializa
tion was fast expanding that the myth of woman's place
being in the home reached its zenith. On the English
throne sat Queen Victoria, mother of nine children and the
epitome of domesticity. Privately, Victoria took a rather
dim view of the sexual side of marriage and so wrote to her
daughter Eugenia. She never envisioned herself as the
mother of a large family. When Victoria's eighth child
was born, she allowed the doctor to give her chloroform.
163
This decision was a boon to women, helping to dispel the
myth that to suffer in childbirth was the glory of mother
hood if not the curse of Eve. But Victoria was strongly
opposed to the Woman's Movement.
Not only were women confined to their homes, but
they were confined in their person because of the clothes
they wore, from washerwoman to sofa doll. Physical exer
cise was frowned upon, and clothes prevented it except for
strolls. With her body so bound, it was easy to understand
that a woman should faint so easily, but fainting was
ascribed to her "natural delicacy and weakness," and she
was taught how to faint gracefully.
Science had become a new god, and Sigmund Freud
arose with a new "scientific theory" to explain feminine
neuroses and to enslave women by those neuroses even unto
this day. Freud himself was a product of the Victorian Age,
of a cultural milieu representing centuries of persecution
against Jews, and of a home life affected by these forces
as well as its own personal interactions. His father was
an autocrat and twice the age of his mother. The father
used the family for the displaced aggressions caused by the
outside world. The mother, on the other hand, turned to
Sigmund for the satisfaction of her own emotional needs.
Her life and that of his sisters revolved around Sigmund.
Freud's daughter Anna said that when his sisters'
practicing the piano disturbed Freud's studies "the piano
__z _
disappeared and with it all opportunities for his sisters
to become musicians” (Friedan, 1963^ p. 109). What might
the sisters have contributed to the world had they been
allowed their music?
The brilliant but domineering Freud was intolerant
of his male disciples who did not agree with him; however,
he was less rigid with female disciples. In spite of his
lowly opinion about women, Freud apparently felt threatened
by males. He showered great advantages on his daughter
Anna but would not allow his sons into his intellectual
circle. He could not talk of sexual matters to the sons,
instead sending them to a professional friend for the
”father-to-son chat” (Koch., 1975). Anna Freud has become
world famous, but who has heard of the brothers?
According to Jones (1953^ P* 176)., John Stuart
Mill's attitude about women amazed Freud. Freud wanted to
know how Mill could suggest that married women could earn
as much as men "when the management of the house, the care
and bringing up of children demands the whole of a human
being.” Furthermore, Freud did not see the slightest con
nection in Mill's analogy between women-and "negroes.”
All Mill would have to do to be set right on that score was
to ask a girl "whose hand a man had kissed.” And Freud
continued:
Nature has determined woman's destiny through
beauty, charm and sweetness. Law and custom have
much to give women that has been withheld from them,
165
but the position, of women will surely be what it is:
in youth an adored darling and in mature years a
loved wife. (Jones., 1953^ P* 176)
Freud confused cause and effect, finding in. the
culture that which reinforced his own prejudices. No doubt,
many women symbolically envied man's penis because society
circumscribed them on basis of physiological difference.
Furthermore, even when women had to go to public work in
order to help the family survive, most of her household
chores were still there for her to do when she came home.
Of course, that was but a continuation of what her mother
and grandmother did--help cut the trees, work the fields,
go home to cook and care for the child, and back with her
husband again, or from home to factory to home as the case
may be.
Karen Horney suggested that it is the male who is
more dependent upon the female because in women part of
the sexual energy is linked with the generative process.
Thus men have a vital interest in keeping women dependent
upon them (1967, p. 117). Horney is one of the psycho
analysts who dared to break from Freud’s mold, not so
Helene Deutch and Princess Marie Bonaparte. Freud's dis
ciples enshrined his beliefs and tried to fit women of each
age into the Victorian mold. To his credit, however, Freud
asked his followers to keep searching for answers.
The united States became the center of psychoanal
ytic thought when the war clouds of World War II began to
166
hover over Europe. In addition to his doctrine of racial
purity, Hitler was propagating a corollary: The role of
woman was to be a means of purifying the race by becoming
a breeder if she had the blood lines; if not she was
remanded to the brothel. By subtle propaganda, the Nazi
Party was able to convince enough of the German women to
fall in line.
Friedan (1 9 63) analyzed printed material from the
1930s covering women’s magazines, textbooks, newspapers,
and periodicals and came to the conclusion that women had
been bombarded by male-directed media to believe that
feminity consisted of nothing more than the old prejudices
in a new package, what she called the "feminine mystique,"
the disease without a name but which every housewife
recognizes.
Friedan defined a functional anthropologist as one
who believes that woman’s destiny is dominated by anatomy
rather than that "anatomy is destiny." Of Margaret Mead,
Friedan (1 9 63) wrote, "[She] was the most powerful influ
ence on modern women, in terms of functionalism and the
feminine protest" (p. 135)* For three generations Mead
has had a powerful effect on women and men at every level
of education and in every discipline, as well as laymen
who read popular journals and the newspapers. Friedan
pointed out that Mead’s early writings showed her recogni
tion of the "plasticity of human nature," but in .her latter
167
writings she seems to categorize women according to bio
logical function, holding up the happy South Seas woman
with her children as the acme of happiness. Yet our cul
ture is not as that one.
Mead’s writings seem to bear out Friedan’s conten
tion. For example in Male and Female (19^-9) she said:
The recurrent problem of civilization is to
define the male role satisfactorily ... so that
the male may in the course of his life reach a solid
sense of irreversible achievement,, of which his child
hood knowledge of the satisfactions of childbearing
have given him a glimpse. In the case of women, it
is only necessary that they be permitted by the given
social arrangements to fulfill their biological role,
to attain this sense of irreversible achievement. If
women are to be restless and questing, even in the
face of childbearing, they must be made so through
education. Few cultures have yet found ways in which
to give women a diving discontent that will demand
other satisfactions than those of childbearing.
(p. 1 6 0)
In her own life Mead has not practiced what she
preaches. She does not discuss her own troubled marriages
nor the fact that "Mead" is her natal name. As for role
models, she herself shows that her upbringing is far from
that of the typical American girl, whom she apparently
expects will be happier to "stay put" and have the babies.
In Blackberry Winter: My_Early Years (1972), she said,
As it was, the two women I know best were mothers
and had professional training. So I had no reason to
doubt that brains were suitable for a woman. . . .
And as I had my father’s kind of mind--which was also
his mother’s--I learned that mind is not sex-typed.
(p- 54)
Mead’s paternal grandmother had attended college--
168
unusual for a woman of her day. She had married, had a
child., and became a widow. Having been a teacher before
marriage, she returned to that work, continued to go to
school, but always had to live frugally. Her only child.,
Margaret's father., became an economist. Margaret’s mother
was a sociologist. Her parents met while graduate stu
dents at the University of Chicago.
Writings of distinguished anthropologists, psycho
analysts., psychologists, and sociologists isolate the prob
lem of male-female relationships in current society. Some
of them, unfortunately, continue to fit both sexes into the
same old molds and to pass on the ancient myths in an
effort to alleviate the age-old problems. There is little
recognition that even if there are biological, genetic, and
hormonal differences between male and female, there is
also much overlap between them in these basic areas. Fur
thermore, at different periods in life, they also may be
more or less overlapping. In addition, some of these
"specialists" do not seem to recognize the full implication
of the vast changes wrought by technology with the need and
opportunity for the human race to lead a vastly different
life from what circumstances have dictated in the past.
Some people consider Erik Erikson to be the most
influential living psychoanalyst. Feminists consider him
their nemesis and denounce him in language of various hues.
169
The principal reason for their antipathy is his 1963 essay.,
"Womanhood and the Inner Space" (Lifton, 1965). His thesis
is that woman is fixed by anatomy. He wrote of an experi
ment at the University of California, Berkeley, in which
he gave toys to children in a nonclinical setting. Over a
span of two years, he watched 150 boys and 150 girls play
three times a week. About two-thirds of the girls used
toys to construct interior scenes with low walls. About
the same number of boys constructed exterior scenes with
high walls and mobile objects. Erikson interprets such
play as proof that girls are concerned with inner space
(vaginal) and boys are concerned with outer space (penis
erectus and moving sperm). Although these children were
10., 11, and 12 years of age, Erikson made not one nod
toward environment.
Bettleheim picked up this experiment and in 1965
took it to the M.I.T. Symposium of "Women and the Scientific;
Professions." At the symposium, panelist Vivianne Nachmias
asked Bettleheim if Erikson’s experiment tells us about the
essence of woman or if it is a comment about the essence of
our society. She then questioned that if one granted that
there is validity in Erikson’s experiment, what of the
remaining 25-33 percent of boys and girls? Nachmias then
added that if Marie Curie had been set to work on the
interior of the atom, she might not have made her discovery
(Mattfeld & Van Aken, 1965.* pp. 30-31).
170
Dr. Benjamin Spock ’ s book., Babies and Child Care,
was the mother’s bible for years, but Spock too fell
athwart feminists. During the time of the Vietnam protests,
he became a well-known figure both on the street and via
his writings and speeches. This liberal profile did not
fit with some of his philosophy about women, however. He
admitted that he was forced to make some changes based on a
rethinking of his former stance, even in his baby book.
Dr. Spock (1971) upholds Erikson’s inner-space
concepts, saying those findings cannot be denied. No
doubt if it is safe to say that Erikson’s concepts by now
are firmly embedded in many texts and cerebrums. And Freud
lives on in his disciples.
After World War II, it was a time of ’ ’ togetherness. "
A father figure sat in the White House; there was a bumper
crop of babies; service industries and consumer goods were
designed to release women from household drudgery. Adver
tisements showed how easy it was for a woman to mop and wax
her kitchen floor in high-heel shoes and still be so dainty
because she used a certain kind of deodorant that she could
hop right into the family station wagon with the dog and
start blithely on her rounds of delivering children to
dancing lessons, Little League, Scouts, or whatever, per
fectly relaxed because she knew that back in her shining
kitchen the roast was being automatically timed in her oven,
171
and the dishwasher was there to take care of all of the
dinner dishes while the whole family would be together in
the den to watch the latest contestant on "The Sixty-four
Thousand Dollar Question. "
During this time., women were inundated with advice
from "experts" who kept telling them how to care for their
children. Living among other young suburbanites and with
no older women around to offer advice., young mothers became
increasingly unsure of their capacities as mothers. For
the most part., the "experts" were men, or women who took
their cues from such men. These counselors swung from a
stance in the 1930s which dictated that a child should be
kept on a rigid feeding schedule,, regardless of his metabo
lism, and be let to cry it out, to a post-World War II
position of permissiveness.
For the first time in history, taking care of chil
dren became the major activity for the mother. And the
mother who had to go out to-work was made to feel guilty.
To help her, she was told that It was not the amount of time
spent with the child that counted, but the quality of the
time. Women used the family as a means for their total
satisfaction. Such vicarious living caused a void when the
last child went to school or graduated from high school.
It was this situation that led Phillip Wylie to write The
Generation of Vipers (19^-2) in which he made a vicious
attack on women, showing his own deep-seated hostility and
172
ignoring the formal and informal conditioning that forced
women into such a life, and the legal restraints that kept
them there. College women perhaps thought of something
that Kemal Ataturk wrote: "Housework is the least impera
tive and the least important of women's social duties"
(UNESCO Courier, 1968, p. 26).
Woman and the Second Woman's Movement
World War II saw women involved in almost every
aspect of life, including the Armed Forces. Even during
the first stages of our entrance into that terrible con
flict, latent irrationality and need to continue the myths
were manifest. For example, a year after women had been
allowed to join the Army, a bill opening the Navy to women
was fought by some Congressmen on grounds that American
womanhood would be soiled. This was a blatant insult to
thousands of women in the Army (WAGS) as well as to Army
and Navy nurses throughout the world.
But during the entire war, women in uniform felt
flagrant discrimination. In countless situations, women
did identical work as did men--and often did a better job--
yet men could have dependents, and women could not. A
wealthy man could draw subsistence for a socialite wife,
but a poor woman could draw nothing for a crippled mother
or brothers or sisters dependent upon her. There were
Naval stations where men were put in charge of highly
173
secret codes with little or no background in cryptoanalysis
merely because they were men. Woman officers (WAVES) most
knowledgeable in codes were pushed aside. Thousands of
men’s lives depended upon those codes, in Army, Navy, and
Merchant Marine. When the war was over., at some Naval sta
tions^ men were allowed to "sign over1 ' for a year and imme
diately received the next highest rank. WAVES were allowed
to sign over but were not given the rank; yet the women
were doing identical or more work than the men in the same
department.
Goldman (1973* p. 33) has studied the status of
women in the Armed Forces and has found it consistent with
civilian professions such as medicine., law., and education--
even more so because of the centuries-old perquisites
accruing to the warrior class. General Hershey's attitude
showed utter contempt for women--and* in reality., for thou
sands of men crippled by war.
Historically., the increase in number and expansion
of women’s assignments in the United States Armed
Forces created a resistance comparable with those
found in other professions. . . . The oft-quoted
assertion of General Hershey perhaps overstated the
issue but reflected, in more picturesque language,
the organizational realities. "There is no question
but that women could do a lot of things in the mili
tary service. So could men in wheelchairs. But you
couldn’t expect the services to want a whole company
of people in wheelchairs.'"
General Hershey’s attitude represented that of the
Warrior Class and was identical to that of the Priestly
Class as represented by the remark of Nathan Pusey, Presi-
174
dent., Harvard University. Upon realizing that the draft
would drastically reduce the number of men applying to the
Harvard Graduate School,, President Pusey said, "We shall
be left with the blind., the larae, and the women" (Harris,
1970).
The Woman's Movement has forced some changes in
both the "Warrior Class" and the'Priestly Class." Formerly,
pregnancy meant an automatic dismissal whether or not the
woman was married. Indeed, a woman in. the Armed Forces who
happened to be married to a man with a child had to resign
if the child spent six months of the year with the father.
There is now no discrimination in terms of pay and allow
ances, and husband and wife may work on the same station.
Women are now commanding officers, and some have reached
the rank of "admiral" or "general." Still, women must be
high school graduates to joint the military, but men do not.
Also women are now admitted to all military academies.
During World War II, some women, in education, had
the opportunity to go into leadership positions as elemen
tary or high school principals, counselors, and even as
Instructors at the lower levels of higher education. Once
the war was over, as women retired their places were filled
by men, some of whom were not as qualified as available
women. In some schools and colleges, a differential was
175
made between salaries for men and salaries of women., such
as was made in some states between the salaries of black
and white teachers. Many men were in favor of such differ
ential. During rising enrollment at all levels of educa
tion, men overwhelmingly received the positions., especially
administrative positions., whether or not they were better
qualified. Higher education wa$ the worst offender. As
for administrative positions., only Catholic sisters could
hold such posts.
Women talked about these inequities among them
selves but did not dare to complain aloud. At a time when
few school systems offered tenure, it would be very easy
to dismiss women as being "uncooperative,” to wonder aloud
in a little office chat whether they ’ ’ would not be happier
some place else, ” or to give them such undesirable classes
that their work would be found unsatisfactory or else the
women would resign. Even Sputnik and the challenges from
the Soviet Union and the cry of "ExcellenceJ” in this coun
try made little difference in what expected contributions
of women, could and would be. And the same could be said
about other minorities.
When President Kennedy was elected, for many there
was a sense of exhilaration, a new spirit in the land,
even among women and ethnic groups previously denied full
citizenship. Kennedy did not appoint a single woman to a
position of importance, and Mrs. Roosevelt took him to task
176
for this. Esther Peterson.., then Director of the Women’s
Bureau, urged the President to establish a Commission on
the Status of Women with Mrs. Roosevelt as chairman. This
was done.
The Commission’s report, American Woman, documented
the extent of the discrimination; subcommittees did the
same in specific areas. As a result, 39 states set up
commissions made up chiefly of women, but little was done
because governors perceived the commissions as a way of
paying political debts. Eventually all 50 states estab
lished commissions. Nudged and pushed by women's groups,
the commissions began to take their work seriously. A net
work of communications spread among them and various
women's groups. Eventually, cities and counties were also
establishing women’s commissions, but their growth was
slow. For example, it was not until 1975 that Los Angeles
established such a committee. Furthermore, commissions
are poorly funded.
Since the founding of the United Nations in 19^-8,
the Commission on Human Rights, among other goals, has
worked to abrogate slavery, to improve the conditions
affecting women, and children, and to educate girls and
women as well as boys and men. The 1952 Convention on
Political Rights indicated that there has been little
change in the human condition. The Declaration of Human
177
Rights of December 5, 1963; hid not seem to inspire any
special changes for women. In many countries,, slavery was
still legal,, but girls and women were the principal victims.
Ten years later, Juvigny and Herzog (1973) reported that
40,000,000 in the world have to work. In Iran, for example,,
children as young as 12 years, work in, the factories making
Persian rugs, but the bulk of the rugs come from home
industries and small shops,, where children may be younger.
In March 1968., Annie JIagge, Chairman of the Com
mission on the Status of Women, United Nations, reviewed
the slow gains made by women, reporting that the position
of women in industrial states was little different than.in
1948. The United Nations Declaration -of Women's Rights
was adopted by the General Assembly on November J, 1967.
Annie Jiagge is High Court Justice in Ghana and the only
woman in that nation's court of appeals. In March 1975^
she said that polygamy is the shame and curse of African
women: "Moslems content themselves with four wives. But
in Africa, they have so many they use them as carpets. At
today's prices, I don’t know how any man can afford more
than one" ("Polygamy a Curse," 1975).
Women throughout the world joined in a move to make
the year 1975 "International Woman’s Year" with Saturday,
March 8, being designated "International Woman's Day." In
June 1975; the United Nations convened a conference on
17 B"
women of the world in Mexico City. According to the pat
tern of other conferences sponsored by the United Nations,,
this one consisted of two sections, the official Govern
mental Conference and the Tribune. The two groups met at
different locations, a procedure not understood by many
women who attended. The official section discussed overall
plans of action, and the Tribune considered questions such
as nutrition, education, health, and the entrance of women
into governmental positions.
Many conflicting reports came from the conference
about the confusion and flaring of tempers. Some countries
tried to use the occasion as a platform to castigate Israel.
There was anger because the host country did not have the
keynote speech by women. Major news media focused on
"attention-getting" headlines, and their reporters were
men. The fact that more than five thousand women from 123
countries attended, however, cannot minimize the importance
of the conference even though the priorities of women in
industrial nations bear little resemblance to those of
Third^Wdrld women (Dowling, 1975; Gibson, 1975)*
Some slight changes are taking place for women in
some Moslem countries, and vast changes are taking place
in others. For instance, the late King Faisal of Saudi
Arabia made slavery illegal in 1964 and opened education
to women the same year. Education is still on a segregated
179
basis; however^ and women are not in evidence, living
behind the wall or behind the veil. Even when educated
women from Moslem countries appear in the Western World,
they do not travel as do Western women. In Algeria, women
are subject to arrest for being on the street after dark
and may not ride In a taxi alone. This seems strange in
that Algeria was closely connected with France for so long.
Mrs. Jihan Sadat, wife of the Egyptian Chief of
State, Is a vital force for women In Moslem cultures. She
is half English by her mother. She has spoken openly on
television about her disapproval of the role of women in
her country and broke centuries of precedent during the
Egyptlan-Israeli conflict by visiting among the troops and
in the hospitals. Mrs. Sadat went alone on a state visit
to West Germany. For a Moslem woman to have visited at all
was nothing short of incredible, but to have gone alone on
state matters certainly must have vast significance for all
Moslem women. The Sadats have three daughters. The Queen
of Iran and Princess Ashraf, sister of the Shah, are also
active in upgrading the life of women In their country.
A major problem in all Third-World countries Is illiteracy,
worse in Africa, where 90 percent of the women are Illiter
ate. In Asia the figure is 50 percent, and in Latin America,
it is 26 percent (Gibson, 1975)-
In mid-summer 1966, the States' Commission on the
l8o
Status of Women, met in Washington, D. C. Twenty-eight
women., among them Betty Friedan,, were either representa
tives or observers. Part of the group had already reached
the conclusion that a special organization for women's
rights was needed; others believed that such rights could
be gained through "the establishment." The women were not
allowed to present a formal motion urging the government to
give its attention to sex discrimination. This action
coagulated the women. On October 29^ 1966, 300 men and
women met to draw up bylaws,, elect officers, and define
the purposes of a new organization called the "National
Organization for Women" (NOW). The organization is open to
men as well as to women.
Maren Carden, has written a study of the Woman's
Movement, a difficult task, given its fluidity and many
facets. Carden pointed out that both men and women com
prised the first board and group of officers of NOW.
Friedan was president; Kathryn Clarenbach was chairman of
the board; Aileen Hernandez was vice president West;
Richard Graham was vice president East; and Caroline Davis
was secretary-treasurer. Carden wrote (1974):
They formed a distinguished group which included
seven university professors or administrators, four
federal or local government figures, five state and
national labor union officials, and four business
executives. Seven of these board members had Ph.D.'s,
and one held an M.D.; two were nuns and one was a
minister; four board members had served or were serv
ing on state Commissions on the Status of Women; four
of the board members were men. (p. 104)
l8l
That group of responsible people certainly belles
the picture that the news media foisted on the public. As
NOW’s image began to-unfold,, more conservative women were
attracted to it., many of whom were little more than dues-
paying members. This fact, however, signified the accept
ance of NOW’s goals. Other women’s organizations began to
include projects isolated by NOW into their own actions or
discussions. A vast number of younger women with growing
children became affiliated in neighborhood groups. By
1974, NOW had nearly 40,000 members ("Women’s Fate Affects
Men Also,M 1974).
A term that is heard repeatedly in the Woman’s
Movement is "consciousness raising." Local groups meet to
discuss their dilemmas as wife-mother, alternate life
styles, or male-female stereotypes. The purpose is not to
lash out at men; rather it is to give women confidence and
understanding of the causes of the dichotomy in their
lives. Women also have participated in informal and formal
training in "assertiveness." Having for eons been forced
to walk behind, women need practice in speaking up, in
pursuing rights, in demanding to know "Why?" or "Why not?"
Though NOW has a national charter, it has become a
flexible organization. Members and local groups are urged
to work in areas of special interest to them, and projects
may range from lobbying for certain legislation, to docu
menting discrimination against admission of girls to state
182
universities, to reviewing textbooks for stereotypes in
the local school system. Women have learned to put their
energies on projects on which they have a fighting chance
to effect changes.
NOW’s conference in Philadelphia in the summer of
1975 saw factions appearing over issues considered too
radical or not radical enough. One group withdrew from
the parent body, forming a splinter group called "Woman-
surge," to handle issues of a more controversial nature.
At the same time that some women were accusing Gloria
Steinem of being part of the CIA, the FBI was designating
her a security risk (Campbell, 1975)- Karen DeCrow, a
lawyer from Syracuse, New York, was elected president for
the second time. But DeCrow is not of the persuasion of
Friedan, and there are rumblings of a larger break in the
organization.
The Women’s Equity Action League (WEAL) and NOW are
the two best-known women’s rights groups. In fact, WEAL
split from NOW almost immediately after the birth of the
latter partly over the issue of structure and partly
because NOW took a national stand on abortion. Dr. Eliza
beth Boyer, of Cleveland, headed the break-away group.
They have focused mainly on enforcement of existing laws,
passage of new, non-discriminatory laws, and the opening of
all professional and job opportunities to girls and women.
Some chapters have monitored the counseling given to high
183
school girls and the admission of women to various colleges
and departments within colleges.
The Women’s Legal Defense Fund was incorporated in
Washington in 1971- Its interests are broad., and it has
made legal complaints against various companies because of
pay and promotion. Such cases also have helped men.
A major complaint of women has been that they are
refused credit, or in the case of married women, that
their salary is discounted. Also some lending firms have
asked personal questions about birth-control methods and
size of expected family. The Women’s Legal Defense Fund,
along with many other women's groups, has pressed for major
changes in the area of credit. Some states have passed
laws making the denial of credit based on sex or marital
status to conform with federal legislation and court deci
sions. But the fight is ongoing.
Women who supported the family while coping with an
alcoholic husband have had their car insurance raised upon
separation or divorce on grounds that, in case of an. acci
dent, the jury would be less sympathetic to a divorced
woman. Women who have had credit cards in. their own names
have had them revoked upon marriage. California Attorney
General Evelle Younger told of a woman real estate operator
whom he knew who made $50,000 a year and whose husband was
a ’ ’deadbeat. " The woman could not get credit in her own.
name (Townsend, 1975).
184
On June 5* 1976, Dan Rather reported on CBS 7:00
P.M. News that the Department of Housing and Urban Develop
ment (HUD) had made a study concerning women and credit.
Women who had obtained credit had kept up with their Pay
ments to a high degree, but lending companies apparently
are finding many avenues by which to evade the regulations
and laws. The Federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act took
effect in December 1975. Penalties for violation range up
to $10,000, but the government will try persuasion before
force. The California law is stricter than the federal
law (P. Moore, 1975).
Among other influential bodies in the movement is
the National Woman's Political Caucus, founded in 1971^ &nd
the group with the largest membership. It is an umbrella
organization for women of all political persuasions, races,
and religions, and has some 700 local affiliates. In addi
tion, many other organizations such as the American Associa
tion of University Women, the Young Woman's Christian.
Association, the National Council of Jewish Women, and the
League of Women Voters have been actively participating in
the struggle. Large cities have special groups for local
concerns.
And what of the "radicals" in the movement? Organ
izations encompassing this philosophy come under the
generic name of "Woman's Liberation." The term "radical" is
185
elasticj however, depending on Individual perception and
time. Many men and women argue for equal pay for both
sexes but will be "against women libbers for tearing down
the family structure." On the other hand^ there is a grow
ing recognition for the inclusion of fathers more into the
family relationship and the recognition of the vast social
problems ensuing from recent familial structure(s).
Younger men perceive women in a different light as men have
become more accustomed to having their own apartments and
doing their own cooking and housekeeping. Also they per
ceive themselves in a different light.
Janeway (1971) described the rationale in these
words:
What the new feminists themselves seem to be ask
ing is not a dissolution of the ties between mother
and child., but rather an enlargement of the relation
ship., so that the father gives more and earlier care
than has been usual in our society. (p. 249)
Janeway, among others, interprets the commune movement as a
returning to the older concept of village communities.
Many of the women who are considered radical were
"radical" before they joined the Woman's Movement. As a
matter of fact, the movement merely gave them another
vehicle for expression. Some of these women were of
Marxist orientation, among them being Angela Davis., Roxanne
Dunbar, Evelyn Reed., and the Australian-born Juliet Mitch
ell. The latter lives in England even though she publishes
±85
in the United States. Some of the radical women were part
of the radical student and/or black movements during the
1960sj and like their male companions, some have learned to
work within the system. Kate Millet, Susan Brownmiller,
Ti-Grace Atkinson, and Gloria Steinem have been accused of
x
being "male-baiters.M Germaine Greer has been called the
"intellectual" of the movement.
The so-called radical groups appeared under differ
ent names: Radilibs, Radical Feminists, New York Radical
Women, BITCH, WITCH, the Redstockings, and the October 17th
Movement (the date the group broke from NOW). These are
small, fluid, and loosely knit groups. Most members by far
are not man-haters, recognizing that men are victims of the
culture also. They have used some disruptive tactics, or
tactics deemed disruptive, such as calling men "murderers"
who voted against legalized abortion, the rationale being
that poor women have to go to quacks for abortions. They
also argue that no one has the right to make a woman go
through an unwanted pregnancy. Of course, many women not
considered radical have similar philosophies. When men
ogle the "radical women," they may deliberately call them
an obscene name or make some obscene remark because of
their viewing women as sex objects.
Not only from these "far-out" women, but from all
groups has come a strong stand against the ways women who
187
have been raped are handled. Deep down., there Is still the
myth that woman is the temptress, and the burden is on her
because she "tempted" the raper. This is the only crime in
our society in which the victim is assumed to be guilty and
must prove her innocence. Some changes have been made in
some states in ithe way policemen and hospitals handle rape
victims, but fundamental changes are yet to be made.
Men who are arrested for rape often are allowed to
plead guilty to a lesser offense. An example of this hap
pened in Los Angeles County in February 1975. A man broke
into a young woman's apartment, raped her, and made her
perform unnatural sex acts at the point of a gun. As he
was leaving her apartment through a window, she shot him.
Later he went to the hospital for treatment, and the police
were called because of the type of wound. When the young
woman appeared for treatment and made the report, the man
was arrested. In court, he was sentenced for breaking and
entering. Perhaps there was an underlying feeling that the
woman had had her revenge. Those who saw the disillusion
ment of the victim later on a television news interview
can perhaps understand some of the language and tactics of
the "radical" feminists as well as the moderate.ones.
The news media tried to exploit the Woman's Move
ment in its earlier days, just as it did in another decade
when it focused on radical students. The media itself has
been--and is--a target by women because of the way women
188
are depicted In films and advertisements. When women
marched in Atlantic City in protest to women's being
depicted as sex objects,, they dropped into a trash can some
of the symbols of pre-occupation with sex--brassieres and
high-heel shoes. The news media flashed the report that
women took off their brassieres and burned them, but the
women did not burn their brassieres. Soon, the term "bra-
burner" entered the lexicon.
Some of the radical women materialized from associa
tion with men who used women in the manner that abolitionist
men used women in the first Woman’s Movement. In 1967* &
group of women met In Chicago as part of the National Con
ference for New Politics. Women wanted a resolution on
the status of women. The men reluctantly put the question
at the bottom of the agenda, but the chairman would not
recognize a woman to speak. A number of women hurried to
the platform. The chairman patted one of them on the head
and said, "Cool down, little girl. We have more Important
things to talk about than women’s problems." That "little
girl" was Shulamith Firestone, founder of Redstockings and
author of The Dialectic of Sex (Freeman, 1973^ P* 38).
In the yeasty days of the civil rights marches and
the anti-Vietnam demonstrations, men welcomed women and
college girls, but as In the above example, It became appar
ent that the females were to step aside and let the males
189
play their traditional dominant roles. This was perhaps
even more true of black men than of white. Stokeley
Carmichael’s oft-quoted statement of "The only position
for women in SNCC is prone., " however crudely put., expressed
the general feeling. SNNC is the acronym for "Student Non-
Violent Coordinating Committee."
Even Martin Luther King tried to keep Mrs. King in
the background. According to an interview with Leifermann
(New York Times Magazine., 1962 ) . , Dr. King told her that she
was going to have to cut back on her traveling and engage
ments because of the kids. Mrs. King is a musician., having
met Dr. King when he was studying in Boston while she too
was there studying music. She more or less gave up a con
cert career for their life together., but she still is a
musician. She was never able to make him understand what
music meant to her. Mrs. King said, "He'd say, ’I have no
choice. I have to do this., but you haven’t been called.’"
Mrs. King answered, "Can’t you understand?" Of course, as
Mrs. King recognized, Dr. King no doubt was feeling guilty
)
because he hadn’t done his part by the kids. Still his
attitude exemplified so well what has been the male-female
relationship. His ambitions and goals before hers. How
did he know that her music didn’t mean as much as his
"calling?"
How representative is the Woman’s Movement of poorer1
and working-class women and ethnic minorities? Members of
190
all segments of the current movement constantly express
concern about the small number of non-middle-class women,
and minorities involved in the struggle. At the seventh
annual NOW conference in Houston,, Texas, May 197^ it was
revealed that a survey of NOW members showed that they were
predominantly white {9 0 % )3 female, educated, and liberal.
Five percent are black,, and other minorities make up the
remaining 5 percent.
But like women in the first Women’s Rights Movement,
those in the current one are deeply cognizant of women who
are in the bottom of the economic barrel, many under males
concerned with their "machismo” or insensitive to human
values. Sociological backgrounds of many women, especially
those with Latin American roots, do not provide the kinds
of experiences from which many girls aiming at upward mobil
ity will come for sometime. An apartment, children,, a hus
band with a steady paycheck may be the height of their
aspiration. This is especially true of the masses of
aliens, illegal and otherwise, who crowd the cities and
farming areas of the country.
Some black women say that they have always been
liberated in that they have always worked since the black
man could not find work as readily. This., in turn, has
made many black men overbearing and dominating now that the
civil rights movement has opened professional opportunities
for them. Other black women, as well as white women,
191
counter with the remark that black women have never been
liberated because they have not been free to stay at home.,
and furthermore, they generally have had to take menial
jobs. Of course, the same may be said of poor white women
too. At the present time, the educated black woman has the
best opportunity to gain prized positions in that companies
may "satisfy two complaints with one body." It has been
said that educated white men do not feel as threatened by
educated black women as by educated white women.
One of the most articulate women in the movement is
Aileen Hernandez, a black woman who was first Western Presi
dent of NOW and later national president. She says that a
minority woman cannot be schizoid and must deal with both
the question of being black and of being a woman. Hernandez
acknowledges that this "global"approach is criticized by
many black women and some white. She argues eloquently that
women not allow themselves to become divided over race or
other issues, that problems facing them are many and varied
enough for all to work on, that what affects a woman affects
all colors of women.
As a featured speaker at the first annual conference
of California Women in Higher Education in November 1973^
Hernandez pointed out that many black women would indeed
like to stay at home, but that the same is true of women
whatever their color. Ms. Hernandez has a very distin
guished background in labor relations, federal government,
192
civil rights groups, and women's organizations. She has
her own consulting firm in San Francisco and is president
of Black Women Organized for Action (BWOA).
There is a National Black Feminist Organization
(NBFO) with goals analogous to NOW's. Brenda Eiehelberger,
chairperson of the Chicago branch, refuted the argument by
many black men and black women that the Woman's Movement is
a white woman's struggle and that black women should be
fighting with the black man for black people. Ms. Eichel-
berger said, "We do not believe in liberation for half a
race, be that half male or half female" (Cose, 197^)- One
problem that many educated black women have had to face is
the handling of resentment when educated black men marry
white women. Because of sociological conditions that denied
many black men the chance to move upward, some black women
have had to marry men less educated than themselves.
Finally, in addition to the groups discussed above
who are in the Woman's Movement, there are women in organ
ized religion. Carden (197^-^ P- 160) noted that as early
as 1970 Church Women United pointed out to John Gardner that
Common Cause was discriminating against women because only
three women sat on its board and not one of their names was
listed on the brochure describing the purposes of the organ
ization. WoEien from the United Church of Christ and the
United Presbyterian Church have joined women's rights groups
193
in forcing companies to give more attention to fair treat
ment of women.
The National Council of Churches* representing a
number of different dominations* has a broader base from
which to operate in order to evaluate policies of business
and industry in their treatment of women. The Women's Div
ision of the American Jewish Congress* the National Assembly
of Women Nuns* and the Conference of Mother Superiors are
other groups working against discrimination in society as
well as within their specific faith.
Common Cause* Nader's Public Citizen* the American
Civil Liberties Union* B'nai B'rith* the National Associa
tion for the Advancement of Colored People* and other organ
izations lend support to the Women's Movement while pursu
ing their stated goals.
At a speech at Santa Clara University* San Jose*
California* November 197^-* Australian Germaine Greer spoke
along the vein of Aileen Hernandez about the problems women
share in common. Also she tackled the subject from an.
international viewpoint. Though a Catholic* Greer openly
disagreed with the Church about abortion and also with
those wishing to limit population. In her opinion* the
choice is individual. Educated and intelligent people
would make wise choices* e.g.* perhaps it would be better
for "born mothers and fathers" to have large families and
19b
for others who opt for no children to feel free to be
childless without other people's looking askance at them.
Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm often has discussed
experiences as a woman and a black. When she entered
politics in New York, distinguished black men spoke out
against her, telling her that she should remain in teach
ing and leave politics to the black man. Chisholm (1972)
said., "I have pointed out time and again that the harshest
discrimination I have encountered in the political arena is
I
antifeminism--both from males and 'Uncle Tom'' females"
(p. 46).
A hundred twenty-five years before Chisholm., Sarah
Grimkd had expressed it this way:
But I ask no favors for my sex. I surrender not
our claim to equality. All I ask of our brethren is,
that they will take their feet from off our necks and
permit us to stand upright on that ground which God
has designed for us to occupy. (Schneir., 1972., p. 30)
And a few years after Grimke's impassioned plea.,
Margaret Fuller (1835/1971* p. 38) wrote, "What a woman
needs is not as a woman to act or to rule, but as a nature
to grow, as an intellect to discern, as a soul to live
freely., and unimpeded to unfold such powers as were given
to her."
The essence of the Woman's Movement is that women
should have the same choices as men in the direction of
their personal lives., and women should have full citizen
ship rights under our democratic institutions.
195
Who are the people and organizations working
against the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment? One is
STOP ERA, whose national chairman, (not "chairperson") is
Phyllis Schlafly of Alton,, Illinois. She is a bit over* 55
years of age, Catholic of "the old school," has six breast
fed babies, worked in a defense plant while attending col
lege, and has a master’s degree from Radcliffe. She has
run for Congress three times and lost. She and her lawyer
husband are active in ultra-conservative organizations.
Her following is the strongest in the southern and central
states and in California. Schlafly is the author of
A Choice, Not an Echo, written in support of Goldwater’s
bid for the presidency (Isaacs, 1975; Quinn, 1975).
As Schlafly goes about the country fighting for
women’s place in the traditional sense, she does not readily
talk about who took care of her own children when she was
running for Congress or on her speaking tours. Her view
seems to be that she did very well under the existing
milieu, and so can any woman who tries as she did. Maurine
Startup of San Gabriel is the California State Chairman of
STOP ERA.
Midge Decter, writer and executive editor of Harp
er 's enraged many women with her book The New Chastity and
Other Arguments Against Women’s Liberation. The title of
the book is sensational regardless of any reasoned argu
ments that she may give to support her views. She wrote,
195"
"A lot of women have not assumed roles as leaders because
they are occupied elsewhere--with their homes or children.,
perhaps. They don't become leaders because they don't feel
like it" ("Women: Tyros and Tokens," 197^)- Feminists
counter with the argument that the question is one of
choice and that a lifetime of conditioning for "home only"
leaves little choice or much conflict.
Another anti-feminist group is Happiness of Woman
hood (HOW), founded by Mrs. Jaquie Davison. It boasts some
6,000 members in six state chapters. Headquarters are in
Kingman, Arizona. HOW strongly stresses woman's tradi
tional role and supports "God's divine plan." HOW lists
its raison d'etre as
dedicated to the preservation of the family, preserva
tion of the masculine role as guide, protector, and
provider, and the preservation of the feminine role
as wife, mother, and homemaker. (Encyclopedia of
Associations, 1973^ p. 923)
HOW members recognize the hard work involved in rearing
children and doing housework. They recommend that women
take time off regularly to get out of the house for recrea
tion and stimulation. There is a men's auxiliary.
On January 11, 197^ in an editorial in Church
News, a weekly supplement to the church-owned daily news
paper, the Daily News, the official voice of the Church of
Latter-day Saints expressed opposition to the ERA., saying
that men and women have different and separate roles ("Mor
mons Oppose Rights Amendment," 1975). There are many
197
indications that people who are large advertisers also
oppose ERA.
The Equal Rights Amendment was introduced in the
House of Representatives every year for 23 years and every
year was killed in the House Judiciary Committee by Emanuel
Celler of New York. The House voted for the amendment 3^-6
to 15 in 1970 and 35^ to 23 in 1971 (McDonald, 1972, p. 27).
ERA must be ratified by the end of 1977- Sixteen states
have yet to ratify. Four more states are needed. In 1 9 7 5 3
a total of 16 legislators in five states blocked full rati
fication (ERAmerica, brochure, n.d.).
There is opposition from men designated as the
"traditional male chauvinist type" who want to protect
their dear wives and daughters from harm because they love
them so much; from men of various ethnic groups whose cul
ture had dictated that women should eat last and walk
behind; from men who are genuinely afraid that women will
get the job they need or want and fall back on the old
stereotype of woman's place without acknowledging or know
ing that thousands of women have to work as heads of house.
And there are those women who choose not to work, or are not
allowed to, and thus feel guilty or resentful of women who
do wish to work or must. In addition, there are those
women who deny that they have been discriminated against,
or adopt a "dog-eat-dog" attitude and refuse to help other
I5B"
women, or else keep a low profile for fear that they will
lose their grip on the ladder.
When the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was being dis
cussed in Congress,, it was most obvious that women were to
be ignored. As Title VII of the 'act was being considered
for amendment in 1972. , someone added "sex" to the cate
gories against which discrimination would be forbidden.
That provision was narrowly defeated in the Rules Committee
eight to seven. On the floor., Howard Smith, Chairman of
the Rules Committee, offered an amendment by adding "sex”
saying that he did not think it would do any harm. Smith
was against the bill and hoped his amendment would defeat
it; the subterfuge backfired. Later, Congresswoman Edith
Green said that if a bill containing only the provision
against sex discrimination had been introduced, it would
not have received one hundred votes (Kanowitz, 1969> p. 103)-
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as
amended by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972
calls for sexblind and colorblind employment and covers
wages, conditions of employment, advertising preference
based on sex or race, promotion, sick leave, benefits, and
other conditions relative to employment. All employers of
15 or more employees, including most private and public
schools, are covered.
Some major cases have been argued and won under
Title VII. The first was Grigg v. Duke Power Company. The
199
United States Supreme Court's opinion was that it was incum
bent upon the company to prove that sexj race., or religion
was a bona fide and crucial factor for employment. In.
Phillips v. Martin Marietta Corporation, the United States
Supreme Court overthrew a lower court's decision which had
allowed an employer to have one hiring policy for men and
another for women, each having preschool children. In Weeks
v. Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph Company, the Fifth
Circuit Court of Appeals refused to uphold Southern Bell's
contention that no woman could safely lift 30 pounds. And
in other court cases, both state and federal, the old
restrictions continue to topple (N.E.A., 1 9 7 5).
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 had specifically excluded
women in. executive, professional, and administrative posi
tions. The Equal Opportunity Act of 1964 (EOA) also spe
cifically excluded all public employees and all faculty of
both public and private educational institutions, but this
was amended by the Education Amendments of 1972--the so-
called Higher Education Act. Title VI of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race, reli
gion, or national origin, but does not mention sex. Even
so, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (EEOC) did
nothing to enforce provisions concerning women in the EOA
of 1964. Representative Edity Green upbraided EEOC for
scorning the law which had become nothing but a subject
for ongoing jokes.
200
As far as education is concerned,, it is Title IX
that promises to make sweeping changes for women in educa
tion. Every aspect of education is involved at all levels,
public and private. Only the military academies and a few
religious institutions are exempt. Since the passage of
Title IX, however, Congress has made it possible for women
to be admitted to the military and merchant marine acade
mies. Of course, males are also covered the same as
females, and no longer may local boards of education tell
girls that they may not take shop nor boys that they may
not take foods. High school girls may not be counseled to
go into the "feminine occupations" to the exclusion of
those formerly reserved to males. The government forces
compliance by withholding funds and provides channels for
action on the part of complainants.
Title VI and Title IX provide comprehensive cover
age affecting education. In addition, provisions of the
Public Health Service Act, Title VII, and Title VIII spe
cifically address sex discrimination in health personnel
training. Perhaps most basic, however, is that now women
are considered "persons" according to the Fourteenth Amend
ment to the Constitution, (ratified July 28, 1868) and may
now be considered under the due-process clause.
But women had to wait a long time before the vari
ous acts mentioned above applied to them in terms of educa
tional rights. Fortunately, however, there was a day of
201
jubilee in 1970 when Dr. Bernice Sandler uncovered Execu
tive Order 11246 signed by President Johnson in 1965:*
amended in 1967 by EO 11375:* and in 1969 by EO 11478. The
Executive Orders prohibit discrimination based on sex as
well as race., color, religion, and national origin.
Revised Order Number 4 has added strength to the above
executive orders (S. Anderson, 1972; Carden, 1974;
G. Smith, 1973).
It was under the Presidential Executive Order 11246
as amended that women made a massive assault against lead
ing educational institutions in 1970-1972. Bernice Sandler
headed WEAL’S attack on more than three hundred colleges
and universities.
The Woman's Movement has brought to light discrimi
natory laws against women that have their roots deeply
engrained in the culture. A few examples will suffice.
One of our most cherished institutions is trial by a jury
of one's peers, a right guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment.
But until January 1975^ in some parts of the United States
women could not serve unless they specifically went to the
court house and volunterred. In 1975^ the United States
Supreme Court struck down that law in Louisiana; however,
the Court did not mandate that women be on the jury, only
that they be in the pool from which the jury is chosen.
As late as 1961, the United States Supreme Court
upheld a law in Florida which excluded women from serving
202
on a jury. Five states, including New York, still allow
women to be excluded from jury duty without explanation.
In Massachusetts, a woman, may be excluded if she finds the
subject matter of the trial embarrassing. "Nine other
states and two-thirds of the federal trial courts, includ
ing California, exclude mothers from jury duty, sometimes
even when the mothers work and have child care" (Los Angeles
Times, "The Court Views Women as People," 1975).
Such laws and rulings harm the body politic, being
an injustice to men and women alike. They deny citizens
rights to duties of citizenship, and they deny defendants a
trial by their peers.
As late as 1969-71.? in Texas, Utah, New Mexico, and
Kentucky, a husband was allowed to kill his wife and her
lover under the "unwritten, law," but wives were permitted
no such protection in the opposite situation. This was the
same.law as was In ancient Rome. It is almost impossible
to obtain a rape conviction against a man, the exception
being when black men are accused of raping white women.
Under the law in. California, men are equally guilty
with women in prostitution, but men are almost never
arrested except in. situations where female officers are
working undercover and are solicited by men. Judge Ollie
Marie-Victoire of San Francisco was told to disqualify her
self from future cases involving women, prostitutes because
203
she dismissed 40 cases on grounds that police did not
arrest the male customers ("Woman Judge Told Not to Hear
Prostitution Cases," 1975). Municipal Judge Richard
Amerian, Van Nuys, has ordered the Los Angeles city attor
ney's office to produce statistics for the 30 months prior
to June 1976 on the number and sex of individuals arrested
and prosecuted for prostitution (Blake., 1976).
It cannot be denied that there is ample legislation
to effect vast changes in the way women have been treated;
neither can it be denied that there has been a tremendous
improvement in actuality. But it is axiomatic that cul
tural changes lag far behind the mandate for change. A
United States Census Bureau study of 1974 shows that the
median income for women was but 57 percent of that of men--
$5*550 as compared to $9*184. In both i960 and 1970., over
half of the women employed were in clerical, operative, or
service positions. Women in the professions were in lower-
paying fields such as teaching and nursing. Also in 1970.,
there were five times as many men in managerial positions
as women ("Women Job Equality Distant., Study Finds.," 1976).
Arthur Norton., of the Census Bureau, reported a
study that he made in the fall of 1974. Part of the study
shows that the number of women heading families had grown
dramatically in the past three years. There was an increase
of one million women— from 5.6 to 6.6 million--a number
almost as large as the increase in the previous 10 years.
204
One in eight of all families in the United States is
headed by a woman. This includes one-third of black fami
lies., one-sixth of Spanish families, and one-tenth of white
families (Mock, 1974). There are 2.5 million widows as
heads of households. One out of four is under 45 years of
age with dependent children ("The Widow as Household Head,"
1 9 7 5 ). >r.
In terms of salary and level of position, the
United States government is the worst offender. Chisholm
(1972, p. 47) pointed an accusing finger at the federal
government:
Women are sick and tired of being told, "See how
far you’ve come. You’ve come a long way, Baby. If
that Is so, then why, among ten thousand civil serv
ice employees In jobs paying $26,000 a year or better,
are there only about 150 women? If it is true, then
why fewer than 1 percent of federal policymaking, posi
tions held by women?
Representative Chisholm also noted that the Depart
ment of Labor has concluded that women are more reliable
and absent from their jobs less frequently than are men.
She questioned what, other than discrimination, is the
reason for their great numbers in lower-level positions
and pay scales--82 percent In clerical, sales, factory and
farming, or service industries; 6 percent in medical,
health, teaching, professional, and technical fields; and
only 5 percent as managers, officials, or proprietors?
Feminists argue that it is a farce that society
values work of the woman in the home. They' point to the
205
Social Security System as proof. If woman's work were
considered equal to man's, why would not the woman receive
an amount of money equal to her husband's when he retired?
Society has long stressed that the home Is Important,, but
the woman who chooses to stay at home is penalized. Fur
thermore, when a man dies, his housewife widow has to pay
income tax on the money he leaves to her on the basis that
she did not help to earn it; yet the husband could leave
the entire amount to charity.
If the husband and wife both work, upon retirement
she draws a percentage of his check if it is higher but
loses the amount she has paid in herself. And, of course,
the reverse is true. Some of the regulations and laws that
0
supposedly benefit women work against their family, includ
ing the husband. The assumption of the Social Security Act
has been that a working woman's earnings did not contribute
significantly to the support of her family, a myth of long
standing. On March 19* 1975* the United States Supreme
Court unanimously struck down that part of the Social Secur
ity Act. The case in point was a young widower in New
Jersey whose wife had died in childbirth two years pre
viously. The wife, a teacher, had been the primary bread
winner. Social security allowed $248.00 for the baby but
nothing for the husband (Matthews, 1975)•
In the above case, the government argued that the
law was passed to enable widows to stay home and care for
206
the children. Among Justice Brennan's remarks was the com-
ment that the father might., in the interest of the welfare
of the children, prefer to stay home and care for them too.
He also said that the money the woman worked for would go
to help other women's children but not her own under Social
Security rules.
In some institutions of higher education., wives of
male faculty members received maternity benefits, but
female faculty members did not. So-called antinepotism
rules in colleges and universities have been grossly unfair
to wives of male faculty., and thereby to the husbands and
students also. It is to be expected that the wife of a
college professor generally would be educated., often highly
so. Such women have long been exploited by the institutions
in that they could spend years as lecturers on a semester-
by-semester basis with none of the fringe benefits other
than what accrued to them through their husband's position.
At times these women have grown old teaching freshman
courses while graduate male teaching assistants have taught
graduate or upper division courses.
Girls and women have been notoriously mistreated in
the area of school athletics. For years, student body
funds have supported athletic programs for boys even though
most of the fees have been paid by girls, who are more often
members of the students' association. In one New York City
'high school, 80 percent of the fees came from girls. Only
207
swimming was open to them. When the hoys’ pool was
declared unsafe, they were given the girls’ pool. The
hoys also had track, football, basketball, and baseball.
Such discrimination is one reason that American women
athletes have fared so poorly at the Olympics. Women
directors of high school athletics have long done some
of their work without pay, but male directors received
extra pay.
Kanowitz (1 9 6 9) wrote that Msex-based discrimina
tion in the United States is far from dead. . . . The dual
meaning of 'discrimination’ should be kept in mind, r (p. 3).
Sandler (1972) said that the hardest part in the Women's
Movement is that there is no real enemy to hate with self-
righteousness and justification. "Men are not the enemy,
for surely many of them have been hurt, perhaps in differ
ent ways, by the rigid stereotypes that hurt women” (p. 90).
The myth that postulated that woman’s place was in
the home said that she was an immoral woman if she went to
the battlefield and cared for wounded soldiers, but Flor
ence Nightingale defied the myth. Later the same myth said
that nursing was woman’s special role, and a man who
entered the field must be some kind of a sexual pervert.
The myth said that nursing for the woman was an extension
of home duties but not so the doctoring. Largely due to
the work of corpsmen in World War II and subsequent wars,
208
it is now respectable for men to go into nursing, but women
have to fight harder to gain a foothold in medical schools.
Women have felt that discrimination in higher edu
cation is perhaps "the unkindest cut of all." That the
university, which "stands" for truth., should actually stand
for hypocrisy has evoked in women emotions ranging from
disillusionment to cold fury. Women have resorted to the
Constitution, to the various executive orders, and to the
amendments to previously passed civil rights acts for
relief.
It was under Executive Order 11246 amended by
EO 11375 that WEAL and NOW brought charges against some of
the major universities in the 91st Congress, Second Ses
sion, 1970. More than a thousand pages of evidence had
been presented to Representative Edith Green about the
deteriorating position of women in higher education. For
example, the proportion of women faculty has declined
steadily for a hundred years, from one-third of the posi
tions in 1870 to one-fourth today. The University of
Chicago has a lower proportion of women on its staff than
it did in 1 8 9 9.
Other evidence of discrimination presented to
Congress follows:
N.Y.U. has totally excluded women for more than
20 years from the prestigious and lucrative Root-
Tilden. and Snow Scholarships. Twenty scholarships
worth more than $10,000 each were awarded to male
209
future public leaders each year. Women., of course,
can't be leaders and N.Y.U. contributed its share
to making that presumption a reality by its exclu
sionary policy.
The most conclusive evidence is the grade point
average of the women, which is significantly higher
than in the men. 9-1 P©f cent of the women reported
straight A averages compared with 6.8 of the men;
24.9 of the women reported A- averages compared with
21.1 of the men; and 32.3 per cent of the women had
Bf averages compared with 31*6 of the men. Only 30
per cent of the women but 4l per cent of the men had
a grade lower than B. (Columbia University Graduate
School.)
[in. terms of admissions] at Cornell University
. . . the ratio of men to women remains 3 to 1 year
to year; at Harvard-Radcliffe, it is 4 to 1. The
University of North Carolina . . . in 1949 . . .
admitted 3.* 231 men- > o r °ne half the male applicants.,
but 747 women, about one fourth of the female appli
cants. . . . Girls must be exceptionally well quali
fied^ but boys need not necessarily be. (Walsh.,
1972, pp. 97-101)
Strangely., the most prestigious and most highly
endowed colleges and universities were charged with the
most offenses in every category--admissions. , financial aid.,
employment., and promotion. At Columbia University., there
was no woman in the Psychology Department even though 34
percent of the department's graduates were women. Also at
the University of California., Berkeley., the last time a
woman was hired in the psychology department was in 1924.
In 1969 at Cornell., there were l.,400 faculty., 100
of them being women, and 75 of the hundred were in the
Department of Home Economics. When the Dean of the College
of Home Economics retired, a male was given the position.
210
In an effort to attract more men. students to the depart
ment, a name change had been considered previously. The
new title was "College of Human Ecology.M Furthermore for
undergraduate students in the Division of Arts and' Sciences,
there was $5*045 listed for scholarships, but women could
receive only $7 6 0 .0 0 of it.
In 1968 -19 69 when women made up 22 percent of the
graduate students and received 19 of the Ph.D.s at Harvard
University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, there was
not a woman among the 400 tenured faculty.
The University of California, Berkeley, may be
taken as an example of the types of subterfuge that col
leges and universities use to circumvent the affirmative
action requirements of the Civil Rights Office, U.S.
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. When forced
to consider the question, university officials replied that
they would be glad to employ women if they could be found
with the qualifications to meet the university’s specifica
tions. According to Dr. Mary Lepper, Director of Higher
Education Division, Office of Civil Rights, institutions
have been accused of finding a particular man that they
wanted and then writing the specifications to fit the man
already tapped for the job. Dr. Lepper was a featured
speaker at the first annual conference of California Women
in Higher Education, University of California, Irvine,
November 1973-
211
Women’s organizations vehemently deny the scarcity
of qualified women,, pointing out that men receive -positions
through the "old-boy" or "locker-room" approach. In i960, ,
the American Association of University Women did research
on the attitude of higher education anent accepting women
students and appointing women to the professional staff
during the rise in college population. Academe could not
have been unaware of this study,, but it chose to ignore it.
Numerous organizations now have long lists of women who are
qualified. They urge women to apply for positions„ and they
monitor the announcements of positions and the selection of
personnel.
More recently, the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission asked Berkeley to produce a representative file
of men and women faculty in order to ascertain background,
rate of promotion, and other statistics„ but the University
demurred. An overall figure of women employed was given,
but such did not show an accurate picture because it did
not reflect the fact that some departments had no women at
all. In September 1973* Berkeley had 1„032 tenured faculty,,
but only 4l were women. In non-teaching positions., at times
the University would upgrade the title with no change in
duties or pay. Furthermore, men rated higher than did
women in similar types of work.
In November 1973j the federal government notified
the University of California at Berkeley that 4.4 million
212
dollars would be withheld from them because an affirmative
action plan had not been submitted. The previous February,,
the University had informed H.E.W. that it had a "plan to
subniit a plan" ("Berkeley Bias: A Plan for a Plan, " 1974).
By September 1974., 21 percent of the new faculty were
women, but 34 departments still did not have a woman,
including the English Department. The latter was astound
ing^ especially since there is a surfeit of advanced degrees
in this discipline* and women are well represented. By
October 1974* women were represented among the 71 professors
in the English Department.
William Trombley* Education Editor* Los Angeles
Times (1974)* charged collusion between H.E.W. and Berkeley
about the latter’s affirmative action plan:
Federal civil rights officials assured U.C. Berkeley
administrators that their minority and female personnel
policies were satisfactory 11 days before the campus
was to submit a final "affirmative action" plan to the
federal officials. . . . Women and civil rights advo
cates believe that H.E.W. Secretary Caspar W. Wein
berger does not approve of affirmative action. They
consider the enforcement of compliance by Berkeley to
be crucial because of that campus’s standing in the
academic world.
Women’s groups fought the plan that was submitted
and were disappointed that it was approved. It is estimated
that the plan will allow some departments up to 37 years to
effect parity.
Dr. Bernice Sandler (1972) of the American Council
on Education* wrote:
213
The university is puzzled and, like Freud, asks
’ ’ What is it women really want?" What women are ask
ing for is equality of opportunity. . . . Equal oppor
tunity is more than saying that we don't want young
women in our department because they get married.
We don't want a woman with young children because she
can't possibly be committed. And as for the woman who
waited until her children were older, she's much too
old for work and study, and isn't it a pity that she’s
been out for so long and didn’t start sooner. (p. 8 0)
In June 197^- j Dr. Richard A. Lester, a Princeton
University economics professor, released a report sponsored
by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education in which he
said that colleges competing for federal funds are lowering
standards and undermining faculty quality by hiring more
blacks and women. Lester's report, ’ ’ Anti-Bias Regulations
of Universities: Faculty Problems and Their Solutions,"
was based on research by others as well as his own.
Dr. Mary Lepper, Office of Civil Rights, agreed with
Dr. Lester in the criticism of the mechanics of the affirma
tive action program but disagreed with his main thesis.
In a by-line titled "A Misplaced Anger," New York
Times reporter Tom Wicker (197^-) discussed Lester's thesis
that more stress should be put on the admission of women
and blacks to universities and graduate and professional
schools rather than on hiring them. According to Wicker,
this would cause reverse discrimination such as the DeFunis
type. Lester maintained that affirmative action is more
applicable to typists and bricklayers than to professors of
214
medieval history., but Wicker countered that affirmative
action is not welcome anywhere:
The need for "affirmative action" arose only
because some groups--primarily white males--for years
were greatly advantaged at the expense of others.
Colleges and universities in particular, having for
so long discriminated against women in their admis
sions policies, having excluded blacks by racial
segregation and by merit systems oriented to white
middle class, are in a poor position now to decry
the shortage of qualified blacks and women. Nor is
there much evidence to suggest that discrimination
policies, either in universities or elsewhere, would
have changed sufficiently without pressure of "affirma
tive action."
The United States Supreme Court did not have to face
the question, of the DeFunis case head on because the young
man had finished law school before the case reached the
Court. Responsible individuals have written pro's and con's
about the "quota system," and that term has become almost
synonomous with "affirmative action," though erroneously so.
The key term is "goal," however. By this is meant that
women and ethnic minorities must be employed according to
"availability pools," which in general are determined by
the number of the categories in question who receive doc
torates from fifty leading American universities.
Peter Holmes, director of H.E.W.!s Office of Civil
Rights sent a memorandum to almost 2,800 colleges and uni
versities making it clear that a less qualified woman or
member of a minority was not to be hired over a better
qualified man. But federal regulations, effective July 21,
1975j spelled out Title IX's prohibition against sex bias in
215
a broad scope, covering some 1 6 ,0 0 0 school districts and
2,800 institutions of higher education. Each institution
must make a plan to correct any irregularities, imbalances,
or injustices (N.E.A. Higher Education Conference, October
1975).
According to the National Educational Association
(1975* p. 1 3) some administrative procedures served to
discredit the whole concept of affirmative action. Among
them are:
The use of affirmative action requirements as an
excuse for not employing or promoting white males
whom the employer did not want to employ or promote
in any case.
The confusion of goals with quotas in discussing
affirmative action and in attempting to implement it.
The playing off of women, and minorities against
each other--a divide-and-conquer technique (whether
conscious or unconscious) that serves to defeat the
purposes of affirmative action.
The appointment of unqualified or under-qualified
women and minorities to promote reverse discrimination
myth--or simply in a misguided attempt to comply with
the federal requirements.
In 1975^ David Matthews became Secretary of the
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. In November
of the same year he turned down a request by 17 women's
organizations to meet to talk about continuing sex discrimi
nation in education. Seventeen women's groups wrote to
President Ford criticizing him for refusing to meet with
representatives of major women's organizations during Inter
national Women's Year (Campbell, 1975)*
216
In March., 1975* Secretary Matthews withdrew a
heavily criticized proposal published by his predecessor,
Caspar Weinberger, that would have limited the complaints
of violations of civil rights that his office would have
to investigate. On May 3* 1975* Secretary Matthews called
upon the public to offer suggestions of how best to handle
the astronomical rise of complaints--450 percent between
1969 and 1974 and growing (Fields., 1976).
The picture in elementary and secondary schools is
comparable to that of the colleges and universities. The
National Council of Administrative Women in Education has
gathered data which indicate that women are vanishing from
the administrative scene. In the early 1950s., women headed
most of the elementary schools and were well represented
among junior and senior high schools. When salaries rose,,
women were pushed aside. Of the nearly 16,000 senior high
school principals in the United States, only 222, or 1.4
percent were women in 1974. In 1971* 3 percent were women,
but in 1950, 6 percent were women. Women find the same old
myths in new colors: Men are born leaders; boys need a
father figure; women are too emotional in face of rising
social problems; women, cannot handle discipline (Barnes,
1973).
In 197^» the National School Boards Association con-
ducted a survey of the nation's school superintendents on
their opinion about having women on the school board. Out
217
of 1,000 questionnaires, there were 540 responses. The
superintendents fell into three almost evenly divided cate
gories: those who wanted no women, those who relueantly
accepted a limited number, and those who said sex should
have no bearing. Typical of superintendents opposing women
was this response from Massachusetts, where boards are
called "committees 11:
By and large, women on school committees are nit
picking, emotional, use wiles to get what they want,
demand to be treated as equals, but have no hesitancy
at all to put on the pearls and insist on "respect"
when the going gets rough. And they talk too much.
(Mullins, 1974)
In California in 1974, there were only seven women
superintendents out of 800 districts, less than one percent,
but 6l percent of the teachers are women ("The State,"
1974).
Pfiffner (1973) found that in 1971-1972 only 4 per
cent of the 631 top-level administrators in California Com
munity Colleges were women, and 28 percent of the faculty
were women. The "composite" administrator did not believe
that she had been discriminated against as a woman and
believed that children helped her to be a better administra
tor. She considered that sexual stereotypes in childhood
to be the primary reason why more girls did not prepare
for administration. Pfiffner also noted that 11 percent of
boards of education members in California public community
colleges were women.
218
Stephenson (1973) studied all women administrators
in the Big Ten Universities. These women believed that
their lack of advancement was due to sheer discrimination.,
lack of assertion on their part., interrupted careers, lack
of sponsorship from above, and failure to unite to improve
their own condition. The largest group., 104 out of 327
usable responses, were under 3^- years of age and had no
children.
In 19^9^ McG-auley studied the beliefs of educational
leaders toward the status of women. She found that there
was a dichotomy between action and belief and concluded
that "this devaluation of women, this ambiguity in role and
the cultural confusion which results, raises the question
of the educators' aims or goals” (p. 190).
In her study on the status of women as full-time
faculty in higher education in California, Leonard (1963)
introduced her work thus: "In the United States today women
have won the privilege of rendering service in many ways
and in a variety of fields of endeavor" (p. l). One may
rightly inquire why a Ph.D. woman candidate writing on the
subject of women in higher education should consider as a
"privilege" what should be normal activities of any American
man or woman. But her statement exemplified the internali
zation and unconscious acceptance of her own feeling of
inferiority and her acceptance of "woman’s role and place."
219
In the report Opportunities for Women in Higher
Education (1975)* the Carnegie Commission recommended pre
school as the time to start knocking down barriers in order
to change policies which deter women from aspiring to full
equality with men in career goals. This means that little
girls not be given the nurse's kit while little boys
receive the doctor's kit. Little girls and boys both need
to know that either may be a nurse or a doctor. In books*
at home,, and in school more positive and non-stereotyped
models must be given to children.
Orinzberg (1 9 6 6) noted that school systems have
tended to steer girls away from college preparatory courses,
and toward the humanities for the girls who persist in
going the college route. This may have been due to the
school's reflecting society's mores about women's role, or
it may have been an effort to ward off future disappointment
for the girl trying to follow her bent in a masculine world.
In a random sample of the incoming freshman class, Univer
sity of California* Berkeley* 1972* Sells found that 57 per
cent of the boys had taken full four years of mathematics
in high school compared with 8 percent of the girls.
In 1969* Matina Horner (now President of Radcliffe)
wrote a dissertation at the University of Michigan on "the
motive to avoid success." Ninety percent of the men in her
study showed a confident belief in their future* but 69 per
cent of the women were troubled by the conflicting demands
220
of society. Later Horner updated and replicated the study
at Harvard and Radcliffe and found the attitudes were even
more intense. Parental desires surfaced for girls: A
secure marriage is preferable to the risky course of a
serious career.
That many college women have internalized a sense
of inferiority is indicated by Goldberg’s 1968 study. He
asked female college students to rate professional articles
from each of six fields. The articles were placed in two
equal sets of booklets, one being authored by "John T.
McKay" and the other by "Joan T. McKay." Each student read
the articles in her booklet and rated them on various cri
teria such as competence of author, writing style, and
interest. Goldberg hypothesized that the students would
rate articles such as law and business higher, but he was
not prepared to find that "Joan McKay’s" articles on ele
mentary education were considered by the women to be infe
rior to "John McKay’s." Only in the area of art history
did the article by "a woman" rate slightly higher than that
of "a man."
Bern and Bern (1970) replicated Goldberg’s study at
Stanford but used male students instead of female. The
results were the same. The researchers were struck by the
inconsistencies of the students. The Bems discovered that
the same young men who were challenging the country's
221
institutions and "the establishment" on the basis of their
own personal values
find it far more difficult to shed the more subtle
aspects of a sex-role ideology which . . . conflicts
just as surely with their existential values and any
of the other societal practices to which they have
so effectively raised objection. (p. 3 7)
Paul Torrance is well known for his studies of
gifted children. His findings show that by first grade at
least sexual stereotypes are firmly ingrained. By third
grade boys were using girls’ toys more creatively because
girls are taught to accept things as they are. In one
school, Torrance reported his findings to parents and teach
ers and asked for help in changing the girls' perceptions
of their roles. Girls had demurred at playing with scien
tific toys and games. A year later girls scored as high
as did boys on follow-up tests,, but both girls and boys
valued the contributions of boys more highly (Howe, 1971).
At a conference on women sponsored by the Office of
the County Superintendent of Schools,, Los Angeles„ October
1975, Dr. Carol Nagy Jackson spoke of research on sexual
differences being done at Stanford University. The study
is a study of all research on that subject for the past
three years and includes an analysis of research design and
"other conclusions." Dr. Jackson pointed out that in
studies on sexual differences, unless a difference is found,
no study would be published. Tests that showed that boys
222
start moving ahead in verbal ability in high school failed
to consider that boys who have problems at school tend to
begin to drop out about that time but that girls generally
continue in school. Thus girls show up inferior to boys
on the tests. Another point made was that on the average
girls have a harder time in spatial visualization than boys.,
even though conditioning must be considered as one reason
for this. At any rate, girls have higher verbal skills,
and they are manifest earlier than boys. Does society
allow schools to give up< on boys because they cannot read
as well as girls? By the same token, special help should
be given to girls in spacial visualization. Mathematics
may be taught both spatially and verbally.
The drop-out rate for college men and college women
is about the same, but males more often, drop out because of
grades and females to marry. Many women leave school in
order to help put their husband through school. In a sec
ondary analysis of data on Woodrow Wilson Fellows who
entered graduate departments at the University of Califor-
nia, Berkeley, Sells (1973) found a 20 percent difference
between men and women, In favor of men. There was very
little difference the second year, more if the woman had a
child.
Epstein (1970) reported an unpublished study by
Dorothy Ross, Michigan State University, comparing the top
one percent of women enrolled in 1958 and 1 9 6 2. The 1958
223
group tried to hide their abilities for fear of peer
rejection. The 1962 group brought their abilities to the
attention of the media. Of the first group., 68 percent
expressed a desire to go to professional or graduate school;
of the second group,, 8l percent indicated that they planned
to combine career, school, and marriage. Both groups
expressed concern about being able to combine marriage and
career.
The myth that women will "just marry" does not hold
up. Astin (1969) studied 1,5^7 women who received doctor
ates in 1957 &nd 1958. She found that 79 percent had not
interrupted their careers from 7 to 10 years after obtain
ing the degree. Sandler reminds us that only 8l percent of
all men work in their original field.
Ginzberg and Yohalem (1 9 6 9) studied 300 talented
women from Columbia University’s Graduate School. Their
autobiographies did not show that they were unable to handle
career and family without unhappiness. Most of them
achieved a balance and were satisfied with their lives.
The dogma of feeling guilty for leaving children, of feel
ing unfeminine in a career, of feeling frustrated by remain
ing home did not apply to these women. The authors main
tained that education beyond college gave the women wider
choices of ways to live their lives. Furthermore, it was
found that women with advanced degrees were not lost to the
field. Some of the women had to interrupt their careers,
224
but the vast majority came back.
O’Neill (1969a,, p. 344) does not believe that Ginz
berg ’ s talented women have made an impressive record based
on their educational background, however. Vassar’s study
of 10,000 of her alumnae showed that most graduates of the
middle 1950s wanted marriage, with or without a career.
Most graduates of the middle 1960s wanted a career with or
without marriage.
Study after study has shown that women have faced
discrimination in admissions, housing, financial aid, time
limits on programs, and differential expectations of par
ents, professors. Another area for discrimination is the
difficulty that many women have in obtaining a sponsor or
mentor. Some potential male sponsors may feel ill at ease
in close association with a woman, especially if she is
beautiful or ' ’ feminine. " There may be questions about his
wife or her husband. The male sponsor may believe that the
woman will have a part-time commitment to the profession
because of marriage or future marriage.
A perfect example of this type of situation is
given in the case of anthropologist Ruth Benedict. He did
not approve of Ruth’s educational aspirations, and she felt
guilty about asking him for financial help. Though Ruth
was doing good work, in spite of trying to commute now and
then to Cornell, the great Franz Boas took only lukewarm
225
interest in her; neither did he put in a word here and
there to help her financially even after she finished her
doctorate at the age of 34. The marriage broke down.
After the divorce., Boas then considered Ruth as a special
pupil., depending more and more on her (Mead., 1959)*
But Benedict died at the age of 6l in 1948. Only
after her death did her private papers give clues to her
giftedness in areas in which there was neither time nor
money to develop--poetry, mystery stories, and biography
as well as anthropology. There was correspondence indicat
ing that she was working on a biography of Mary Wollstone-
craft for publication. It began: "The story of Mary Woll-
stonecraft is the most precious of human documents: the
story of a life that achieved an idea" (Mead, 1959^ P* 491).
Some professors discourage talented females from
sheer prejudice., however. Others look on male students as
sons following in the father’s footsteps. Ideally., there
should develop a closeness between sponsor and student to
the degree that the sponsor helps the student into the fel
lowship of the profession. There are never enough women
sponsors available because of discrimination. Also., many
women students., because of life-long conditionings con
sciously or unconsciously believe that a woman sponsor is
not as good as a man. Of course many men take special
interest in women students both because of their own human-
226
ness and/or the realization of the blocks facing women
students.
At times women may be faulted for their lack of
advancement. They may overact by appearing "masculine," or
by playing the sweet stereotype, or by being as unobtrusive
as possible. Some women disassociate themselves from other
women in the same profession. Women had to form their own
professional associations because men would not let them
into theirs. This too has kept women’s visibility down.
Increasingly, though, there is a tendency for common member
ship. Even when men and women belonged to the same profes
sional organizations, formerly men held all of the offices.
Now that is changing.
Harris (1970) said that the semi-grapevine dis
criminates against women because there are fewer women in
academe, and these few women are often prone to discriminate
against women unconsciously just as males do. Figes (1 9 7 0)
quoted from Cecil Smith’s biography of Florence Nightingale,
"I see so many of my kind who have gone mad for want of
something to do" (p. 15^-). The public woman wrote that she
was indifferent to the wrongs of her sex; the private woman
refused to marry and at times was near to insanity.
Anne Alexander wrote of her experience at a famous
university (1 9 7 0):
In a school like Johns Hopkins, your colleagues
are very important. Mine have been very good to me.
227
We have an effective quota on the number of women
graduate students we accept, but no one has ever dis
criminated against me. (p. 10)
One cannot help but think of that $500., 000 raised by Martha
Carey’s band back in Johns Hopkins' infancy.
It cannot be denied that thousands of years of
dogma, myths, and half-truths about women have bound both
sexes. Thq continuing effects of discrimination is most
obvious throughout American life. It is not enough to say,
"There shall be no more discrimination." Positive steps
must be taken to counteract the past. Both the overt cur
riculum and the "hidden" curriculum begin early the "sort
ing process," and both curricula continue through the upper
levels of higher education. A powerful symbiotic relation
ship exists between education and society., and the impetus
for change is not the peculiar function of any one level.
But certainly higher education has a major role in being
on the cutting edge of change. For most people it is there
that will be found the last best chance to extricate them
selves from the debilitating bonds of bias. It is higher
education that sends out the people who will teach the
children and youth., who will manage or work in the market
place, who will be the parents of tomorrow.
Thus the need for more truth and balance in the
curriculum was the Impetus for the push for Women’s Studies
and Women's Programs in higher education. The move for a
different kind of curriculum, a more balanced presentation
228
of life, is part of the broader Woman’s Movement for equal
ity according to American ideals and follows similar actions
by Blacks, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans, and other
non-assimilated groups. But there is a difference between
the push for Women’s Studies and that of other groups,
especially Black Studies.
We tend to think of Black Studies as a phenomenon
of the exploding 1960s and 1970s when the demand for ethnic
studies made a far greater impact on the university than
that of Women’s Studies. According to Sowell (1 9 7 4) the
demand for Black Studies was the culmination of a long
trend. Even Booker T. Washington urged that black leaders
be studied and looked to as role models, and he wrote a
two-volume history of the American Negro. In 1899 Bu Bois
published his famous study, The Philadelphia Negro and con
tinued to send forth articles, monographs, essays, and
books during his long, productive life. Carter Woodson in
history, Sterling Brown in literature and music, and
E. Franklin Frazier in sociology are other examples. But
when Frazier was at Tuskeegee, he was reprimanded for being
too bookish. Among white scholars who urged a rereading of
the Negro, Myrdal is a major example.
But the demand for Black Studies of the past decade
was not of the earlier variety; it was part of a constella
tion. of acts exploding all over the country. Sowell, him
self a black scholar who refused to take a position teaching
229
Black Studies described the recent phenomenon:
The kinds of black studies demanded reflected
far more immediate circumstances--notably the des
perate academic condition of black students at many
white colleges and universities. It is significant
that demands for black studies were most insistent
at white institutions. , particularly the most aca
demically demanding ones. The demand for black stud
ies differed from demands for other forms of new
academic studies in that they (l) had a strong racial
exclusionary tendency with regard to students and/or
faculty; (2) restricted the philosophical and politi
cal positions acceptable., even from black scholars in
such programs; (3) demanded larger areas of autonomy
than other academic departments or programs; (4)
sought a voice or veto on the admissions of black stu
dents and the hiring of black faculty in the institu
tion as a whole. In shorty black studies advocates
sought a withdrawal of blacks from academic competi
tion with whites and rejected traditional academic
standards, whether exemplified by black or white
scholars. (Sowell., 1974., p. 191)
This was the period in which the cry of "revelance"
became a cliche and was used for manipulative purposes.
Another favorite term was "mother wit., " by which was meant
that black people because of their "black experience"
(another cliche) had developed a kind of inner wisdom that
enabled them to skip some traditional classes, or at least
they should be given credit for street experience.
Sowell maintained that a crucial reason for the
outburst for black studies was that student and college had
been mismatched. Many black., middle-class students who
scored high in. studies and on college entrance examinations
could not get Into prestige schools because of financial
reasons and because they were not from the ghetto. Aid was
230
given to ghetto youth whose background did not qualify
them for success in prestigious schools. This also caused
resentment in black and white youth who qualified academi
cally but not financially but who were denied admission.
In Obatala’s opinion (197^sl) the unrealistic atti
tudes of some black students and instructors concerning
African cultures helped to discredit Black Studies in the
eyes of many students. He further said that one of the key
criticisms of black students is the emphasis on black his
tory. In schools that he visited,, there were more white
students than black students enrolled in Black Studies.
Lubin (197*0 noted that of Harvard's 600 black students,
only 20 were majoring in Black Studies. The department has
utilized visiting lecturers from the outset., only one of
them being white. Harvard has drastically curtailed student
decision making and is trying to redefine the program.
Black scholars shun appointments to Black Studies
departments. Indeed., from the beginning most of the key
instructors and department chairmen were from Africa.,
especially the Ibos during the Nigerian Civil War. These
men were tolerated on basis of color, but their background
had been in English and French schools; hence they were not
too sympathetic to lax standards.
By 1972, nearly one-half of the 2,578 colleges and
universities were offering at least one black studies
course; today Black Studies are foundering and closing too
231
fast to count. Reasons for their closing are (l) declining
student interest and their concern for marketable skills;
(2) insufficient funding, and (3) skepticism about Black
Studies being a legitimate academic discipline. During
1968-1971j Ford Foundation gave $1.4 million dollars
in "seed money" for Black Studies programs in 13 undergradu
ate colleges, but in 1972 it dropped funding in lower divi
sion and concentrated on graduate work in three universities
(Lublin, 1972).
Roy Wilkins and Bayard Rustin, among others, cau
tioned from the outset that speaking Swahili did not qualify
black youth to enter the professions.
Woman has stood in Man’s shadow for eons, but Blacks
have stood in the shadow of Whites but a few hundred years.
Neither Blacks nor women have known much of their own his
tory from the long millenia of the past. It is Beard's
thesis in Woman as Force in History (1946/1962) that women
have a long historical background of action, but that men
Just have not let that history be known.
Howe (1974, pp. 19-21) spoke of the naturalness of
the movement for Women's Studies--a welling up--no national
push or national center. She cited three major reasons for
the growth of the movement: (l) the educational reform move
ment of the 1960s, in which women had a part; (2) the move-
ment came from the campus and not from outside as did the
Black Studies movement; (3) the vitality of the Woman's
232
Movement. In addition, Howe noted that clerical workers,
secretaries, faculty wives, professors, and students
started to do research about women on the campus, thus
building a common bond.
The violence that accompanied the Black Studies
push was not evident in the setting up of courses for
women. True, women of Bryn Mawr did stage a sit-in. At
San Diego State University, faculty, students, and staff
collected petitions. In some institutions, women who
attempted to set up a program in Woman’s Studies were dis
missed, ostensibly on other grounds, and this is still hap
pening. Another difference between the Women's Studies
movement and that of Black Studies is that the women had
the background to handle academic material from years of
disciplined study. Furthermore, Black Studies represented
a big-black-he-man approach, according to Howe (N.E.A.
Higher Education Conference, 1975)- The move came from
educated students and not from ghetto youth. Also there
has not been a shortage of qualified instructors as in
Black Studies. Women have not loudly demanded separate
departments and that only women teach the courses. Men are
not prohibited from enrolling.
It is true that administrators have resisted the
setting up of programs both because of financial problems
and/or a disbelief in the legitimacy of such studies. Some
administrators and male faculty members have shown outright
233
hostility. Women who push for the program often are on
shaky ground. At the University of California, Berkeley,
when an attempt was made by women to institute a course
about women, one professor asked if there were enough mate
rial about women to fill a full semester’s course (Mimeo
graphed sheet, Women’s History Library, Berkeley).
"Cornell Historian L. Pearce Williams . . . calls
Women’s Studies ’rather silly,1 ’worthless,' and ’a lot of
nonsense’" according to a report in Time ("Studying the
Sisterhood"). He said that many of the courses are ideo
logical rather than scholarly and that they indoctrinate
rather than illuminate. Professor Nancy Porter of Portland
State and Professors Annette Baxter and Suzanne Wemple of
Barnard answered that part of women’s cultural heritage is
to be aware of their legacy as women, and that consciousness
raising is the purpose of education.
For those who insist that Women’s Studies have a
place in educational institutions, the basic conflict has
to do with whether they should be in a separate department
and how they should be organized. Two other areas of con
flict are who should teach the classes and who should
enroll in them. There are strong arguments for both a
separate department and a multidisciplinary approach. Per
haps the best argument is that all material should be thor
oughly integrated into existing bodies of knowledge. As
- J -
Robinson (1973) pointed out, women themselves do not agree
on the definition of Women’s Studies. Some say that women
do not have a history separate from men and what is needed
is a reorientation of existing disciplines.
Other women maintain with Freeman that "women as a
group have a different relationship to society than men as
a group, and thus have a different perspective" (1971* P*
475). This argument is similar to that of Blacks for a
separate department for Black Studies. Though Freeman
argued for a separate department, she was not unaware of
the inherent dangers in such a set up. Originally, home
economics was designed to need women’s needs but became
the stepchild of academia.
Trecker (1971) wrote that young women are not
reluctant to question biased material, and in this way
they uncover new material. The young are also concerned
that Women’s Studies not focus too narrowly at the middle-
class woman in history and current society. Original
research is done in that old letters, diaries, and news
papers must be read to see why women have been ignored,
what they thought, and how they handled their lives. Such
research will add new dimensions to the role of women and
of history.
The first Women’s Study course was instituted at
the Free University of Seattle in 1965j it was called "The
History of Women" (Howe, 1974). In 1969, Cornell instituted
235
a number of courses., and in 1970., San Diego State University
started a program with five instructors and 10 courses.
Since that time, courses and programs have developed so
fast that it is impossible to keep account of them. The
volume, Who’s Mho and Where in Women's Studies (Berkowitz,
Mangi, & Williamson, 197*0 contains 95 pages of institutions
along with courses offered and/or instructors or department
chairmen. Eighty institutions have programs, 4l confer a
master's degree and one, New York State University, Bingham
ton, confers the doctorate. Nineteen institutions offer a
bachelor's degree. In 1972-1973^ there were but five or
six identifiable institutions offering a master's degree in
Women's Studies.
There are many publications about the Women's Move
ment, and articles about Women's Studies often are carried
in them, but there are at least five journals specifically
focused on the subject. The Modern Language Association
was one of the first professional groups to become involved
in the study of women in higher education, and it was under
their sponsorship that the first collection of material on
Women's Studies per se was collected and published,. Feminine
Studies I, now in the second edition. The Feminist Press,
Old Westbury, New York; KNOW, Inc., Pittsburgh; and the
Lollipop Press, Chapel Hill, are three firms that are
dedicated mainly to materials for Women's Studies. Profes
sional associations and ERIC Clearinghouse periodically
236
have material on Women’s Studies as well as other aspects
of the movement.
According to Robinson (.1973* PP* 38-^0)^ in essence,,
Women's Studies posed a number of questions:
1. Why the absence of women in the scholarly disci
plines ?
2. Why the adoption of the male as the norm?
3. Since women's work has been assumed to be infe
rior and there has been, bias in. the treatment of
women, why does not the university do remedial
work until there is a more balanced view of
history?
In her research for an ERIC report on Women's Stud
ies ^ Robinson considered their future. She noted that few
programs are adequately funded; most exist on volunteers
and institutional support. Although there have been a few
bequests, women still continue to compete with other pro
grams for%unds. Robinson gave three major reasons why
Woman's Studies and Women's Programs will continue:
1. There is a demonstrated need to build a body
of knowledge about women.
2. There is a need to develop theories about
women and sexual differences.
3. The programs will continue to be started and
maintained as long as there are advocates on
the campus for them and as long as bodies of
237
knowledge remain unbalanced in their coverage
of humanity.
Summary
Chapter II traced the relationship between men and
women from prehistory through antiquity. It reviewed that
relationship in the religious and philosophical thought of
Judaic-Graeco-Roman cultures which formed the background of
Western Civilization. The confluence of these cultures and
how they undergirded and influenced Christian thought in
its concept of male-female roles were considered. The
customs of ancient Celtic tribes and of Germanic tribes
were taken into account as they affected mores in terms of
masculine-feminine relationships.
The evolution of a higher status for women as a
result of the Protestant Reformation,, the Renaissance, and
the social forces set loose by the House of Tudor which
culminated in the Elizabethan Age„ were explored. The
reasons for the changing position of women in the United
States were discussed in terms of (l) the stress of Puritans,
on education,, (2) the English common law, (3) the Industrial.
Revolution., (4) the growth of a middle class, (5) the
forces precipitating the Civil War., and (6) the Western.
Movement. The multifaceted impact of women in educational.,
political and social reforms, and equal rights for all
citizens was examined.
238
The effects of years of both covert and overt con
ditioning of girls to expect and to accept inferior status
and of boys to expect and insist upon a superior status
were analyzed. The "hidden curriculum" of schools at all
levels was weighed.
The Civil Rights Movement in its broader applica
tion was surveyed. Emphasis was placed on the Second
Woman’s Movement* focusing specifically on education. A
comparison was made between Black Studies and Women’s Stud
ies. The need for women to be presented fairly and their
role to be reevaluated were stressed* and ways in which the
curriculum should be changed were suggested. There was a
brief presentation of the growth of Women’s Studies* their
scope* status* and possible future.
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH PROCEDURE
The procedures for organizing and conducting this
research of Women's Studies in selected institutions of
higher education in California included the following steps
1. Delineating the area of study,
2. Reviewing the history of women.
3. Developing the research Instruments.
4. Soliciting opinions from a jury of distin
guished women.
5. Soliciting opinions from instructors and
instructor-directors of Women’s Studies and students of
such studies.
6. Collecting position papers or statements of
actions taken by representative professional associations
on the status of women.
7. Treating the data.
8. Summarizing the research, drawing conclusions,
and making recommendations.
239
240
- Delineating the Area of the Study
This study was designed to achieve four large pur
poses as stated in Chapter I. They were:
A. To survey the status of women from early times
to the present with special reference to their achieve
ments and educational opportunities.
B. To secure the opinion of a panel of distin
guished women as to the current status of women and the
need for Women's Studies.
C. To examine principal features of five typical
Women's Studies programs in California as reflected in the
attitudes of faculty and students.
D. To examine positions taken on the status of
women by representative professional organizations in the
United States.
E. To draw conclusions as to needs and values of
Women's Studies programs in light of the above purposes.
These purposes served as a delineation of the area
of the study. In achieving these purposes., an effort was
made to determine if there is a need for such Women's Stud
ies programs and how they may be organized more effectively.
In order to do this,, a search was made of historical
records to obtain a perspective on the relationship
between male and female and the perquisities that accrued
to each sex in succeeding cultures. An attempt was made to
241
analyze conditions that stereotyped most women hut allowed
others to enlarge the mold.
Women recognized for their professional accomplish
ments were contacted for insights on the needs of women in
higher education based on their experience as women. Also
their opinions were sought concerning the role of Women's
-Studies in the academic structure. Five institutions of
higher education with Women's Studies programs were
selected for study. These institutions were of three dif
ferent kinds in order to consider possible variations in
the programs. Faculty concerned and participating students
gave their insights in person or through questionnaires.
Professional associations were contacted for their
positions on the status of women and actions taken based on
their beliefs. It has been said that in many instances the
interest of professors is more in their professional asso
ciations than in the institutions where they work. Whether
or not this is so^ positions and actions of professional
organizations should give an indication of changes in edu
cational institutions and., in the long run, the culture at
large.
Conclusions about the needs and values of Women's
Studies grew out of the information gained from a careful
consideration of the four basic purposes of the study.
242
Reviewing the Literature
The primary sources for the reference literature
used in this study were the library catalogs and the peri
odical references at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena
Presbyterian Church Library, Pasadena Public Library,
Southwest Community College Library, University of Southern
California Library, and the personal library of the author.
Indices of doctoral dissertations and bibliographies on the
subject of women were searched for information on the
status of women, Black Studies, and Women’s Studies.
The literature was examined for the purpose of pro
viding a historical perspective to the relationships of
male and female in terms of the different theories and con
ditions that have molded such relationships. Emphasis was
placed on cultures which constitute Western Civilization,
specifically focusing on the English background of the
North American Colonies and the New World forces which
helped to shape "the American Woman."
References to Women’s Studies in publications have
to do with the announcements of courses at given institu
tions, or the need for programs of Women’s Studies, or the
rationale for such studies. There are references to stu
dies which canvassed college catalogs to ascertain how
often educational institutions refer to "men" and how few
times to "women." Other studies have been made to show
sexism in texts. The Feminist Press and KNOW, Inc. have
243
published lists of institutions where there are Women's
Studies., syllabi of typical courses, and essays on specific
learning experiences of women. Dissertation Abstracts
lists one study on a model for a program of Women's Studies
on the community college level in California. There is no
published study on the perceptions of students and instruc
tors involved in such studies.
#/
Developing the Research Instruments
Information which contributed to the practical and
theoretical design of the instruments was gained through
suggestions obtained from the Report on the West Coast
Women's Studies Conference, 1973; Women's Studies Grant
Proposal, California State University, Sacramento, 197^;
and the Mills College Conference Proceedings on Women in
Higher Education, 1973«
Suggestions indicated that those concerned in any
program should be involved in the evaluative process. Also
since both students and faculty in Women's Studies meet
each other on a more personal level than in the usual aca
demic setting, their quest for answers more nearly approxi
mates the spirit of the university.
Questionnaires were developed for students, instruc
tors and/or instructor-directors of Women's Studies Pro
grams, and for a panel of distinguished women. Question
naires were checked by the chairman of the dissertation
244
committee, two directors of Women's Studies programs, and
y
a group of college women not enrolled in Women's Studies
courses. Appropriate revisions were made. Questions were
designed to elicit such information as the felt need for
such courses., their organization and system of grading.,
most popular courses, strengths and weaknesses of courses,
and suggestions for improvement. In addition., the panel
of distinguished women was asked to give information about
their background in terms of those who aided or hindered
them in their life's goals. The panel was also asked to
comment about the needs of college women in higher educa
tion. Both specific and open-ended questions were used in
all questionnaires. A brief interview guide was developed
for directors of Women's Studies to augment the question
naire. Samples of all questionnaires and interview guide
are in Appendices A,, B., and C.
Soliciting Opinions from Jury
of Distinguished Women
The panel of distinguished women was chosen accord
ing to four criteria: (l) recognition by other women because
of their accomplishments., (2) distribution of representa
tive professions., (3) ethnicity^ and (4) geographic dis
tribution. An original list of 30 women was selected
through resources such as the American Association of
University Women, Church Women United., Pi Lambda Theta.,
245
and Zonta. Also a number of women were personally known
by the author. From this number., 20 women were chosen.
A crosscheck was then made In Who’s Who Among American
Women for more possible information about each woman. A
letter with a stamped., self-addressed envelope was mailed
to each woman explaining the purpose of the study and ask
ing for her support in filling out the attached question
naire. If there was no response in, two weeks, a follow-up
letter was mailed along with a second questionnaire. Thir
teen women eventually responded. One wrote a letter
instead of answering the questionnaire. Her response was
not tabulated.
Soliciting Opinions from Students., Instructors,
and Instructor-Directors of Women1s Studies
At the Second Annual Conference of California
Women in Higher Education,, San Jose State University.,
November 17„ 1974„ contacts were made with women who had
set up., or were setting up., programs of Women’s Studies
at their respective campuses. Follow-through was made via
telephone calls and/or letters. In addition., other con
tacts were made through professional association with
women in education. A total of five colleges and universi
ties participated. Answering questionnaires were eight
instructors or instructor-directors and 115 students.
e -
Three classes on two different campuses were visited., and
246
personal contact was made with directors of programs at
five campuses. A stamped, self-addressed envelope was
attached to all questionnaires. Also each questionnaire
had a cover letter explaining the purpose of the research.
Teachers distributed questionnaires on four campuses.
Collecting Position Papers of
Professional Associations
Representative professional associations were con
tacted about stands and actions they had taken on the
status of women.
Treating the Data
Findings from the historical study are reported in
Chapter II. The remainder of the findings are reported
and analyzed In Chapter IV.
CHAPTER IV
RESULTS AND ANALYSIS
Introduction
The results from the historical study have been
reported in Chapter II (Purpose A). The purpose of this
chapter was to report and analyze the results of the ques
tionnaire returned from the panel of distinguished women
(Purpose B); to report and analyze the results of the
questionnaires returned from instructors,, instructor-
directors, and students in Women’s Studies at participating
campuses (Purpose C); to report on positions and actions
concerning the status of women taken by representative
professional associations (Purpose D); and to provide a
summary of the material presented.
Eindings of the Questionnaire of the
Panel of Distinguished Women:
Purpose B
Thirteen of the 20 questionnaires sent to the panel
of distinguished women were returned, a total of 65 percent.
One letter was returned indicating no forwarding address.
Follow-up letters were sent to the remaining six women.
The secretary of one wrote that her employer was away.
Upon her return, this woman wrote a gracious letter comment -
247 _______________
248
ing on the Women's Movement and her experiences and back
ground. Her response was not considered in the data. A
woman minister wrote that she had lost the questionnaire
upon moving from the West to the East and asked for another
one. It was mailed with another stamped,, self-addressed
envelope, but there was no reply. No follow-up was made.
The remaining four women who did not initially respond
were contacted a second time with another letter, question
naire, and a stamped, self-addressed envelope, but there
was no reply. These four women are in politics, three in
elective positions and one in an appointive position. In
the elective positions, one is a mayor of a large city,
one is the highest elected woman official in her state,
and the third is a representative to Congress from her
state.
An analysis of the returned questionnaires revealed
that the jury had had multi-careers although several have
moved around in the same field. At some time in their life,
every woman had been a teacher. Among other fields were
business, educational administration, governmental service,
nursing, jurisprudence, vocational counseling, and creative
writing. Table 1 reflects this data.
249
Table 1
Professional Background of Women of the Jury
According to Current Position
(N = 13)
Number of
Respondents Percent
Professor state university
3 23
Professor community college 2
15
Professor private college and author 1 8
Dean state technological university 1 8
Assistant dean community college 1 8
Chairman state commission on status
of •women
1 8
Chemist and retired judge 1 8
Federal governmental official
(former college president)
1 8
Vocational counselor 1 8
Community college president, retired 1 8
Total 13 100
As is seen in Table 2 all of the women had advanced
degrees, with seven, or 54 percent, holding the doctorate.
In addition, one of those with a doctorate also held a pro
fessional degree as a nurse. Another wrote that her doc
torate was in progress.
250
Table 2
Professional Background of Women of the Jury
According to Highest Conferred Degree.
- (N = 15)
Number of
Respondents Percent
Doctor of Philosophy 6 k6
Master of Arts
5 25
Master of Education 2
15
Doctor of Education 1 8
Master of Science 1 8
Total
15
100
Second and higher degrees were not necessarily in
the same discipline as lower degree(s). Twelve different
disciplines were indicated in the background of respondents.
The range of. disciplines is summarized in Table 3«
Table 5
Professional Background of Women of the Jury
According to Academic Background
(H = 13)
Number of
Re spondent s
Educat ion
7
Business 2
Educational Psychology 1
Economics 1
English 1
History 1
Home Economics 1
Law 1
Mathematics 1
Nursing 1
Physical Chemistry 1
Sociology 1
Vocational Counseling 1
251
In answer to the question about their having been
discriminated against because of their sex, all of the
women except two., or 85 percent, answered in the affirma
tive, giving a wide variety of examples. One woman indi
cated without comment that she had received no discrimina
tion. This woman is from a culture in which men are
definitely dominant. The other woman gave a qualified
answer of "not actually," indicating that she believed that
the "discrimination" was more a matter of thoughtlessness.
This person felt that women have taken it for granted that
a woman would not have a chance for advancement. A number
of women wrote of enculturation of women and men concerning
their roles and the resulting limitation of choice of
careers for women. One woman expressed it this way, "Only
recently have I appreciated the consequences of encultura
tion not questioned along the way." Table 4 summarizes the
responses of the panel.
Table 4
Response of Jury: Have you experienced discrimination in
terms of being a female?
Response Number Percent
Yes 11
85
No 1 8
Not actually 1 8
Totals
13
100
252
The jury as a whole mentioned 37 remembered dis
criminatory actions against them as girls or as women. The
largest category was in restricted career and career oppor
tunities., seven responses. Being passed over in promotions
ranked next,, five responses. One woman qualified her answer
by saying that even though she had been advised not to try
to teach at the university level, at the state college
level she had experienced no discrimination. She added,,
however, that at the state college level, administration
seemed to be closed to women.
One panelist wrote that the dean of the graduate
school where she received her doctorate categorically stated
that women do not have a place in higher education adminis
tration. Prom all her statements., it is most evident that
this woman was a determined and high achiever. She became
a college president. One respondent recalled that there
was but one woman counselor out of eight at the. high school
where she taught. She had a master's degree in counseling
and courses beyond, but a man in physical education still
working on his credential received the first position that
opened. Her principal had indicated that she would get the
position.
Another recalled the difficult time she had while
being interviewed as a Ph.D. candidate in a field where even
now there are few women. Another woman wrote of her work in
the bookstore of a major university where she was doing all
253
of the ordering^ balancing of accounts receivable; etc.
But a man was made manager of the store. She was told;
"Since you probably will get married anyway, there is no
point of giving you the position." Table 5 summarizes the
kinds of discrimination recalled by the panel.
Table 5
Response of Jury: What type(s) of discrimination
. have you experienced?
(N = lj)
Number of
Respondents
Restricted career and employment
opportunities
7
Passed over in favor of men less
or no better qualified
5
Lower salary 5
More work than men 3
Always given worst assignments; routine com
mittee chairmanships; ever the recorder
3
Discouraged from studying science in high school 2
Not allowed to enter industry
2
Subtle remarks and actions by male supervisors 2
Hostility on part of university administrators
against my studying administration
2
Advised not to try to teach at university level 1
Fewer student assistants and less secretarial help 1
Denied work on campus when men who received work
better off than I
1
Had to rewrite reports of account executives but
could never be one myself
1
Wrote curriculum reports for which principal
took credit
1
Outright expressions of jealousy by less
educated principal
1
Fellowships available to men, not to women 1
Difficulty in being interviewed as a
Ph. D. candidate
1
254
Only five., on 38*46 percent., of the women were
working in a field in which they had had long-standing
aspirations. This was education. One woman wrote., MI
aimed at education from the first grade." Two others said.,
"For as -long as I can remember I wanted to be a teacher. "
Another indicated that she had made up her mind shortly
after high school. These women became, respectively., a
college president^, a dean at a state technological school;
a community college instructor; a state university profes
sor. The fifth woman wrote that she had always wanted to
teach but had figured after a few years that she would
"settle down and marry." She did marry and had two children
but continued her career at the insistence of her husband;
a physician. This panelist expressed gratitude to her hus
band for his wanting her to continue her career and activi
ties; especially now that he is dead and she has more inter
ests to sustain her. One woman said that her father had
insisted that she get a teacher's credential and in later
years MIt really came in handy."
As Table 6 indicates; both male and female teachers
and administrators in high school and college encouraged
the women in their higher aspirations. When all categories
of those in education are combined; it is seen that at least
16 educators encouraged the women to higher goals. Dis
counting any males among family and friends; the tally shows
that at least 13 men offered support as compared with three
255
women. One woman., however, listed "women, especially women
of AAUW.u It must be remembered that more men are In posi
tions of power, however. In addition., three women listed
"male and female high school teachers." The family in gen
eral or specific is recalled several times. One respondent
wrote that those who encouraged were too numerous to men
tion, but she especially praised her grandmother., a strong
and sensitive woman.
Table 6
Response of Jury: What is the identity of the person(s)
encouraging you?
(N = 13)
Number of
Respondents
Family
3
Men high in education
3
Male professors
3
High school teachers,
3
male and female
Friends
3
Male colleagues in education 2
Father 2
Male supervisors in education 2
Husband 1
Male physics professor 1
Male junior college registrar 1
Male textbook editor 1
Grandmothe r 1
Female junior college
department head
Mother 1
Women, especially those in AAUW 1
256
Direct quotations from the women concerning the
encouragement given them underscored the importance of this
support in their professional growth. Representative com
ments are given below.
"Male supervisors in top positions suggested 'get the
doctorate. Go for the top job in college,, the presi
dency. 1 I did. I succeeded."
"Surprisingly,, more males than females encouraged me.
All have been in education in some way."
"Mostly other women who persuaded men to vote for me."
"Two women high school teachers let me borrow books and
encouraged me to go to college. It was during the
Depression. They received very low salaries, but one
of them sent me five dollars twice. They both wrote
to me."
"My high school principal made arrangements for me to
find work at college. I did good work and received
other work opportunities."
"Even in the twenties there were some men in higher
education who encouraged women. This kept me from
sinking."
"Since there were no sons in the family,, my father's
ambitions were channeled through me."
"My mother never had a chance to go to high school.
She urged and urged me to stay in school. She helped
me a little in college, as much as she could."
"When I developed some data rating scales in a job that
nobody wanted, two male superiors became warm sup
porters . "
One woman, apparently of superior intelligence„
wrote of three men, in addition to her father,, and one
woman who recognized her ability. The male advisor to the
California Scholarship Federation helped her to gain a
257
scholarship. A junior college woman department head told
her that she was smarter than the instructor herself, and
the registrar told her that she had the highest entrance
scores in the history of the college. A male college
physics professor encouraged her when she was despondent
over finances and was contemplating leaving college. This
woman is the coauthor of two texts and of two standardized
tests, and also the author of many professional articles.
She is the woman who was advised not to try to work at the
university level.
The panel was also polled about whether anyone had
tried to discourage them in their aspirations. Eight
answered in the affirmative and five in the negative.
Table 7 reflects the;identity of those trying to dissuade
or rechannel the aspirations of the women. The panel
recalled less than half as many who tried to dissuade as
they did those offering encouragement.
Table 7
Response of Jury: What is the identity of person(s)
trying to blunt your aspirations?
(N = 13)
Number of
Respondents
Family
2
Friends
2
Male coworkers 2
Teachers
2
Father
1
Graduate professor
1
Graduate dean
1
Woman placement officer 1
Aunt
1
258
In addition to answering specific questions about
discrimination* throughout the questionnaire the women kept
returning to the over-arching force of societal pressure
and a feeling of the need to move from where they could
not. Such terms as "social milieu* 1 1 "role expectation*"
and "subtleness of discrimination*" dotted their comments.
One of the women who became a college president
wrote that a graduate professor told her that he disliked
to see a woman study for the doctorate because women "took
it too conscientiously." The respondent did not construe
this as discouragement* however* and recalled that she had
received an "A" in the course. Perhaps the professor
recognized something in his student that she did not in
that she* indeed* felt the need to prove something or to
try harder.
The development of male-female roles concepts is a
basic feature of any culture. When asked to comment about
role models* 11 of the women* or 85 percent* replied that
they had had role models when growing up. None of the
models was of a stereotyped woman* however. Only one woman
recalled her mother* who tried to educate herself by reading
whatever she could find. One panelist* who apparently
loved school* mentioned family members and female teachers
from first through twelfth grades. In addition she com
mented about a "rare grandmother who made me aware of why
discrimination is foolish when I was merely a child." Two
259
women checked in the affirmative without naming the model.
Several women mentioned more than one model. More than
half of the models were teachers, almost a fourth of the
entire list being high school teachers. Table 8 lists role
models.
Table 8
Response of Jury: What woman role model(s) did you have
when growing up, if any?
(N = 13)
Number of
Respondents
Superior high school teachers 5
Women professors
3
Junior college mathematics professor 1
Junior college social science teacher 1
Elementary teachers 1
Mother 1
Family members 1
Grandmother 1
Martha Berry (founder of a college) 1
Joan of Arc 1
Biblical women— Deborah and Esther 1
Lillian Gilbreth 1
Madame Curie 1
Sacajawea 1
Queen Elizabeth I 1
Role models are developed through overt and covert
conditioning. Next to the home, formal education is the
most powerful conditioning force. Recently, leaders in the
civil rights and woman's movements have focused attention
260
on the lack of models., or inferior models., in the books
that children and young people are forced to read in school.
It has been pointed out that books teach more than reading.
Publishing companies, by legal and moral persuasion, have
begun to rewrite books so that the stereotyped roles are
no longer presented. In higher education, this is evi
denced by a growth in courses about women.
The jury was questioned on whether courses about
women in high school and college would have made any par
ticular difference in their life. All women answered this
question. Out of 13 responses,, only two, or 15-38 percent,
answered in the affirmative. One of these respondents said
that she felt cheated when she later learned of the accom
plishments of women. The other woman said that such courses
probably would have helped her to understand conflict inter
ests between career and home in terms of time and energy.
Five women, or 38.46 percent, answered in the nega
tive. One of these questioned whether the position of
women in the past would be analogous to needs of women
today., whether there would be a carry-over since the world
is constantly changing. Another who answered negatively
wrote that she grew up at a college whose founder was a
"doer,M it thus being an accepted fact that women could and
should do things. Two women answered in the negative with
out comment.
261
Six women, or 46 percent, answered "perhaps." One
of these wrote that she might have entered the field of
science if she had seen any aura of success about women in
science. Another also checked the same answer, then added
"Probably not, but one cannot be sure." She commented
about the good articles in magazines that seem to be making
an impact and urged more use of them in the curriculum.
Other women made no comment after checking "perhaps." Data
in. Table 9 reflect the replies of the women about this
question.
Table 9
Response of Jury: Would courses about -women have made a
difference in your life?
Response Wumber Percent
Yes 2
15
Wo
5 39
Perhaps 6 46
Totals
13
100
When queried about steps that they took to be pre
pared for positions that might open, respondents recalled
continual attempts to improve their capacities and qualifi
cations. Foremost was the goal of obtaining as much educa
tion as. possible. Every woman wrote about this. One, how
ever, commented that she did not remember any special steps
262
but considered, all educational and work experience as prep
aration for life. Seven women mentioned their deliberate
participation in as many activities as possible to gain
experience. One woman wrote that the better qualified she
became, the more over-qualified she became with the result
that male supervisors became more jealous. One panelist
wrote of special attempts to cultivate interpersonal rela
tionships . Another recalled with strong feeling male super
visors 1 actions and remarks against the "usefulness” of
higher degrees even though some of them had higher degrees.
This stiffened that women's resolve to obtain the doctorate;
eventually, she became the supervisor of some of those men.
A summary of these responses is given in Table 10.
Table 10
Response of Jury: What steps did you take to be better prepared
for a better position?
(N = 13)
Number of
_______________________________________ Respondents
Aimed for and got as much education as possible 13
Gained wide experience from participation in y
many activities
Took summer courses in personnel and administration 2
Tried to do things better than men 2
Coauthored two books 1
Coauthored two nationally used tests 1
Cultivated interpersonal relationships 1
Published draft of dissertation 1
Worked to qualify for scholarship 1
Developed interviewing skills in social work 1
Obtained teaching credential for future use
and needed it
263
In answer to a question about whether the spirit of
the times had. any marked influence in helping them to
achieve their current status or pinnacle,, nine of the women,
or 69 percent, indicated that such was so. Three, or 23
percent, answered negatively, and one noted a negligible
influence. All women commented on this question, however.
One answering in the negative said that the current spirit
is helping others but is too late for her since she is
retired. This woman, however, has a long background in
women's rights and is still involved. Another woman answer
ing in the negative expressed the same thought even though
she is not retired. Both she and another panelist indicat
ing "negligible influence" remarked that age is now the more
subtle barrier. Four wrote that World War II opened doors
for them and other women. One answering in the negative
said that she had gotten the master's degree just before
Pearl Harbor and was ready for the post-war influx of stu
dents. Table 11 gives a summary of these answers, followed
by direct quotations from the participants.
264
Table 11
Response of Jury: Was the "Zeitgeist" of much importance in
helping you to achieve your current status and/or position?
Response Number Percent
Yes
9 69
No
3 23
Negligible 1 8
Totals
13
100
"The commitment to equal educational opportunity In
the late 60 ’ s and 70’s Inspired me to ’move out.,n
"Not many men around in World War II, which gave me
an ’in.’ ."
"Changes emphasizing women’s opportunities came after
I went into administration, else my position might
have been higher."
"I graduated during the depth of the Depression. War
years followed. Many women were working."
"When universities started considering women for admin
istration, I got several calls. Obviously, outside
pressure and the Woman’s Movement were responsible
for the universities’ changing stance."
Answers to the question, "What do you perceive as
the rationale of Women’s Studies?" evoked such a wide
variety of responses that it was felt that the giving of
direct quotations would be more appropriate than a table.
Representative comments are given below. Some participants
gave more than one answer.
"Depends on what they are trying to accomplish."
265
"No idea.' Since we live in a male world., better to
integrate and sensitize the male to our new role."
"To make women aware of their place in history."
"To encourage women to be creative in the arts and
sciences."
"To consist of academically sound and practical courses
that will enable women to earn a living."
"To encourage women to break new ground as they did in
history."
"A major in Women’s Studies is needed for women lead
ing the movement."
"To help women understand selves in order to under
stand others."
"To gain recognition for women."
"To encourage young and.insecure women to become better
educated."
"Woman’s Studies offer a field for research."
"To encourage women to gain self-confidence as women."
"To call women's needs, abilities, and interests to
attention of males who are chauvinistic."
"I would like to see these as elective courses used
as consciousness raising courses for persons unaware
of women's capabilities."
"It is the thing to do now. Frankly, I believe in
people, not blacks or Indians or women. I am tired
of seeing this separating."
In spite of the many reasons given for the rationale
of Women's Studies, when queried about whether Women's Stud
ies should be considered as a distinct discipline, nine, or
59 percent, of the jury replied in the negative. Three, or
23 percent, answered "perhaps." One of these suggested
266
Women's Studies as a possible minor. The other indicated
that choice of curricula, texts, etc. would be the determin
ing factor. Only one woman, 8 percent, gave an affirmative
answer. Two of those answering the negative believed that*
like Black Studies., Women's Studies would cause fragmenta
tion. Another answering negatively wrote that all teachers,
especially in the lower grades, should teach as if the world
is one of equal opportunity. Three women answering nega
tively made no comment. Table 12 summarizes these data.
Table 12
Response of Jury: Should Women’s Studies be a
separate discipline?
Response Number Percent
Yes 1 8
No
9 69
Perhaps
3 23
Totals
13
100
In a similar vein, in reply to the question about
whether there should be separate courses about women in a
given department or whether material about women should be
incorporated into existing courses, eight panelists., or 62
percent, selected the latter. Three, or 23 percent believed
that Women's Studies courses should be included in the exist
ing departments. It was the opinion of the remaining two,
267
or* 15 percent* that both methods should be used. According
to one woman* material about women would receive little
attention in the existing departmental structure. The major
reasons given for incorporation of material about women into
the existing courses were the following:
1. A wider audience would be gained.
2. Both men and women should understand how women
bring up boys to think that they are superior
to girls.
3. Separation implies inferiority.
4. Separation and contrasts would be minimized.
5. Women should learn how men "play the game."
Perceptions of the jury concerning weaknesses in
Women’s Studies are summarized in Table 1 3. Twelve of them
beld that the programs are too narrow and ingrown. Pour of
the comments were that there should be less focus on women
per se and more on practical courses to help women and on
broader courses such as "Women in the Great Religions." Four
women, noted the need for sound scholarship* one of these
adding that there is too much emphasis on women and not the
subject matter. It was recognized by four women that weak
nesses are inevitable in a mushrooming movement. Only one
woman believed that the women involved were too militant.
This woman was from a culture in which women are more docile.
Another woman took a different slant entirely. She
expressed the fear that five courses taken in Women’s
268
Studies may cause the student to forego five other courses
that would allow her to compete on an equal basis in the
job market with males, e.g., mathematics, statistics,
accounting, engineering, political science, and economics.
This is the same valid criticism that thoughtful black and
white educators made about Black Studies.
Table 13
Response of Jury: What are perceived weaknesses in the programs?
(H = 13)
Number of
Respondents
Focus too narrow and ingrown 12
Need of sound scholarship k
Probably too rapid expansion;
needs reappraisal
k
Women too militant 1
Causes separation and contrasts 1
May interfere with study of so-
called "masculine courses"
1
As old as the race itself is the question of what
kind of education is suitable for girls. And the over
whelming response has been "Different from boys." Because
of the nature of our government and institutions, more chan
nels for education have been open to more children than in
other' countries. Even here, however, many doors have been
closed to girls and women. It was but gradually that higher
269
education became a possibility for women, and the first
women's colleges were modeled after men's colleges. After
the passing of the Morrill Acts,, in addition to the tradi
tional types of education made possible for women- though
often, circumvented--special courses were devised for women.
This was the birth of home economics, which soon lost pres
tige in higher education.
The heart of the issue has been "woman1s place."
Although the issue has never left academe and society,, the
rebirth of the Women's Movement has brought it to the fore
again. The jury was questioned about the needs of women in
higher education. Every woman responded to the question,
some with specific suggestions and some with general ones.
Altogether, 31 points were made. In some respects, there is
overlapping in meaning.
Five women wrote that the first need of women was to
be treated as persons with full options in choice of pur
suits. Three were concerned that women do not know*'enough
about the creative arts and literature, sources of enrich
ment and joy for later years. Two saw the need of psychol
ogy and sociology courses to help women with interpersonal
conflict about roles, career, and marriage. Two others also
made a suggestion relative to that subject. One said that
since society has a stake in children, education should be
responsive to the woman's needs so that she would not be
penalized for her body. The other considered the need of
270
early Introduction to a career field to which the woman
could return after the children went to school. Data in
Table 14 reflects the opinions of the panel on this subject.
The jury was asked to make recommendations on how
educational institutions may help three different categories
of students other than the traditional beginning college
woman. These were the young married student, the mature
woman attempting advanced work, and the older woman return
ing to school to finish a degree or for general education.
The panel gave much consideration to this question, making
49 recommendations altogether.
There were 11 suggestions concerning the time limits
that handicap women. These encompassed flexibility of age
regulations to degree programs, the discounting of previous
college experience as being outdated, and the need to extend
time for the completion of work. Realistic counseling was
recommended as paramount by 11 women. For example, one of
the panel wrote that young mothers should recognize the dif
ference between motherhood and motherwork. And, of course,
childcare facilities would be a crucial need for these stu
dents. Other types of counseling included counseling for
class load, family counseling, and the attempt to effect a
connection between courses and future work.
One need in common recognized by the panel was for
financial aid and a different formula for granting it. d!t
271
-Table lb
Response of Jury: What are needs of women as ■women
in higher education?
(N = 13)
Number of
Respondents
To be treated as a person with full
options just as men are
5
Study of literature and creative arts for
current and future enrichment of life
3
To be given education responsive to her
needs without being penalized
for her body
2
To become cognizant of how women have
been forced or maneuvered into
their accepted roles
2
Study of psychology of women 2
Study of sociology with emphasis on
woman's roles and role conflicts
2
Introduction to fields to which they
could return when children are
in school— careers^ not jobs
2
More pushing of women for top positions 2
To be selected for competition and inter
views for all openings., whether as
student or position applicant
2
Offer courses on laws affecting women 1
More toleration on part of professors
and administrators
1
Offer courses on finance,, insurance,
taxes, and social security
1
Offer courses on legal aspects of marriage 1
Same chance as men for graduate assistant-
ships and other sources of experience
and financial aid
1
Major in Women’s Studies for women teaching
in that area
1
Develop self-confidence and assertiveness
without losing femininity
1
Counseled to know that every field is
open to them
1
Women should learn to cut out personal
jealousies
1
272
has not been the custom to grant scholarships to part-time
students nor to give them work opportunities. Eight women
wrote about need for aid. Pour more tied aid., if possible.,
to work experience that had some relevancy to courses being
studied. There were seven comments about the need for
flexible scheduling.
For the mature and older woman, four of the panel
recognized the vast knowledge and experience that many
women gain in volunteer work, for example. Their recommen
dation was that college credit be given for such work.
Other recommendations had to do with tutorial help., but not
spoon-feeding, and teaching reading appreciation for
enriched later years. Finally, two panelists each gave a
unique suggestion:
"Have a ’young sister’ rather than a 'big sister’
program to ease transition.M
"Have special parking space for 'creeping coeds.'"
Table 15 summarizes these data.
Findings of the Questionnaire to Instructors,
Instructor-Directors, and Students:
Purpose C
Questionnaires were answered’ by 8 instructors and
instructor-directors and 115 students in Women's Studies
programs in 5 institutions of higher education in Southern
California. These institutions were two state universities,
one private, church-addiliated university, and two public
community colleges. Responses from Instructors and
273
Table 15
Response of Jury: How may institutions of higher education
help the non-traditional woman student?
(N = 13)
Number of
Respondents
Changing of time limitations having to
do with: age to begin degree, dis
counting previous educational
experiences, extension of time
to complete degree
11
Realistic counseling 11
Financial aid 8
Flexible scheduling
7
Credit for volunteer work and profes
sional experiences
k
Others 8
Table 16
Background of Instructors and Instructor-Directors According to
Age, Marital Status, Children, and Education
No. at
. . . Age .
Married
Yes No
No. of
Children
Age of
Children
Highest
Degree
20-29
3
1 1 4 years Ph.D.
1 0
---
Ph.D.
1 0
---
Ph.D.
in
prog.
30-39
2 1 0
---
Ph.D.
in
prog.
1 0
--
Ph.D.
in
prog.
ko-k9
3
1 0
---
Ph.D.
1 0
--
Ed.D.
1 0
--
Ed.D.
in
prog.
Totals 8 k k 1
274
directors from all participating institutions were consid
ered as a group. Responses from students were tabulated
according to the individual colleges. Responses from stu
dents begin on page 284.
Instructors and
Instruetor-Directors
A review of the academic background of this group
revealed that they had degrees from 15 institutions from
throughout the United States. Every respondent had the
conferred doctorate or indicated that the doctorate was in
progress. Four of the women were married., and four were
single. Only one had a child. Table 16 summarizes these
data.
In answer to the query of whether high school teach
ers., counselors, or college professors had encouraged them
to continue their education and/or to work at the college
level, seven women, or 87-5 percent, answered in the affir
mative. One of these answered that a male professor for
whom she corrected papers half-heartedly encouraged her.
Only one woman replied in the negative. Both men and women
encouraged these women. One professor said that all of her
teachers had encouraged her to study medicine and that was
what she had wanted to do during childhood and adolescence.
She did not say that she had been refused entrance to a
medical school; however, in a later comment, she did remark
275
on discrimination in not being admitted to certain programs.
Table 17 summarizes these data.
Table 17
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What is the
identity of school-related persons -who encouraged you?
(N = 8)
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
All my teachers 2 25.O
High school teacher (female)
(never in college)
1 12.5
Vice principal high school
(female)
1 12.5
Professors in college
(male)
1
12.5
Department chairman in
c olle ge (male)
1
12.5
High school teachers
(female)
1
12.5
First year graduate school
(female)
1 12.5
Totals 8 100.0
All women had experienced discrimination based on
seXj and each had noticed such in the environment all along
the way. Though all mentioned specific examples* certainly
the subtle conditioning affected everyone. Some of their
remarks give an index to the types of discrimination.
"It seemed frustrating that my future relied on the
success of men to whom I was connected. In college
I resented the men’s having no dorm hours and the
women's having very strict ones."
"Yes. Just look around at how many men/women are
accepted into programs* are university administra
tors* etc . "
276
"Yes. My original goal was to study medicine--surgery--
tout I received no encouragement from anyone and was
discouraged toy my counselor., met with great resistance
everywhere and made to feel that it was not a woman's
choice, and that I was perhaps a little odd in having
such a goal.
"In teaching in high school in New York State as the
only women in a department of 21, I was expected to
contribute to the department as Big Mamma rather than
as a professional with equal intelligence."
"Yes. In Jewish religion there is a great discrepancy
between roles assigned to men and women."
"Graduate school woke me up. Also the treatment that
women received from men when I worked in the legisla
ture . "
"Lack of role models in graduate school which would
give validation to the female experience."
"Innumerable--in. sports most especially. In the teach
ing profession in terms of administrative responsibil
ities . "
"Yes. When I began to work in civil rights; a natural
consequence of 1964-65 plus Selma, Alabama was the
extension to others who were disenfranchised."
Half of the women had role models when growing up.
Some had more than one. Peter Pan and Eleanor Roosevelt
were the only models not connected with education. A
sixth grade teacher, high school teachers, a high school
principal, and a teacher in college and graduate school
were recalled.
Courses about women do not begin with impetus from
male administrators. The welling-up comes from campus
women, students, staff, faculty wives, and women faculty.
Much of the work is volunteer to get the program off the
277
ground and to enable it to continue. Five of the respond
ents volunteered to teach., two originally volunteered and
then were assigned., and the other set up the position.,
teaching being part of the responsibilities. All of the
women had a broad academic background, but none of their
graduate or undergraduate work had been in Women’s Studies.
All of the instructors but one encouraged students
to be on a first-name basis with them. The latter said
that "If it happens., it happens--whatever the student feels
comfortable with." In response to the question concerning
the attitude of men in. their classes, the women gave a
gamut of answers. One professor wrote that all of the
minority men were defensive regarding women. Table 18 sum
marizes these data.
Table 18
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What is the
attitude of male students in your
(W = 8)
classes?
Number of
Respondents
Interested 6
Amazed and enlightened at degree of
discrimination against -women
Ill-at-ease and defensive
3
Flippant 2
Attempts familiarity with instructor 2
278
In response to the question of the place of Women’s
Studies in the curriculum^ four instructors believed that
they should be a separate department. Two answered in the
negative, and two gave qualified answers. Some of their
remarks follow, and the summary of the data is in Table 1 9.
''Absolutely.’ "
"No. The separation should be temporary. Disciplinary
ties are important. The isolation of feminist faculty
causes problems."
"Yes. I believe the study of the changing position of
women in a changing society is of great importance."
"No. Look at ethnic studies."
"Depends on the university."
Table 19
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: Should
Women’s Studies be a separate department?
(H = 8)
Total
Number of
Respondents
Total
Percent
Yes h
50
Wo 2
25
Temporarily 2
25
Totals 8 100
As a group, instructors mentioned 15 strengths
associated with their program. Three of these had to do with
the outstanding faculty support. One of the instructors
279
emphasized that all faculty women were most enthusiastic.
The camaraderie of the women involved was noted by three
instructors. Other comments had to do with a well-
structured, substantive course, support for women return
ing to formal education, and the exposure to positive
female models. Table 20 gives these data.
Table 20
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What do you
perceive as the major strengths of your program?
(N = 8)
Major Strengths
Number of
Respondents
Faculty support
3
Camaraderie of -women
3
Well-structures, substantive course 2
Emotional support for -women return
ing to school
2
Exposure to women and men students
to positive female models
2
Influence of CR groups 2
Fulfillment of student needs,
apparently
1
Altogether, the instructors gave 12 weaknesses that
they perceived in the programs on their campuses, some of
them obviously overlapping. Three women noted the lack of
acceptance--and hence prestige--on the campus. Another
wrote of the lack of visibility, and hence lack of power
with consequent vulnerability. Three instructors were
concerned because of too little involvement of women stu
280
dents., especially those 18 to 2 0, and other women faculty.
Two wrote of fiscal needs, and one other wrote of the need
of more full-time faculty and secretarial help. These data
are summarized in Table 21.
Table 21
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What do you
perceive as the major weaknesses
(N = 8)
of your program?
Weakness
Number of
Respondents
Lack of prestige
3
Lack of involvement of students
and women faculty
Adequate funding
3
Vulnerability of those pushing
i
for the program
Lack of sense of permanence 1
Weed of more academic strength 1
As would be expected, some of the perceived weak
nesses of the individual programs coincide with obstacles
to be overcome for growth of the program of Women’s Stud
ies. The instructors, however, did make other enlightening
comments. A cursory.glance at their answers shows that all
are intimately intertwined. Three believed that acceptance
of the faculty as being an intellectually distinct field of
study was the main obstacle. This was followed by two
notations of lack of administrative support and two on lack
of funding. One woman wrote of the fear on the‘part of women
281
involved in Women’s Studies--fear of administration. On
the other-hand, one woman believed that their program would
grow as long as the current administration was in charge
of the college. Table 22 summarizes these data.
Table 22
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What do you
perceive as the major obstacles of your program?
(H = 8)
Obstacles
Number of
Respondents
Acceptance of WS as being an
intellectually distinct
discipline
3
Administrative support 2
Funding 2
Fear of administration 1
Acceptance by community as
fulfilling a definite need
1
More hostility from women
faculty than from men
1
None 1
The women wrote freely about the rationale of the
concept of Women’s Studies. Two- focused their comments
specifically to the needs of women. The others included
this in broader statements. The essence of all remarks,
however, was that the educational structure was amiss in
having excluded women as a meaningful part of the curricu
lum. The summary of these date is given in Table 23.
282
Table 23
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What do you
perceive as the rationale of Women1
(N = 8)
s Studies?
Number of
Respondents
Valid academic discipline 4
Need to raise consciousness of
entire academic community
2
Need for positive role images for
women and men students
2
Need to encourage women to become
aware of problems affecting them
2
Need to instill self-knowledge and
self-confidence in women
2
Need to prepare women for an inte
grated life, not a continued
segregated one
1
Need for a place in the curriculum
where women may be studied.
Some faculty consider it a
breach of academic freedom
to ask them to change
course content
1
Seven instructors listed one or more weaknesses in
the concept of Women’s Studies. One instructor wrote "none."
Then she enlarged upon her answer by saying that it is an
essential part of the curriculum but requires the leadership
and support of strong women who understand the politics of
the educational setting. Four responses had to do with the
insularity of the program., and three noted that there was a
tendency of academe to allow the Women's Studies program to
carry the burden for the whole educational community.
These responses are summarized in Table 24.
283
Table 2k
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: What weakness,
if any, do you perceive in the concept of WS?
(H = 8)
Number of
Weakness Respondents
Tendency for insularity k
Tendency for academe to permit WS
to carry the whole burden that
should be the responsibility of
whole academic community
3
Ability to sustain itself as a
legitimate academic discipline
2
Too much emphasis on CR 2
Narrowness in focus 2
Lack of sound research 2
Lack of prestige 1
None 1
In response to the question on suggestions of ways
that the university might help college women in various age
groups, instructors gave 29 altogether. Five women made
the suggestion that help was needed in the area of child
care. Four were cognizant of the need for special counsel
ing, e.g., for the young married women and for the older
woman returning to school--not just the routine advice and
information, but expertise. There were four comments for
Women's Centers as a home base and a place for support for
women. Table 25 gives a summary of these data.
284
Table 25
Response of Instructors and Instructor-Directors: How may
institutions of higher education help the
non-1 radit i onal student ?
(N = 8)
Number of
Respondents
Childcare facilities
5
Special counseling 4
Women's Center 4
Financial aid
3
Flexible scheduling
3
Consideration of previous educa
tional and/or life experiences
3
Responsive health care 1
Obliteration of sexual bias in
courses
1
WS major 1
Non-credit classes 1
Abiding by institutions of existing
legislation
1
Special reference service -with
expertise
1
Participation of all segments of
campus in decision-making
affecting them
1
School A was a state university in a large metropol
itan area. Contact with the cooperating instructor was made
through the Women's Movement. Out of 40 questionnaires, 28
were returned, a total of JO percent. Two questionnaires
were sent to and returned by instructors. The data for
students and faculty were computed separately. Responses
of instructors and instructor-directors begin with Table 16.
285
Twenty-five female students and three male students returned
questionnaires. These data are reflected in Table 26.
Table 26
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According, to sex
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
Female
25 89
Male
3
11
Totals 28 100
More than half of the students were married, 15, or
54 percent. The three males were single, one stating that
he did not believe in marriage. Five women, or 18 percent,
were divorced. One woman indicated that she was a lesbian,
and another said that she was living with a male friend.
Table 27 summarizes these data.
Table 2J
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to marital status
Number of
Respondents Percent
Single 15
54
Married 6 21
Divorced
5
18
Lesbian 1 4
Living with male friend 1 4
Totals 28 100
286
Nineteen, or 68 percent, of the students were below
27 years of age; however, two students did not indicate age.
The academic classification of the 19 students included
freshman to graduate school. The oldest student was 4l,
the range being 24 years. Table 28 summarizes these data.
Table 28
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to age
Age
Number of
Respondents Percent
18-22
9 32
23-27 10 36
28-32
3
11
33-37 3
11
38-42 l 4
Not given 2
7
Totals 28 100
Seven of the women indicated that they had children,
but the men did not mention any. Ages of the children
ranged from 7i months for a senior woman to 16 years for
another senior woman. No freshmen or sophomores had chil
dren, and neither did the oldest woman. It is, of course,
especially difficult for women with children to try to stay
in school.
It is known that women do not receive financial aid
as do men in higher education. When students were asked
about financial aid, it was found that 16 students, or
slightly more than 57 percent, had not received help of any
kind. Two of the male students had received aid, as had
one of the married women with children. Aid to 4 recipi
ents was in the form of cash or a loan; the rest were
given opportunity to work. Table 29 summarizes these data.
Table 29
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to being
granted financial aid or -work opportunity
Humber of
Respondents Percent
Have not received aid 16
57
Have received aid 12
45
Totals 28 100
Of the seven mothers with children, five indicated
that they could have gone to college sooner had childcare
facilities been available. One could not have, and the
other checked that the question was not applicable. It is
possible that the latter checked the wrong option. These
data are given, in Table 30.
288
Table ^0
Students in Women’s Studies,, School A: According to need
for childcare facilities
Number of
Respondents Percent
Question not applicable 22 78
Could have continued
education
5
18
Could not have continued
education
1 4
Totals 28 100
For more than...a hundred years, there has been an
expanding belief in the United States that it is the right
of all young people to have a higher level of education,
including a college education. The passage of the first
and second Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890 gave the first
chance for most of America’s youth. The Smith-Hughes Act
and the "Or. I. Bill of Rights" are two others of the several
landmark acts that have opened more doors. The junior and
community college movements, especially in California, have
put higher education within the reach of virtually all
young people.
With roots in the Chatauqua, and later perhaps in
Town Hall, there has also been a trend toward continuing
education in addition to higher education of adults. The
concept of life-long learning has also grown stronger
because of the vast and fast-moving changes of this techno-
_g_
logical age. Since the rise of the second Women’s Movement;
there has been a burgeoning interest on the part of women
to begin formal education or to update and renew educational
experiences. Recently,, however; there has been a reaction
to both the concept of higher education for all and the
concept of life-long learning, partly due to the high mone
tary cost.
In order to try to gauge how these two philosophical
concepts might have had some effect on the educational
decisions of students in this study, they were asked to
indicate the length of time that elapsed between high
school graduation and college entrance and also why they
had gone to college. Summer vacation was not considered
as a time elapse. Generally it is expected that high
school graduates will enter college the next semester or
within a year after graduation.
Sixteen students, or 57 percent, entered college
within three months after finishing high school. Seven, or
25 percent, entered from one-half year to 5 years, and five
from 8 to 13 years. One of the latter indicated that she
had gone to college "on and off for years." Summary of the
data is given in Table 31.
290
Table 31
Students in Women’s Studies, School A: According to time elapsed
between high school graduation and entrance to college
Number of
Respondents Percent
Immediate enrollment 16
57
One-half year 1 4
One to three years
3
11
Four to five years
3
11
Eight years 1 4
Ten years 2
7
Thirteen years 1 4
"After many years" 1 4
Totals 28 100
Altogether, students gave 44 answers of why they
had gone on to higher education. Eighteen of these answers
had to do with career or work. Nine of that category
referred to needing an education for a good, interesting
career. Four wrote that they were tired of routine jobs or
dead-end jobs, and three indicated that they could not get
a- job. "Wanted an education" was noted nine times. Paren
tal and/or peer pressure was an answer of five. Other com
ments had to do with encouragement by high school counsel
ors, discontent with ignorance, and love of learning.
Table 32 summarizes these data.
291
Table J2
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to reasons
given for attending college
(N = 28)
Number of
Respondents
Need education for good career
9
Wanted an education
9
Expected by parents and peers
5
Tired of routine job 4
No job
3
Love of learning
3
Wanted to learn to think better
3
Encouraged by high school teachers
and counselors as "college material"
3
Discontented about my ignorance 2
To help effect change for my people
(resident alien)
1
Free education "which I could not
pay for
1
Did not "want full-time job yet 1
Needed college education for my
career— law
1
Students gave a total of 32 answers to the query
about the need for Women's Studies. First with seven
responses was that the rationale was self-evident in that
there were many enrollees and high attendance. Six students
wrote that there was a need for women to become aware of
how they had been conditioned. Five students noted the
expressed desire of women for such courses. Other reasons
given included the long-time bias of the university as a
male institution, the need to make men aware, and the need
292
for society to know about all of its parts in order to
function wisely. All three men gave reasons for the pro
gram. One woman wrote that there should be Women's Studies
but made no comment. Another wrote that she did not know
whether there should be a program or not and made no com
ment. Table 33 summarizes these data.
Table 33
Students in Women’s Studies, School A: According to the rationale
for the necessity of Women’s Studies
(N = 28)
Number of
Respondents
Full classes and high attendance
indicate interest
7
Women 1 need to become aware of how
they have been conditioned
6
The expressed desires of women
for such classes
5
Women have been denied a knowledge
of their history
3
Need for all kinds of knowledge and
awareness of all groups for
society to understand its parts
3
The university is a male institution
with bias against women in all
its facets
2
Men need to become educated about women 1
Lots of older women coming to college
especially need the courses
1
To change the belief that women are
inferior to men
1
Some professors, even women, do not know
or ignore contributions of women
1
There is a need for all oppressed to study
their condition (male response)
1
Familiarity with personal needs of women,
including self
1
293
On the question of whether men could teach Women's
Studies as effectively as women.., 15* or 5^ percent, of the
respondents replied in the negative. Eighty or 29 percent,
replied in the affirmative; five, or 18 percent, gave a
qualified answer; and one wrote that she did not know.
Representative remarks amplify the statistics. The male
student who indicated that he did not know if there should
be a program of Women's Studies strongly believed that male
professors could handle the courses. The other two males
did not think sex necessarily a variable.
"I don't see why not.' Let's not discriminate now.'"
(male)
"No. Sex doesn't matter. In the sense that a white
person can't fully understand all the problems faced
by a non-white . . . but could still be totally sym
pathetic." (male)
"I think a male could handle factual., historical., and
sociological data but have more difficulty with emo
tional and experiential aspects."
"Yes, because I hate to be somewhat of a woman sexist,
but can a man really understand a female experience
like a woman?"
"Sex is a variable. Sexism and capitalism are tied
together and there can be no man who grew up under
capitalism who is not a sexist."
"No. I think that all men are sexists due to their
upbringing. I don't think men can be feminists (pro-
feminist* maybe). I think that women relate better
to other women. The men are more hesitant to talk
and feel threatened and inhibited."
"Men typically don't know enough. Besides* I perceive
this as a woman's struggle* and I don't want men
'helping' us with it."
Table 3^- summarizes the data on the question of male
294
versus female professors In courses about women.
Table
Students in Women’s Studies, School A: According to
whether a male professor could handle classes
as well as a woman professor
Number of
Respondents Percent
No
15 54
Yes 8 29
Qualified "yes"
5
18
Totals 28 100
In answer to the question about whether the students
felt more free to talk to professors teaching Women’s Stud
ies than to professors in other departments, 1 0, or 36 per
cent, answered affirmatively; 'J} or 25 percent, answered
negatively; and 1 1, or 39 percent, did not answer or com
ment. One of the men did not answer, and two said "No.”
Representative comments are given, followed by Table 35 . >
which summarizes the data.
"She seems to back away from talking about my grades."
(male)
"I hate the idea of competition. The need to do bet
ter than another is because of the political system."
(male)
"Communications is the same for me. If I don’t think
I can communicate with the teacher the first week, I
drop the class."
"Yes, sometimes; but because the professor is a woman
doesn’t mean she will treat you fairly, even if I
expect it from her. But with my experience on campus,
295
I have found it easier to speak with women profes
sors than with men professors."
"It’s usually a bit easier, since they are women,
and the classes are on a more informal basis. I
don’t think they should grade harder or easier."
"Professors in Women’s Studies seem to want to
extend themselves to you."
Table 35
Students in Women's Studies^ School A: According to their
ease in talking with professors in this program as
compared with professors in other departments
Number of
Respondents Percent
No answer 11
39
More at ease 10
36
No more at ease
7 25
Totals 28 100
All students but one answered the inquiry about the
place of Women’s Studies in the curriculum. This student,
a woman, asked a rhetorical question which could not be
fitted into the framework of the original question. The
obvious inference was that there should not be a separate
department for Women's Studies, but she did not choose
another option nor make a suggestion. Eighty or 29 percent,
selected a separate department. Six voted for a combina
tion of all three choices, believing that more students
would be involved and that the university per se would
296
restructure the disciplines to fit reality. Seven students
believed that Women's Studies should be in a separate
department and also courses should be put into the regular
departmental structure. Table 36 summarizes the data on
the question of the place of Women's Studies in the cur
riculum for optimal education.
Table 36
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to organization
of program into educational structure
Number of
.Respondents Percent
Separate department 8 29
Separate department and inte
gration of material into
existing courses
7 25
Separate department, integra
tion of material into
existing courses, and
inte rdepartmenta1
structure
6 21
Interdepartmental structure b lb
Integration of material into
existing courses
2
7
Wo answer 1 b
Totals 28 100
As a group, students had completed 6l courses in
Women's Studies. "Philosophical Issues of Femininism" and
Sociology of Sexual Roles had been studied by 12 students.
297
Nine students had taken "Psychology of Women." All stu
dents indicated that professors were women except in five
instances. One student had studied "Masculinity: A New
View" under a man., and two students had taken "American
Women in History" under a man. Two other courses taught by
men were "Sexism and Capitalism: Political Sociology" and
"Sexual Factors in Marriage." Courses taken by male stu
dents were under women professors. Table 37 summarizes the
data on the basic question.
Table 37
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to subject titles
and numbers of courses taken
(N = 28)
Title of Course
Number of
Respondents
Sociology of Sexual Poles 12
Philosophical Issues of Feminism 12
Psychology of Women
9
American Women in History 8
Images of Women in Mass Media
Care of Female Reproductive System
3
American Women Poets 2
Women Cross Culturally 2
Rhetoric of Sexual Liberation Movements 2
Sexual Roles in Communication 2
Personal Defense for Women 2
Masculinity: A New View 1
Psychology of Sexual Roles 1
Independent Study 1
298
Respondents listed 26 course satisfactions, but four
did not reply to the question. Eight students wrote., "All
of them," giving reasons for their reply. Six more stu
dents indicated that the first course gave them the most
satisfaction. Five students opted for "American Women in
History" and three for "Sociology of Sex Roles." Table 38
summarizes these data.
Table 38
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to
course satisfaction
(N = 28)
Course
Number of
Re spondent s
All of them 8
First course 6
American Women in History
5
Psychology of Women
5
Sociology of Sex Roles
5
Women in Mass Media 1
Wo answer 4
Students listed 45 strengths of their classes.
Fourteen wrote of the material. Such expressions as "excit
ing, new material," "richness of material," and "good read
ings" ran through their comments. Nine respondents wrote
with appreciation of their professors: "strong, brilliant
299
women," "sincerity and devotion of instructor," "enthusiasm
of professor." Five women wrote of the closeness of the
women, their support* and their understanding of each
other's background. Four especially liked the class format
of openness of discussion. Four students also made a
point of mentioning the broadening of their knowledge by
their being presented a historical perspective of men and
women in the various disciplines. One woman wrote that the
strength was that there were more "real feminists" in the
class, thus controlling the discussions. One of the male
students and three female students made no comment. Table
39 summarizes these data.
Table 39
Students in Women's Studies, School A: According to
course strengths
(N = 28)
Strengths
Number of
Respondents
Exciting, new material Ik
Instructors, their personality,
sincerity; strong role models
9
Camaraderie of women
5
Class discussions k
Class format— discussions, read
ings, slides, speakers
k
Good reading lists k
Broad, historical perspective
of issues
k
Predominance of feminists
in class
1
Wo answer k
300
Students gave 24 weaknesses of classes in which
they had had experience. Four of the students did not
answer the question,, one of these being a male. One other
male felt that there was no weakness, maybe a minor one of
emphasis in identifying "the enemy," which he himself did
not identify* however. A woman and the remaining male
stated that there were too many women libbers in. the class
or that there was too much bias (see Table 40). Four stu
dents did not find any complaint with their own classes.
The largest number of complaints was three, in two cate
gories. Three students believed that it was too easy for
the class to get off the subject and into rap sessions.
Three women did not believe that men should be allowed in.
the classes. This comment was representative: "Men are
allowed in class; not good because they are disruptive and
don't take women's courses seriously; also it stiffles
women in class from speaking about recalling the bitterness.1
Table 40 summarizes these data.
Table 40
Students in Women’s Studies,, School A: According to course weaknesses
(N = 28)
Number of
_______Weaknesses______________________Respondents
Men are allowed in class 3
Easy to go into rap sessions 3
Too much information for quarter 2
Media class did not consider women 2
Skirted the issue of lesbian women 2
301
Table 40— continued
Number of
Weaknesses_________________ Respondents
Control by radical libbers 2
1
With no separate department, there
is no recognition on campus
Elective courses; commuter students
have to concentrate on required 1
subjects
Scattered resources 1
Lots of repetition among courses 1
Theory not balanced with practicality 1
Emphasis on identifying the enemy 1
Bias 1
Some classes low in content 1
Need more emphasis on minority women 1
Need more emphasis on handicapped women 1
Altogether, students listed 21 ways by which the
courses or program could be improved. Seven students did
not answer the question. Five students believed that there
should be a separate department for Women’s Studies., offer
ing either a major, a minor, or both. Three students were
concerned because of perceived lack of support from adminiS'
tration with consequent lack of power and authority on part
of professors to go forward with the program. A number of
students were concerned about various aspects of the amount
and depth of material. Two believed that the-courses were
too much on the survey type and that there should be depth
rather than breadth. Two thought that a quarter was too
short a time to cover all the material and that was perhaps
302
the reason for "shot-gun" approach. Two believed that
there was repetition among courses and that professors
should get together beforehand and think through the course
content. And two believed that in the classes per se mate
rial should be covered more in depth before the group be
allowed to go off on tangents. Table 4l reflects these
data.
Table 4l
Students in Women’s Studies,, School A: According to ways
to improve program of Women’s Studies
(N = 28)
Suggestions for Improvement
Number of
Re sp on dent s
Weed for department with major and
minor permitted
5
More support from administration
3
More depth coverage 2
Division of courses beyond one quarter 2
Less repetition among courses 2
Exclusion of males 2
More courses 1
Minority women to teach some courses 1
More relationship to specific needs
of people
1
Smaller groups 1
Guard against route of Black Studies 1
School B was a state university in a large metropol
itan area. The class visited was a psychology class with
team-teaching. Thirty questionnaires were distributed to
students and one to each of two instructors. One of the
303
instructors was also the director of the Women's Studies
program. Twenty-six, or 86.67 percent, of the students
returned the completed questionnaires, a high rate of
return. Both questionnaires were returned by instructors,
and the director was also interviewed. Data for students
and instructors were computed separately. Table 42 reflects
the data concerning students.
Table 42
Students in Women's Studies, School B: According to sex
Number of
Respondents Percent
Female 26 100
Male 0 0
Totals 26 100
Since home responsibilities prevent entirely or
delay entrance to higher education for many women, students
were queried about their marital status. The class split
50-50 between being single and some form of marital rela
tionship. Table 43 reflects their status.
304
Table 43
Students in Women's Studies, School B: According to
marital status
Number of
Respondents Percent
Single
13
50
Married
5 19
Living -with male friend 4
15
Divorced
3
12
Separated, living in
extended family
1 4
Totals 26 100
The profile of students in this school departs
somewhat from the stereotyped picture of the young, fresh-
faced coed. The data reveal a vast spread in age from a
low of 17 to a high of 50. The range is 33. One student
was 1 7j and one 1 9. Six students were 21 years old, the
largest category, and four students were 24 years of age.
Prom 23 to 50 years, there was but a single student in each
age level given. Table 44 summarizes these data.
Students in Women's
Table 44
Studies, School B: According to age
Age
Number of
Respondents Percent
17-21 8 50
22-26 11 42
27-51
5
12
32-36 1 4
57-^1
2 8
50 up 1 4
Totals 26 100
Children and home responsibilities delay or prevent
many women from continuing their education. Students were
asked if they had children and to give the ages of the chil
dren. Twenty-two., or almost 85 percent, did not have chil
dren. The four remaining women had 10 children altogether.
The youngest mother did not note the age of her child.
This woman was a junior. Two others were seniors, and one
was a graduate student. These women are examples of one of
the themes of the Women's Movement, role conflict. The age
of these children ran from at least 5 years to 26 years.
The age of the mothers was from 27 to 50, the latter being
a senior with four children from 16 to 26 years old.
Women are not given financial aid as often as are
men, and this is especially true for the married woman
306
student. Students were queried about financial help or
work opportunities they had received in these two cate
gories. As Table 45 reflects, six of the 26 students had
received some kind of financial aid., slightly over 23 per
cent. Two of the mothers had been recipients.
Table 45
Students in Women’s Studies, School B: According to being
granted financial aid or work opportunity
Number of
Respondents Percent
Have not received aid 20
77
Have received aid 6
23
Totals 26 100
For the woman with children, there are added blocks
to continuance of education, especially in terms of the pre
school child. Students were asked if they could have
enrolled in classes had child-care facilities been avail
able. One of the mothers said that the question did not
apply to her. It is possible that she checked the wrong
option. Another woman wrote that child-care facilities
would not have made a difference. But two mothers, or 50
percent, could have continued their education had such care
been possible. Table 46 summarizes these data.
307
Table 46
Students in Women* s Studies,, School B: According to the need
for childcare facilities
Number of
Respondents Percent
Question not applicable
23
88
a
Could have continued
education
2 8
Could not have continued
education
1 4
Totals 26 100
As parents have become better educated,, they have
encouraged and expected their daughters to go to college as
well as their sons. It has been said., however, that most
parents still expect their daughters to go to an educa
tional level beyond high school in order to be able to
attract a more eligible man as a husband. Also if young
women marry, and especially if they have children, a col
lege degree seems to recede. Students were asked to indi
cate the length of time that had elapsed between high
school and college entrance. Sixteen, or 62 percent, of
the students had entered college within a year. For the
rest, the time ranged from three years to 22 years. One
student indicated that she had gone to college on and off
for 10 years. Table 47 reflects these data.
308
Table ^7
Students in Women’s Studies, School B: According to time elapsed
between high school graduation and entrance to college
Number of
Respondents Percent
Immediate enrollment 10
38
One semester
3
12
One year
3
12
Three years 2 8
Four years 1 k
Six years
3
12
Thirteen years 1 k
Twenty years 1 k
Twenty-two years 1 k
"Off and on for 10 years" 1 k
Totals 26 100
In response to the question of why they had. enrolled,
in college, students wrote freely, offering a total of 31
answers. Some students listed more than one reason and/or
elaborated on their answers. Foremost was the desire for a
career, not just a job, not "just dull uninteresting work."
Nine students wrote in this vein. Implicit in their answers
was that a career would also warrant a higher salary. The
desire to keep learning and to use their intelligence was
listed by eight women.
Four respondents gave family or group expectation,
a philosophy to which they concurred. One student expressed
it this way: "I would never be satisfied without a degree.
309
It has been programmed into me by my parents." Two others
said that "college was the thing to do" but they had awak
ened in college. One of them wrote., "I plan to continue
learning the rest of my life." Three respondents wrote
that., with more education, they would be better qualified
to help others. One of these wanted to be a teacher, one a
counselor, and the third a social worker.
One women expressed the need to feel secure in her
intelligence and to establish an identity apart from her
family. Another wrote that she had given up her college
work for 22 years to concentrate on raising four children
and she wanted to finish what she had started. One woman
listed a personal hobby., creative writing, and another wrote
of her love of art. Lack of money kept the latter from
enrolling in an art school. Only one of the 26 women indi
cated that she was attending college because there was noth
ing else to do and she was out of work. The data in Table
48 summarizes these responses.
Table 48
Students in Women's Studies, School B: According to reasons
given for attending college
(N = 26)
Number of
Respondents
A career, not just a job
9
Desire to use intelligence 8
Group and family expectation 4
College initially thought to be
"thing to do"
2
Table 48— continued
310
Number of
Respondents
Desire to help others
3
Need to establish identity apart from
family or need to develop self-
interests now that family -was grown
2
To develop hobby of creative -writing 1
Love of art 1
Out of work— nothing else to do 1
Respondents were 100 percent in agreement that
there is a need for Women's Studies. Though expressed in
various and different words,, the basis for their opinion
was that women have not been seen as people but only
through their relationship with others— as daughters,, wives,
mothers,, sisters--and that "personhood" and "selfhood" are
basic to existence. Thirteen students pinpointed this as
primary. In addition,, 11 of the 13 added that both men and
women need to know how women have been ignored as persons
and to gain some realization of women and their contribu
tions . One respondent used "rampant oppression by men"
concerning women, their minds„ and contributions as evidence
that a major reeducation is needed. Six respondents pointed
out that full classes in Woman's Studies or in comparable
interdepartmental courses show that the classes were needed,
one class having 90 students. Six women also noted that
311
Women's Studies courses help women to develop self-
confidence and pride. There * was a total of 36 answers.
Table 49 reflects this data.
Table 49
Students in Women's Studies, School B: According to the
rationale for the necessity of Women's Studies
(N = 26)
Number of
Respondents
WS help women develop a sense
self-hood and personhood
of
13
WS help men and women to know about
women and their contributions
11
Full classes demonstrate that
need to know all about the
whole feminist movement
women
6
WS help women to develop self-
confidence and pride in the
support of other women
6
One of the issues in the Women's Movement and
Women's Studies is that men need to have their consciousness
raised at least as much as women. Another is the question
of whether or not men can teach Woman’s Studies or should
teach Women's Studies. Students were asked to consider
this question., the question that evoked the most comment
and the strongest expressions of emotion. Seventeen, or 65
percent, of the students gave a resounding "No.'" Nine
others., or 35 percent, gave a qualified "no. 1 1 Only one
woman expressed general hostility to males. Some of the
exact quotations reveal a representative flavor of the
312
sentiments expressed. Table 50 reflects the data.
"For too many years men have told us what our needs
and dislikes are. We need to fight against this,
do the research., teach the truth."
"No.' I am definitely against a male professor. A
male raised in this existing society cannot possibly
be non-sexist. Noi Noi Noi"
"No--a man could not (definitely not) teach Women's
Studies classes because he has not and does not have
the same experience."
"No. I hate to say it, but men just could not under
stand the issue deeply enough."
"No. The man hasn't been there to know the internal
feelings of oppression. I wouldn't trust him,
although I trust men in general."
"No. Men are creeps and are too male-oriented to
grasp the female's point of view."
"Even if the man were liberated and qualified, too
many women would hesitate to talk about personal
matters."
"A liberated man could teach Women's Studies. He
might feven have a fresh approach."
"All classes should have some male speakers."
"A man teacher really could benefit immensely from
teaching a course."
"A male-female team approach would be interesting."
Students in Women's Studies, School B: According to whether a male
professor could handle classes as well as a woman professor
Table 50
Number of
Respondents Percent
No
Qualified "yes"
Yes
17
9
65
35
0 0
Totals 26 100
313
Implicit in the above comments is the corollary
that students should feel more free to speak with professors
of Women's Studies than with professors in other departments
or courses, whether male or female. Since grades loom so
high in the concerns of students as well as faculty, stu
dents were asked if they felt more free to discuss grades
with instructors in Women's Studies than with instructors
in other courses. Data in Table 51 indicate that this was
so. Eighteen, or 69 percent, answered affirmatively; four,
or 15 percent, answered negatively; three, or 12 percent,
replied that it depended on the professor. One student
wrote that she did not talk to "ANY" professor about grades
because all grades are subjective. Five students added
that they felt more free to talk to instructors in Women's
Studies because these instructors were not so "hung up"
about grades. One student, however, also said that she
felt a bit intimidated about her Women's Studies teachers
and that she did not have the time to devote to the movement,
Table 51
Students in Women’s Studies, School B: According to their ease in
talking -with professors in this program as compared
with professors in other departments
Number of
Respondents Percent
More at ease 18
69
Wo more at ease 4
15
Depends on professor
3
12
Don’t discuss grades with
any professor
1 k
Totals 26 100
314
Along with the questions of whether there should be
Women's Studies and who should teach the courses is the
crucial issue of how the subject should be incorporated
into the curriculuin— separate department, interdepartmental
structure, or integration into existing courses. In general
students seemed concerned that the material about women be
given the widest dissemination by whatever way possible.
Eleven, or 42 percent, voted only for a separate department.
Seven, or 27 percent, believed that all three methods should
be utilized. Pour, or 15 percent, indicated that both a
separate department and integration of material would be
best. Pour said that an integrated structure would be best.
One woman expressed a warning about some of the
separate courses on women from the historical or literary
historical point of view. In her opinion, there was little
allowed to women of the past, and just because a woman in
the past wrote a book does not signify that the book is
good. This respondent added, "A very contemporary class
would be great.'" Another woman wrote that the question
should not matter, but that separation into departmental
structure would give the outside the impression that "We
are women libbers." In her opinion, women were trying to
identify themselves as people first and as women second.
One student felt that the interdepartmental approach would
just continue the status quo with the same material profes
sors had been brought up on. Another was against any
315
departmental structure because she did not believe that men
students would take the courses. Table 52 reflects these
opinions.
Table 52
Students in Women's Studies,, School B: According to organization
of program into educational structure
Number of
Respondents Percent
Separate department 11 42
Separate department, integration
of material into existing
courses, and interdepart
mental structure
7 27
Separate department and integra
tion of material into
existing courses
4
15
Integration of material into
existing courses
4
15
Totals 26 100
In an attempt to gain more validity about their
opinions on Women’s Studies, students were asked to list
the number and titles of courses taken in that field. They
had studied, or were then enrolled in, a total of 64 courses.
Twenty-two women, or almost 85 percent, had taken "Women
and Their Bodies." "Psychology of Women" and "Sociology
of Women" had been studied by seven women. Other courses
had to do with current issues in the movement, literature,
and extension courses such as legal rights for women, per
sonal defense, and practicum for women counselors. Exten
sion courses are not listed in Table 53 but are counted
316
among the total of 64 courses.
Table 53
Students in Women’s Studies, School B: According to
subject titles and numbers of courses taken
(N = 26)
Title of Course
Number of
Respondents
Women and Their Bodies 22
Psychology of Women
7
Sociology of Women
7
Current Issues in the
Feminist Movement
5
Women in Literature
5
A correlation would be expected between the most
popular course and the reasons for course satisfaction.
This was true with respect to "Women and Their Bodies."
Thirteen students rated this course first. Four students
listed "Current Issues" as primary. The dynamism, care,
and concern of instructors received the second highest
number of comments. Other students wrote of the excitement
of being pioneers in a new program and the camaraderie of
women.
Responses of students concerning "Women and Their
Bodies" are especially of interest, coming as they do from
young women who must have had some courses in high school
or college anatomy and with four of them being mothers.
Typical comments add insight to course evaluation:
"I didn't know much about my body and sexuality
before."
317
"This course raised my consciousness more than all
the others."
"I am now better able to understand my fears and
guilt."
"Now I know how to express myself better,, to clarify
my feelings."
Table 5^- summarizes course satisfactions.
Table
Students in Women's Studies,, School B: According to
course satisfaction
(N = 26)
Course
Number of
Respondents
"Women and Their Bodies"
13
Personality of instructors 10
Pioneers in a new program
7
"Current Issues in the Feminist
Movement"
i f
Camaraderie of women
5
"Sociology of Women"
3
"Women in Literature"
3
As Table 55 shows, students noted a wide variety of
course strengths,, a total of nine different categories.
Leading the group was the relevancy of subject matter to
the personal life of students„ the "variety of issues that
would not be covered elsewhere." Sixteen students put this
among their free responses. Next came the variety of teach
ing approaches--lectures, panels, films,, speakers, discus
sions., presentation of projects., and consciousness raising
sessions. Thirteen students remarked about this category.
318
Other comments had to do with value of C/R sessions, alter
nate methods of evaluation, and enthusiasm of all involved.
There were 69 responses on the strengths of the program.
Table 55
Students in Women's Studies, School B: According to
course strengths
(N = 26)
Strengths
Number of
Respondents
Relevancy to personal life 16
Varied teaching approaches
13
Camaraderie of group 12
C/R sessions 8
Alternate methods of evaluation 6
Enthusiasm of group for
£
subject matter
Willingness of all to become
involved in legislation 5
and campus politics
Stimulating readings 2
Smaller classes 1
Twenty-two students mentioned one or more weak
nesses of the Women’s Studies program, a total of 64
responses. Some comments were general and some pointed.
The primary criticism was that the courses should have more
organization and structure, albeit three of the students
recognized that the weakness was likely due to the infancy
of the program. Eight students wrote about need for struc
ture, defined goals, etc. Close behind with seven, comments
was the criticism that there was too much redundancy and/or
319
overlapping of assignments and reading lists. The same
number listed the negative attitude and hostility of admin
istration and academe as a weakness.
Pour students were concerned about the grading
policy. Two of them said there should be formal grading
or none at all. Four students expressed chagrin because
of the difficulty of finding material., there being a paucity
in the library and bookstore. One of them suggested some
one should write the material because it is needed. Pour
wanted more discussion and less writing. It was the opinion
of four students that more action research and professional
research were needed. Four expressed a need for a broader
program. Three were concerned because the class was so
large. Two students felt that the reading list was too
long. Two believed that there should be more options about
participation in C/R sessions, and two more believed such
sessions were too short. And finally* it was the belief of
two students that "gay" women in the class could have added
to understandings if they had discussed themselves. No
students had indicated that they were "gay," however.
Pertinent comments about the weaknesses and sugges
tions for improvement are given below, with Table 56 reflect
ing the range of suggestions.
"Too much ’rah, rah' and not enough substance in the
* rah, rah. 1M
"I can’t think of any weakness, but I get the feeling
that there are a lot of man haters, and I don’t think
that ’ s right. n___________________________ _________________
320
MThe classes seem repetitious. There is much on the
same social issues, e.g., rape or lesbians being dis
cussed in both psychology and sociology at the same
time. There is little on the history of the women’s
movement, history of women, or history of women in
arts. "
"We need to raise the consciousness of the administra
tion and the head honchos."
"If only the administration and other parts of the
university would get off the professors’ backs.'"
Table 56
Students in Women’s Studies, School B: According
to course weaknesses
(N = 26)
Number of
Respondents
Need more class structure
Redundant and/or overlapping
material
8
7
Negative attitude of academa
7
Grading policy k
Narrow scope of program k
Need more action and profes
sional research
k
Need more discussion and less
written work
k
Need more men in program k
Paucity of printed material k
Class too large
3
Too many reading assignments
More option about participating
in c/R sessions
3
2
Smaller C/R sessions
Need to make WS part of GE require
2
ment and to redesign
low level courses
2
Lack of knowledge and professional
ism on part of some speakers
2
321
Table 56— continued
Number of
Re spondent s
Need help to redirect animosity
against men in order to help 2
men understand the movement
Need to have gay women in class
feel more free to talk 2
about themselves
The group as a whole listed 46 ways whereby courses
or the program could be improved. Fourteen students made
the recommendation that there should be more classes. Five
students thought that there should be more serious involve
ment of men, women, and the campus at large in the program.
Four students suggested more materials in the library, more
sound research about women, and more instructors. Two of
the students who commented about the need for more instruc
tors added that there should be more women instructors.
Three students were concerned about the need for more
organization and direction of courses and three believed
there was too much overlapping* content. Other students
wrote of the need for autonomy of Women's Studies, the
change in course format to involve more student research,
and more funding. Table 57 reflects these data.
322
Table 57
Students in Women's Studies., School B: According to
ways to improve program of Women's Studies
(W = 28)
Wumber of
Re spondent s
Weed for more classes ik
More serious involvement of
men and women and
5
campus at large
More library materials 4
More instructors k
More sound research about women k
Better organization and direction ^
of courses
Less overlapping in course content
3
Weed for autonomy 2
Change in class format to involve ^
results of student research
More funding 2
More support from administration 2
More publicity 1
School C was a private university in a metropolitan
area, coeducational and church-related. Until five years
previously, the institution was for males only, but at that
time it combined with a college for women in the same area.
Classes were not visited* but the author was on the campus
several times speaking with various women involved in the
Women's Studies program and the Women's Re-Entry program
(Encore). Twenty-one out of 40 questionnaires were
returned* a total of slightly over 50 percent. All respond
ents were females* but from their answers it was evident
323
that some men were in the classes. Table 58 reflects these
data.
Table 58
Students in Women’s Studies, School C: According to sex
Number of
Respondents Percent
Female 21 100
Male 0 0
Totals 21 100
According to marital status, more than half of the
women were single, or 57 percent. Six, or almost 29 per
cent, were married. The remaining three indicated that
they were living with male friends, and the other woman was
a widow at 19 years of age. Table 59 summarizes these data.
Table 59
Students in Women’s Studies, School C: According to
marital status
Number of
Respondents Percent
Single 12
57
Married 6
29
Living with male friend 1 10
Widowed 1
5
Totals 21 100
324
Two different categories of students answered ques
tions from this university. One group was making a reentry
to education,, and the other was the "usual" college woman;
however, there was some overlap in their courses. A defi
nite break in age was found between the two groups. Ages
of "Encore" women ranged from 32 to 45 years, and the ages
of the rest were from 18 to 29 years. Both groups, however,
were considered together. The range in age was 27 years.
Table 60 summarizes these data.
Students in Women'
Table 60
s Studies, School C: According to age
Age
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
18-22
15 71
25-27
0 0
28-32
3 5
33-37
1
5
38-42 1
5
45 up 1
5
Totals 21 100
Six of the women who were married or had been mar
ried were mothers.# A 1 9-year-old student was a^widow. She
• •
did not have a child. Ages of the mothers Ranged “ from 22
e
#
to 45 years; ages of children ranged from 1- year to 26
years. There was a total of 20 children. Generally., the
financial situation does not permit both husband and wife
to continue going to school. Also home and children further
325
deter women. Even single women,, however., are not given
the financial support of single or married men in terms of
aid from the institution.
Women were asked to comment on financial aid given
to them and the need for childcare. Seven of the single
women had received some form of financial aid. Only two
of the married women had been given aid., free tuition
because their husbands were teachers. Had childcare facil
ities been available., four of the six mothers could have
continued their higher education. Table 6l and Table 62
summarize these data.
Table 6l
Students in Women* s Studies., School C: According to being granted
financial aid or work opportunity
Number of
Respondents Percent
Have not received aid 12
57
Have received aid
9
Totals 21 100
Table 62
Students in Women’s Studies* School C: According to need for
childcare facilities
Number of
Respondents Percent
Question not applicable 16 76
Could have continued education 4
19
Could not have continued education 1
5
Totals 21 100
326
Fourteen of the students, or 6j percent, went to
college within three months after graduation from high
school. The range in time for the remainder was from
years to 26 years. The data is given in Table 63.
Table 63
Students in Women's Studies, School C: According to time elapsed
between high school graduation and entrance to college
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
Immediate enrollment 14
67
Three and one-half years 1
5
Ten years 1
5
Twelve years 1
5
Thirteen years 1
5
Fourteen years 1
5
Eighteen years 1
5
Twenty-six years 1
5
Totals 21 100
In response to the query on why they had gone to
college, students listed 31 reasons. Foremost was a career,
totaling 11 answers. Next was listed higher education.
Six listed personal growth. All other responses were but
one for each student. Table 64 gives these data.
327
rTable 6k
^Students in Women's Studies, School C: According to reasons
given for attending college
(N = 21)
Number of
Respondents
fo help me in my career goal 11
To get a higher education 8
Personal growth 6
To keep my precious alien status 1
Peer expectation 1
Parental desire 1
Encouragement of friend 1
Encouragement of other faculty wives
and female administrator
1
Had time and money now; not ready
for college at 18
1
Twenty students, more than 95 percent, believed
that there is a need for Women's Studies on their campus
and elsewhere. One student answered that, if women in a
given, situation felt oppressed, they should ask for Women's
Studies. The following Table 65 reflects these data.
fable 65
Students in Women's Studies, School C: According to the
rationale for the necessity of Women's Studies
(N = 21)
Number of
Re spondent s
lyiany girls and women are naive
and unaware of the issues
6
To help give women alternatives,
e.g., into male-dominated
5
careers
This campus was predominately
male oriented and still is
3
328
Table 65— continued
Number of
Respondents
Men need to be informed about
1
■women
Women are a minority too.
There should be classes 1
about us too
To the question of whether sex should, be a variable
in the teaching of Women’s Studies, students split almost
equally. Nine, or 43 percent, answered in. the negative,
and seven, or 33 percent, answered in the affirmative.
Five students, or 24 percent, gave qualified answers such
as: "If the man were open minded, he could handle the
courses." Two of those voting in the affirmative felt
positively that men could handle the courses: "Sure they
can." "It would be a milestone in communications." Several
women expressed a need for men lecturers or classes taught
by a team of men and women. Also a number of women believed
that in the future, when men have had their consciousness
raised, they would add to the class because they could give
a masculine viewpoint. These data are given in Table 66.
329
Table 66
Students in Women1 s Studies, School C: According to whether
a male professor could handle classes
as well as a woman professor
Number of
.Respondents Percent
No
9 43
Yes
7 33
Qualified "yes"
5
24
Totals 21 100
Students divided closely on the question of whether
they felt more free to speak with professors in Women’s
Studies about grades than with professors in other depart
ments. Nine, or 43 percent, replied in the affirmative.
Six, or 29 percent, answered in the negative., F.oiir students
did not necessarily feel more at ease with WS professors,
and two did not answer. Typical comments are below, fol
lowed by the summary in Table 6 7.
MTo say ’Yes' implied that the woman is softer."
"No. That’s prejudice too."
"I find most teachers equally approachable. Anyway,
many female professors are less liberated than some
males."
"No. Men really cannot understand."
"There would be more rapport with a woman due to the
nature of the classes."
Data on this question are given in Table 6 7.
330
Table 67
Students in Women’s Studies., School C: According to their ease
in talking with professors in this program as compared
with professors in other departments
Number of
Re spondents Percent
More at ease
9 ^3
No more at ease 6 29
Not necessarily k
19
No answer 2 10
Totals
1
21 100
To the question of the place of Women’s Studies in
the curriculum, students gave a total of 21 answers. Seven,
or 33 percent, of them believed that the interdepartmental
structure would serve the purpose of the program better.
Four thought that the integration of material about women
into existing courses would be preferable. Only three, or
5 percent, voted for a separate department.
One student checked all three options, saying,
"The more plugs, the better." A student favoring a separate
departmental structure wrote that men would not be as likely
to take the courses, and that men needed them too. Thus all
classes would have to be restructured. Table 68 reflects
these opinions.
331
Table 68
Students in Women's Studies, School C: According to organization
of program into educational structure
Number of
Respondents Percent
Interdepartmental structure
7 33
Integration of material into
existing courses
k 19
Separate department
3
i k
Separate department and integra
tion of material into
existing courses
3
l k
Separate department and inter
departmental structure
2 10
Integration of material into
existing courses and
interdepartmental
structure
1
5
Separate department, integra
tion of material into
existing courses, and
inte rdepa rtme ntal
structure
1
5
Totals 21 100 :
Students were asked to list all courses which they
had taken about women. The program at this institution was
in its first year. A total of 26 courses was named, the
largest number of women having taken "Sociology of Women., "
12 altogether. "Introduction to Women’s Studies" was
recorded 10 times. Table 69 summarizes data on this ques
tion.
332
Table 69
Students in Women*s Studies, School C: According to
subject titles and numbers of courses taken
(N = 21)
Number of
Respondents
Sociology of Women 12
Introduction to Women*s Studies 10
Psychology of Women
3
Psychology of Women Returning
to College
1
Even though this was a new program, students wrote
with much feeling and amazement about what they had learned,
even "the first day in class." Six, or 29 percent, of the
students mentioned sociology as the course that had made
them aware of issues that they had never before thought of.
Six women also wrote of their enlightening experiences in
"Introduction to Women’s Studies" and of the breadth of
coverage of issues affecting women. Five women said that
since this was their first course, they could make no
judgment; however they wrote freely about the consciousness
raising. Three students did not answer, and one wrote that
both sociology and psychology made her aware of some of the
discrimination of which she was but vaguely aware of even
though it was "blatant discrimination." Two students were
intrigued with the concept of "sisterhood." Table JO
reflects these data.
333
Table 70
Students in Women's Studies, School C: According to
course satisfaction
Number of
Respondents Percent
Sociology of Women 6 29
Introduction to Women's
Studies
6 29
No basis for judgment
5
2k
Both Sociology of Women
and Psychology
of Women
1
5
No answer
3
Ik
Totals 21 100
In answer to the question about the strengths of
the course, students listed 2 9. Comments about the profes
sors were made six times with such expressions as "They
respected each other and acted as a unit" and "They were
confident; it was inspiring to hear women who are success
ful. " Also six students wrote of the friendly women, the
camaraderie. Five students thought the format of the class
was a strength. These opinions are reflected in Table 71.
334
Table J1
Students in WomenTs Studies, School C: According to
course strengths
(N = 21)
Number of
Respondents
Well-informed professors 6
Camaraderie of •women 6
Class format
5
Wide variety of material covered k
Development of a feeling for the
movement, a sense of being
3
a woman
Career tips given 2
A few males were in the class 1
Grading procedure 1
A good text of readings in ^
sociology
Students pointed out 28 ways whereby the classes or
program were weak. Five students questioned the grading
procedures in two different ways. Also four thought that
more men should be in the classes, and four criticized one
of the sociology texts as being "dull." Students recognized
weaknesses inherent in a new program. Three students did
not answer the question. Table 7 2 summarizes these opinions
335
Table 72
Students in Women’s Studies, School
course weaknesses
(N = 21)
C: According to
Wumber of
Respondents
Wot enough men in class b
Dull texts b
Shyness of women about talking b
More job counseling
3
Wot enough classes
5
Weed for contract system
in grading
Letter grades in conscious
p
ness raising classes
C—
Problems of new program
o
being set up
C-
Wo answer
3
Students offered 35 ways to improve the program.,
some suggestions overlapping with perceived weaknesses.
There were eight comments about the need for more courses.
Five women thought that there should be a concerted effort
for all those interested in the program to organize in an
effort to "get it off the ground." The same number saw the
importance of involving more men. Other ideas had to do
with the need of help with career counseling and follow-up
of women having received such counseling, a consideration
of the importance of breadth of coverage of material, and
the keeping of dynamic instructors. These data are sum
marized in Table 73-
336
Table 73
Students in Women’s Studies, School C: According to ways
to improve program of Women’s Studies
(N = 21)
Number of
Respondents
More courses 8
Concerted effort of all to make
program a success
5
Involvement of more men
5
More concern with problems of
campus women
5
Broader coverage of concerns of
women and all facets of
womanhood
i f
More pragmatism in exposure to
careers
i f
Retention of dynamic instructors
in the program
2
Wider publicity 1
Integration of program into
general curriculum
1
School D was a community college. The director of
the Women's Studies program distributed the questionnaires
along with some background of the study. The author talked
several times personally with the director and also had
contact via mail. Out.of 30 questionnaires, 12 were
returned, a total of 40 percent. The director of Women's
Studies filled out a questionnaire. Data for students and
directors were computed separately. Table Jk reflects data
concerning students.
337
Table 7^
Students in Women* s Studies,, School D: According to sex
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
Female 12 100
Male 0 0
Totals 12 100
According to marital status, the largest number was
single, five, or 42 percent. Four,, or 33 percent, were
married, and one was either divorced, widowed, living with
a male friend, or a lesbian living with her lover. Table 75
reflects these data.
Table 75
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to marital status
Number of
Respondents Percent
Single
Married
Divorced but living with
ex-husband
Living with male friend
Lesbian
Totals
5
4
1
1
12
42
33
8
8
8
100
338
As seems typical of a growing trend for lifelong
learning and a realization of part of the goals of the com
munity colleges,, the age span of this group of students was
wide., from 18 to 50 with a range of 32 years. Seven, or
more than 58 percent of the students were 21 years of age
or below. Table J6 reflects these data.
Table 76
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to age
Age
Rumber of
Respondents Percent
18 3 25
19
1 8
20
2
17
21
1 8
30
2
17
37
1 8
50
1 8
Rot given 1 8
Totals 12 100
There is a growing trend for students in community
colleges to be older than in the past. Factors may be that
community colleges are increasingly accessible to the peo
ple, a rise in the general financial condition of society,
and an increased awareness of the values of education. For
married women, and especially mothers, it would seem that a
chance for education would be more within their grasp if
there were a community college close by.
339
Students were questioned about their children. The
oldest three women in the class had children., nine in all,
with ages ranging from 4 years to 28 years. The 30-year-old
woman and the 37-year-old woman were sophomores. The
former had three children, ages 6, 9, and 11, and the lat
ter had two children, ages 12 and 15. The oldest mother had
four children, the youngest being 18 years old. She, how
ever, was a college graduate but was now "renewing her
education."
Community college students have not had access to
financial aid as have their counterparts in four-year insti
tutions. Some older community colleges in wealthier neigh
borhoods, however, have sizeable scholarship funds. Even
so, women have not received the same consideration as have
men. Married women are the least likely to receive aid.
Only one of these students had been given help, and she was
not a mother. Table 77 gives these data.
Table 77
Students in Women’s Studies, School D: According to being
granted financial aid or work opportunity
Number of
Respondents Percent
Have not received aid 11 92
Have received aid 1 8
Totals 12 100
3^0
Of the three women who had children., two said that
if childcare facilities had been available., they could have
started to college earlier. Nine students., or 75 percent,
indicated that the question did not apply to them. Table 78
reflects these data.
Table 78
Students in Women's Studies., School D: According to need
for childcare facilities
Number of
Respondents Percent
Question not applicable
9 75
Could have continued
education
2
17
Could not have continued
education
1 8
Totals 12 100
Five students, or 42 percent, entered college
within the summer or at the beginning of the fall semester
after having graduated from high school. Three students,
or 25 percent, enrolled within a year, and the others
returned to school from two to 16 years later. One student
indicated that she had entered college four years after
high school graduation and had gone to college on and off
for nine years. These data are given in Table 7 9.
3^1
Table 79
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to time elapsed
between high school graduation and entrance to college
Number of
■Re spondents 'Percent
Immediate enrollment
5
k2
One year
3 25
Two years l 8
Four years l 8
Nine years l 8
Sixteen years l 8
Totals 12 100
In response to the query on why they had gone to
college, students gave a total of 22 answers. First was
for personal growth and growth in knowledge. Eight women
mentioned this. Eight students wrote of a career, three
having definite goals and two searching for one. In addi
tion, three more were tired of dead-end jobs. The 50-year-
old wrote that she had first gone for a degree and enjoy
ment, later deciding on a marketable profession, but at 50
it seemed that there was nothing "marketable." Another said
that she wanted to be self-supporting and independent.
One answered that she had originally gone to the
University of California but became disgusted with it and
with college. Four months in a doctor's office filing made
her realize that she needed an education, and she is now
"totally satisfied with academia." These data are given
in Table 80.
342
Table 80
Students in Women*s Studies, School D: According to reasons
given for attending college
(N = 12)
Number of
Respondents
Personal growth and growth of
knowledge
8
Have a definite career goal
3
Not satisfied with my dead-end job
3
Searching for a career goal 2
Love of learning and to keep my
mind from stagnating
2
Couldn’t afford to go to school
before but now have funds
through G.I. Bill
1
To become self-supporting and
independent
1
Personal enjoyment 1
Need to be around stimulating
people
1
All 12 students believed that there is a need for
Women's Studies on their campus. They gave 17 reasons.
Six wrote that women have been blind to the prejudice
against them in every part of society. Four said that
women have no knowledge of their history, and the same num
ber felt that women have no knowledge of themselves. Two
commented about the way the school system has been "blind"
to girls and women. And another believed that if women
knew how and why they have been conditioned, they could
handle inner conflicts better.
One woman, a "cum laude" graduate, wrote with
3^3
strong feeling and much insight on all questions. Although
she did not sign her name, there was evidence that her
husband was of a Latin background. Of Women's Studies she
wrote, "This is not even a debatable issue. The need for
women's awareness is essential-critical. These classes
are not especially well attended due to the low key forced
by the administration. She wrote with enthusiasm about
the instructors and the courses:, however.
Two students wrote that the classes should begin
at least in high school so that girls would be awakened.
One of them was majoring in technical communications.
Table 8l gives these data.
Table 8l
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to the
rationale for the necessity of Women's Studies
(N = 12)
Number of
Respondents
Women have been blind to the
prejudice against them in 6
every segment of society
Women have been cheated out of
I | _
their history
Women have no knowledge of
k
themselves
Whole school system has been
2
"blind" to women
Self-knowledge and awareness of
how they have been condi
1
tioned will help women to
_L
handle inner conflicts
3 W
In response to the question of whether men could
teach Women’s Studies as effectively as women, eight* or
67 percent* gave qualified answers. Three* or 25 percent*
answered in the negative* and one answered in the affirma
tive. Typical remarks follow* and the summary is in Table
MA male couldn't express true equal rights for women
at this point. I dislike stereotyping* however* so
I’ll say very few men could instruct such a course."
"I believe that someday this may be true* but not now.
Men tend to defend their ego rather than to teach the
truth."
"Perhaps in another decade . . . men are not enlight
ened enough to seek out and explain the subtle dis
crimination. "
"Our culture has not progressed in equality for women
to a degree where a male could have as much credibil
ity. For me* a male could no more teach about the
woman's experience than a white could teach about
blacks."
"Yes. I don't like these courses restricted to women
teachers. After all* the Women's Movement is to
bring about equality* and this would be contradictory
to the movement."
Table 82
Students in Women's Studies* School D: According to whether
a male professor could handle classes
as well as a woman professor
Number of
Respondents Percent
Qualified "yes" 8
67
No
3 25
Yes 1 8
Totals 12 100
There was a correlation between the response to the
question of male versus female professors and the answer to
whether students felt more free to speak with Women’s Stud
ies professors than professors at large. Eight., or 67 per
cent, said that they did not feel more free to discuss
grades with Women's Studies instructors. Three, or 25 per
cent, said "Yes,M and one did not answer. Table 83 sum
marizes the data.
Some of the exact quotations indicate representa
tive comments:
"A teacher is a teacher. What they want as far as
school is concerned is the same."
"I don't necessarily feel freer in this class."
"A good rapport is necessary, but the course involved
or the sex of the instructor is irrelevant."
"I have been fortunate in having professors I could
talk with; however, I know this is not always true."
"I get the., feeling that my instructor is uneasy with
me. I'm not sure, but my explanation is that I am a
lesbian, and I have more or less made that fact known.
She's a great teacher, though, even if her beliefs
are sometimes biased."
The summary of the data to this question is given in
Table 8 3.
346
Table 83
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to their ease
in talking with professors in this program as compared
with professors in other departments
Wumber of
Respondents Percent
Wo more at ease 8
67
More at ease
3 25
Wo answer 1 8
Totals 12 100
In. answer to the question about the place of Women's
Studies in the curriculum, all of the women responded and
all but three made further comments. Representative remarks
follow, and Table 84 summarizes the data.
"There should be a separate department for WS, but all
classes should be modified so that everybody is
exposed to the relevance of women in society. . . .
Many people would be as surprised as I was about
women 1s co nt ri but i ons."
"Women's Studies courses should be integrated in all
areas, starting in high school."
"Women's Studies is, after all, 'People Studies' and
should not be separate."
"All three options, but money would be hard to come
by because of the unawareness of most college admin
istrators . "
3^7
Table 87
Students in Women1s Studies, School D: According to organization
of program into educational structure
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
Separate department 2 17
Interdepartmental structure 2
17
Integration of material into
existing courses and inter
departmental structure
2
17
Separate department and inter
departmental structure
2
17
Separate department, integra
tion of material into
existing courses and
interdepartmental
structure
2
17
Whichever -way -would benefit
the program
2 17
Totals 12 100
Altogether, students had taken or were taking 16
courses In Women's Studies. Twelve mentioned "Introduction
to Women's Studies," apparently a foundation course. Two
women had taken "Sociology of Women," and the remaining
students each indicated a different course. Table 85
reflects these findings.
3^8
Table 85
Students in Women’s Studies., School D: According to
subject titles and numbers of courses taken
(N = 12)
Course
Humber of
Respondents
Introduction to Women’s Studie s 12
Sociology of Women 2
College and Careers 1
Women in United States’History 1
Women listed 13 course satisfactionsj but one stu
dent did not answer the question. Since this is a new pro
gram,, students did not have too wide a basis for comparison,
but they wrote with enthusiasm of the courses they were
studying. Eight students mentioned that the course they
were taking was their first but continued to describe how
aware it had made them. One wrote of the contagious
enthusiasm of the instructor. Two students said that both
of their courses had been equally satisfying because they
presented material from different perspectives. One indi
cated that ’ 'Introduction to Women’s Studies" was very good
and "Sociology of Women" refreshingly good. The latter
student had a bachelor’s degree. Table 86 gives these data.
349
Table 86
Students in Women’s Studies,, School D: According to
course satisfaction
(N = 12)
Course
Number of
Respondents
First course 8
Introduction to Women’s
Studies
2
Sociology of Women 2
College and Careers 1
Wo answer 1
Students listed 19 strengths of their classes.
First with four votes came well-informed instructors.
Other areas rating two votes each included appreciation
for the legal and historical perspective,, the enthusiasm
of so many people involved, and current information. A
number of other perceived strengths were given one vote
each. Table 8j summarizes these data.
Table 87
Students in Women’s Studies, School D: According to
course strengths
(N = 12)
Strengths
Number of
Respondents
Well-informed instructors
Historical legal perspective 2
Enthusiasm of students, instruc
tors, and women outside program
2
Awareness of women in history 2
Current information 2
Class format 2
350
Table 87— continued
Strengths
Number of
Respondents
Special projects 1
Good bibliography 1
Self-pacing in class 1
"Radical" thoughts which
make us think
1
The miracle of the program
itself
1
Students perceived 20 weaknesses in the courses.,
but one student wrote that she did not see any weakness,
that it was one of the best courses that she had ever taken.
With three comments in each category, students wrote that
there was too much negativism in the program, that the
women, there were not aware of self in relation to the rest
of the world, and that the lack of sequence made program
planning hard. Other comments were that there was not
enough time for all that needed to be discovered, paucity
of resources for instructors, and only one section of each
course. Two students indicated that they thought the
instructor was personally biased. One student thought that
the instructor was traditional but had to be in that atmos
phere. Table 88 reflects these data.
351
Table 88
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to
course "weaknesses
(N = 12)
Weaknesses
Number of
Respondents
Negativism of program
5
Students who are not aware of
self in relation to
rest of world
5
Lack of course sequence
5
Not enough time for all that
needed to be taught
2
Need for more current events,
job information, etc.
2
Paucity of teaching resources 2
Biased instructor 1
Traditional instructor 1
Instructor who thinks everyone
should be a feminist
after one course
1
Discussions which often turn
into group therapy
1
Teacher who belittles men 1
No weakness 1
Students listed 21 suggestions for course or program
improvement, some of them overlapping with perceived weak
nesses. There were two suggestions each that an effort be
made to recruit more males, to have more courses, to offer
more sections of current courses, and to broaden the program
to lecturers, seminars, and symposia. All other recommenda
tions were listed but one time. Table 89 reflects these
dat a.
352
Table 89
Students in Women's Studies, School D: According to ways
to improve program of Women's Studies
(N = 12)
Number of
Respondents
Inclusion of males 2
More courses 2
More sections of current courses 2
More lecturers, seminars, and
2
symposia
Placement of courses into regular ^
department s
More current information on women 1
Continuance of nonstructured ^
approach
Less storytelling 1
Less personal opinion 1
Guest speakers 1
More teachers 1
Separate law course 1
More films 1
Recruitment of women not already ^
in movement
More publicity 1
More positive information about
1
women
Longer class sessions 1
School E was a community college. The class was
not visited; instead, instructors of Women's Studies classes
gave out the questionnaire to students and gave some back
ground about the study. The author had previously talked
personally with the director of the program. Also there
was contact via mail. Out of 40 questionnaires, 28 were
353
returned., a total of 70 percent. Three instructors filled
out the questionnaire; one of them also being the director
of the program. Data for students and instructors were
computed separately. Table 90 reflects data from students.
Students in Women's
Table 90
Studies; School E: According to sex
Number of
Respondents Percent
Female 28 100
Male 0 0
Totals 28 100
According to marital status; 17 of the women indi
cated that they were married. One woman was divorced. In
percentage this breaks down to 61 and 4; respectively; with
10; or 36 percent; being single. No woman indicated that
she was a widow; however; one wrote that she was receiving
Veteran's benefits. She had six children; but her age was
such that she herself could have been the Veteran. No
woman indicated that she had an "other" marital arrangement
Table 91 gives these data.
354
/Table 91
Students in Women’s Studies, School E: According to
marital status
Number of
Respondents Percent
Married
17
61
Single 10 56
Divorced 1 4
Totals 28 100
The profile of students in this institution reflects
the "open-door policy" that is especially associated with
community colleges in California. The data reveal a spread
in age from a low of 18 to a high of 52 with a range of
34 years. Only 12 of the women were below 25 years old.
Table 92 summarizes these data.
Student s in Women * s
Table 92
Studies, School E: According to age
Age
Number of
Respondents Percent
18-22’
9 52
25-27
4 14
28-52
5
18
55-37
4 14
58-42 1 4
45-47
2
7
48-52
5
11
Totals 28 100
355
Care of children is the primary reason why women
are not able to continue their education. Students were
asked whether they had children and the ages of the chil
dren. As is shown in Table 93* 17 of the women who were
married or had been married had children., a total of 61
percent. Ages of the mothers ranged from 23 to 5 2. Ages
of children ranged from f i g - to 29 years. Altogether, 17
women had 44 children. Two women had six children and
three had one. One woman who was married had no children;
the divorced woman had three. Even the youngest mother
was starting college at least a year after the average
American student graduates.
Out of the 28 respondents, only one had received
financial aid. This woman had been a resident alien for
five years and had already gone through the university
system, receiving a B.A. degree. She indicated that she
had been granted aid via loan, cash, and work opportunity.
Table 93 gives the general data abbut financial aid.
Table 95
Students in Women*s Studies, School E: According to being
granted financial aid or work opportunity
Number of
Respondents Percent
Have not received aid 27 96
Have received aid 1 4
Totals 28 100
356
Lack of childcare facilities has long been of con
cern to social workers and working women. In recent years
there has been a growing demand for facilities for mothers
who are in school or who would like to go to school. In
various states some aid has been granted in this area.
Respondents were asked if they could have gone to school
had childcare facilities been available. Fourteen., or 50
percent, answered in the affirmative, 10, or 36 percent,
said the question was not applicable, and four, or 14 per
cent, replied negatively. These data are given, in Table 94.
Table 94
Students in Women’s Studies, School E: According to need
for childcare facilities
Number of
Respondents Percent
Could have continued
education
14 50
Question not applicable 10 36
Could not have continued
4 14
educat ion
Totals 28 100
As would be expected, since so many of the students
were mothers--and older mothers at that--most of the women
began their college careers late. Table 95 summarizes the
data about college entrance.
357
Table 95
Students in Women’s Studies., School E: According to time elapsed
between high school graduation and entrance.to college
Number of
Respondents Percent
Immediate Enrollment 4 14
One semester 2
7
One year 6 21
Two years 1 4
Five years 4 14
Six years 1 4
Twelve years 1 4
Ten years
3
11
Fourteen years 2
7
Seventeen years 1 4
Twenty years 1 4
Twenty-two years 1 4
Thirty years 1 4
Totals 28 100
In response to the question of why they went to
college,, students listed a total of 43 answers. Most often
given was the need for a better job or a job. Thirteen
women mentioned this. Personal fulfillment came next with
12 responses. General boredom was listed five times. The
latter category and the previous one may be the same; cer
tainly there is a close affinity. The need to be around
other people and love of learning were listed five times
each.
358
The traditional plaint of the housewife came
through repeatedly. A woman with six children wrote, "The
question 'Can't there he more?' kept coming to mind." She
had a four-year-old for whom she was paying a sitter. The
other woman with six children wrote., "I wanted to., needed
to., was going stark crazy. " One of the women with one
child wrote that staying home and just being "mommie" was
not enough. Since taking a few courses, already her life
seemed "lots better."
A single woman wrote, "I felt it was below my abil
ity and dignity to accept anything less such as an ordinary
housewife, mother, or otherwise menial, low-paying job."
The divorced woman had raised three children alone with no
public help. Her children were above 20 years of age. She
wrote that she had not had time for an education for her
self and "I have new goals to reach." Table 96 summarizes
these responses.
Table 96
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to
reasons given for attending college
(N = 28)
Number of
Respondents
Better job or job 13
Personal fulfillment 12
General boredom
5
Love of learning
5
Need to be around
q
other people
P
Career exploration
3
359
All 28 women were in agreement that there is a need
for Women's Studies. The largest number of responses had
to do with fear on the part of women., their lack of self-
confidence^ and their hesitancy. Ten students commented on
this. Seven remarked that women just were not aware of the
restrictions "out there" and that there is a need for men,
and especially women, to have their consciousness raised.
Five students noted that the classes were full* the need
thus being obvious. Three students observed that women
need to be around other women in situations other than the
home. Three students said that women cannot see themselves
as individuals, and three other students noted that no
other department on the campus offered the services and the
type of support to students as did Women's Studies.
In essence, a student summed it this way:
"My own experience in taking Women's Studies courses
and observing other women coming in confused, need
ing counseling, thinking about which direction to
take. Having had my own consciousness raised and
seeing other women respond and be able to go on in
a more positive way."
Table 97 gives these data.
Table 97
Students in Women’s Studies, School E: According to the rationale
for the necessity of Women’s Studies
(N = 28)
Number of
_____________________________________ Re spondent s______
WS help women to be more confident 10
Need of consciousness raising on part „
of both men and women
360
Table 97— continued
Number of
Respondents
Full classes show the need
5
Women need to see other women not
in traditional roles
3
Women cannot see selves as individuals
3
No other department on campus serves
the function as does WS
3
When asked if they thought a male professor could
teach classes in Women's Studies as well as a woman., 16
students, or 57 percent, answered in the negative. Ten,
or 36 percent, gave a qualified affirmative, and two, or
7 percent, said "Yes."
Students who voted negatively against male instruc
tors believed that men just could not understand what it
means to be a woman and suffer the woman’s frustrations.
Women who gave a qualified answer, noted a big "if"--if a
man had his consciousness raised, if he were compassionate
about women. Women who voted against a male professor as
well as those who qualified their answer did not believe
that women would discuss their feelings and experiences
with a man as freely as with a woman. Several women sug
gested that male lecturers could give another viewpoint.
One woman wrote that she did not think a man. could handle
the job but noted that one of the best and most understand
ing professors she had ever had was in psychology, a man
361
who understood about women. There were no expressions of
hostility against men from any of the students; however,,
one student believed that most men are too defensive right
now. Table 98 summarizes these data.
Table 96
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to whether a male
professor could handle classes as well as a woman professor
Number of
Respondents Percent
No 16
57
-Qualified "yes" 10 36
Yes 2
7
Totals 28 100
If students believe that women instructors are more
understanding about women's status than are men, it should
follow that students should feel more at ease to discuss
grades with these teachers. On this question, 17 students,
or 6l percent, answered in the affirmative, and seven, or
25 percent, answered in the negative. Three students, or
11 percent, remarked that the focus was not oh grades, and
one student, or 4 percent, wrote "not necessarily."
Students generally believed that women instructors
seemed to have more time to listen. One student wrote,
"They are concerned about me as a breathing, human being."
Another student wrote that she did not think about grades.
362
just always did the best that she could. Still another one
saw no difference as to sex, the ability to communicate
being the essential point. Data on this question are given
in Table 99-
Table 99
Students in Women's Studies., School E: According to their ease
in talking with professors in this program as compared
with professors in other departments
Wumber of
Eespondents Percent
More at ease
17
61
Wo more at ease
7
25
Focus not on grades
3
11
Wot necessarily 1 k
Totals 28 100
In response to the query of the best position of
Women's Studies in the curriculum, 11 women, or 39 percent,
indicated a separate department, and the same number
believed that material about women should be integrated
into the existing courses. One woman expressed the opinion
that at this juncture Women's Studies should be treated as
a separate department but that more men should be in the
courses now in order to hurry along integration. One stu
dent wrote that she was "damned tired of hearing all about
male heroes in History 17A and never a mention of a woman
by that conservative male instructor." Table 100 reflects
these data.
363
Table 100
Students in Women’s Studies., School E: According to organization
of* program into educational structure
Number of
Re spondent s Percent
‘ Separate department 11 39-00
Integration of material into
existing courses
11 39.00
Interdepartmental structure
3
10.70
Separate department and inte
gration of material into
existing courses
1
3.70
Separate department and inter
departmental structure
1
3.70
Separate department, integration
of material into existing
courses, and interdepart
mental structure
1
3.70
Totals 29 100.00
Altogether the students had taken or were taking
52 courses. This does not include seminars and "rap ses
sions." Fourteen had enrolled in "Identity Female: A Course
in Self-Awareness." Close behind was "Women and Careers,"
"Feminist Communication in America,," and "History of Women
in America." Table 101 reflects these data.
364
Table 101
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to
subject titles and numbers of courses taken
(N = 28)
Course
Number of
Respondents
Identity Female 14
Women and Careers 10
Feminist Communication 8
Decisions and Outcomes 8
History of Women in America 4
Women: Values, Concepts,
and Perspectives
4
Societal Interpretation of
Sexual Roles
4
Legal Rights for Women 4
Students gave a mosaic of answers on the question
having to do with course satisfactions. The largest number
wrote "First course,” which included a number of areas.
Five students who were taking their first course in Women's
Studies wrote that they had no basis for comparison; how
ever, two of them wrote freely about their experiences in
the classes. Typical comments of students follow.
"Even though this was my first course, it really
opened my eyes to myself and to the feelings of
myself and other women.”
"Until this class in 'Feminist Communications,' I
have been in classes 98^ male. I was unaware of
just how oppressed women have been and still are
in this so-called modern society."
"I took this class because my daughter asked me to.
There was a spread of ages in the class. What was
discussed was so valid and echoed my own thoughts
that it was like coming home."
Table 102 summarizes these data.
365
Table 102
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to
course satisfaction
(N = 28)
Course
Number of
Respondents
First course
7
No basis for judgment
5
History of Women in America k
Feminist Communications k
Identity Female k
Women and Careers k
Changing Images of Women
in America
2
There were 3^* responses about the strengths of the
classes. Foremost was the camaraderie of the women. Nine
students commented on this. One younger student said she
had found herself talking to some of the women about things
she would never have talked with her mother about, remark
ing how that had given her confidence to ask questions and
talk. Seven students praised the counseling and support
on the part of staff and faculty. Six women wrote with
enthusiasm about the courses, their having been designed
for women yet not just for women because of the breadth of
information. Class format, workshops, and guest lecturers
appealed to five women. Instructors were complimented
especially by four students. Such expressions as "The
best.1" were typical. Table 103 gives these data.
366
.Table 10 3
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to
course strengths
(N = 28)
Strengths
Number of
Respondents
Camaraderie of ■women
9
Counseling and support
7
The courses per se, for
women but having
a broad base
6
Class format, e.g., speakers,
informality
5
Instructors 4
Class discussion
3
In their free responses about class weaknesses,
students gave 28 in common. The largest number, seven,
were unhappy with the large class size, and six believed
that one hour was too short a time, or twice a week was not
often enough, or that one quarter was not long enough. Four
women did not feel that they were qualified to answer but
recognized that the program was still new, and it was to be
expected that it would be a "bit shaky at first." Three,
women indicated that the material was easy for women who
had attended seminars or kept informed on. their own. Table
104 indicates these data.
367
T Table 10 i
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to
course weaknesses
(W = 28)
Weaknesses
Wumber of
Respondents
Classes too large
7
Wot enough time 6
Wot qualified to answer k
Wew program problems k
Some women dominate the
discussion
k
Material simple for some
women
3
Weed men in class
3
"Other side" needs to be
presented
1
Material often repetitive l
When queried about suggestions for course or pro
gram improvements, women felt, first of all, that the mascu
line viewpoint should be considered, or that there was a
need for the male perspective, or that there should be an
introductory course for males. Six women remarked on this
point. Five students believed that some work should be
done about the relative needs and backgrounds of students
by working on the content of the courses per se. For
example, there were two suggestions that there should be
a mandatory general introductory course in Women's Studies
so that the specialized courses would not have to keep
"going down the side road" to cue an individual student as
to where the discussion was coming from. Two women men
368
tioned that if there were enough special rap sessions,
then those who had "needs" would not dominate the class so
much. Three students suggested that there should be follow-
up of women in the courses to see how campus experiences
had changed their lives. Two thought that questionnaires
should be sent out occasionally to see what courses or
workshops women specifically needed, e.g., the divorced
woman who needed counseling about legal rights, childcare,
etc. Table 103 gives these data.
Table 105
Students in Women's Studies, School E: According to ways
to improve program of WomenT s Studie s
(N = 28)
Number of
Respondents
Inclusion of males and/or
the male perspective
6
Division of courses or seminars
for ■women of different
backgrounds or needs
5
Follow-up of women
3
Questionnaires to community about
specific needs of women
2
Childcare center 2
More time or longer courses 2
Better facilities 2
369
Findings from Statements of Positions and. Actions
Taken on the Status of Women by Representative
Professional Associations: Purpose D
Eight professional associations sent material on
their research., positions, and/or actions taken on the
status of women and the goals of the Women's Movement. One
of these was the American Association of University Women,
the coordinator of a meeting at which 10 other associations
agreed on a common policy statement to be followed by
appropriate action. Some of these 10 associations also
sent the policy statement, which is discussed herein under
a joint statement. A summary of the positions and actions
of participating organizations follows.
American Association of
University Professors
Committee W on the Status of Women in the Academic
Profession was first established by AA.UP in 1918 but was
deactivated in 1 9 2 8. Records do not succinctly spell out
why the committee was originally set up, but it may be
presumed that the committee grew from the tenor of the
times. In the first place,, World War I took men into mili
tary service and opened at least a temporary place for
women. Expanding professional or work opportunities with
higher financial rewards caused some men to leave academe.
Second, higher education was expanding in the traditional
women's areas--education, home economics, and nursing. And
finally, women were deeply involved in the struggle for
370
suffrage. It is most probable that the Big Depression
contributed to the decline and deactivation of Committee W.
The committee was reactivated in 1970 under the chairman
ship of Alice Rossi, on whose findings this report is made.
In Rossi’s opinion, so minor had been the changes for women
in higher education that the Committee’s 1921 report could
have sufficed for the 1970 report.
AAUP’s position is especially important in that it
encompasses all disciplines,, institutions, and problems.
But AAUP was hardly the organization to point a finger
since its own structure did not qualify it to be an example
to institutions that it presumed to study.
The organization has taken positions on antinepotism
policies which discriminate against wives of men professors,
the husbands themselves, and the students while educational
institutions gain educated minds at a low cost. In addi
tion, the wives generally had the added discrimination of
being given classes that were "beneath" even the teaching
assistants, who invariably were male. AAUP sponsors a
policy of opening part-time appointments to men and women
on the same basis as full-time appointments in relation to
rank, tenure, leave, and other perquisites. Furthermore,
it works for maternity leave policies that do not penalize
women.
The Committee on Academic Freedom and Professional
Responsibilities and The Committee on Discrimination over
371
lap with Committee W. The Committee on Discrimination went
on record as supporting affirmative action and for rejec
tion of all practices that do not allow equal opportunity.
This means that institutions are to make a special search
for those who have been excluded previously,, women or
ethnic minorities. Such does not mean unqualified person
nel or statistical quotas.
In October 1970., Committee W sent a letter to
Caspar Weinberger., then Secretary of Health., Education, and
Welfare, pointing out the need for modification of Title IX.
There were eight pages of suggestions. One of the most
vital was that Title IX does not include undergraduate
vocational and/or professional training programs. Thus,
schools of engineering and architecture may continue to
exclude women. Furthermore, the Law School Admission Test,
the Graduate Records Examination, and the Admission Test
for Graduate Study in Business still have a place request
ing the sex of the applicant, marital status, and/or marital
intent. And there was not a timetable for compliance with
Title IX. Committee W pointed out that one of the weakest
sections of Title IX was that the individual or class are
denied due process when seeking redress against an institu
tion, such individuals or classes only being allowed to
participate as friends of the court.
372
American Bar Association
The ABA has long been considered one of the bastions
of male supremacy,, not surprising in that the legal profes
sion itself has long embodied the very essence of discrimi
nation against women. It has been charged that no woman
heads a major committee of ABA. When that organization was
contacted concerning this research, however, every courtesy
was given toward aiding in finding information relative to
the legal status of women, and two personal letters were
written from two different people in response to the
request. Furthermore, much information was sent from the
Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities on their
resolutions to the ABA House of Delegates. There were posi
tive resolutions on equal treatment of women in credit and
housing, the denial of Medicaid reimbursement for abortion,
the approval of the ABA on the Supreme Court's decision on
abortion., and a call for vast changes to be made in the laws
and stereotypes on prostitution. In addition., the ABA
appeared as amicus curiae with the American Civil Liberties
Union in the Louisiana case in which a state law was over
turned which stipulated that a woman could not serve on a
jury unless she personally appeared before the clerk of
the Court and filed a written declaration of her desire.
A woman is chairman-elect of this particular section of ABA.
The ABA itself does not have a position per se on the status
373
of women., but it actively supports the Equal Rights Amend
ment .
American Historical Association
In October 1969* the American Historical Associa
tion voted to appoint an ad hoc Committee on the Status of
Women, charging it with the investigation of the status of
women at all levels of the profession, to hold hearings, to
publicize its findings., and to make recommendations to the
association at its 1970 conference and subsequent confer
ences. The committee became a reality in February 1970.
Its report and recommendations were accepted by the member
ship at the annual business meeting in Boston in December
of that year.
At the Boston meeting, the association, expressed
formal disapproval of discrimination against women in the
profession and pledged itself to work actively to eliminate
such discrimination and to enhance the opportunities of
women in the discipline. The association committed itself
to definite policies that it considered crucial to helping
rectify past wrongs and to prevent future ones. It estab
lished a standing committee named, ’ ’Committee on Women His
torians.” In April 1973* & two-year full-time appointment
was made of an assistant executive secretary among whose
duties is the status of women. Such secretary was to be
particularly qualified to pursue concerns for women in
the profession. ____________________________________
37^
American Psychological Association
In October 1970, the American Psychological Associa
tion authorized, an eight-member task force to prepare a
position paper on the status of women in psychology. The
goal of the task force was to advance psychology as a sci
ence and as a means of promoting human welfare. Such a
goal, of course, must include women as full members of the
association. The task force rc^ade surveys, established com
munications with other professional groups about discrimina
tion against women, communicated with governmental agencies
regarding discrimination against women in federal employ
ment practices in such areas the awarding of research grants
and appointments to advisory committees, and made recommen
dations about APA f s accreditation procedures to eliminate
sex bias.
A survey was made of educational institutions in
1971 and another in 1972. There was no change in the
upgrading of the status of women during the intervening
years. APA took positions on admission procedures, stipends,
and part-time study practices that discriminate against
women. Only 10 percent of the faculty in psychology was
made up of women; yet one-fourth of current doctorates in
the field are earned by women, and women make up one-fourth
of the membership of APA. There was clear evidence of bias
according to rank and salary. It is significant that men
375
are also affected by part-time work policies, and the term
"parental" also includes men.
The task force found that 32 out of 72 departments
of psychology indicated some types of courses relating to
the psychology of women. Generally., however, there was no
systematic consideration of such studies. APA recommends a
definite policy in the offering of such courses.
APA admitted that dominant clinical and therapeutic
theories in psychology postulate that women are biologi
cally., intellectually,, and morally inferior to men. Such
theories are perpetuated in academe and clinical practice
partly because women are seldom allowed to be in supervisory
positions. APA takes the position that interest and talent
should determine policy. It advocates the tearing away of
myths and assumptions, the revisions of textbooks, and new
approaches in therapy. Contrary to decades of belief, the
woman who cannot fit into stereotypes is not abnormal.
Therapy has been designed to make her accept the stereotype,
and most therapists are men. APA showed deep concern about
sexual exploitation in therapy.
In its position paper, APA spells out concisely
recommendations for implementing its position. Two other
committees that work with the newly appointed task force
on the status of women are the ad hoc Committee on Social
and Ethical Responsibility and the Committee on Sex Dis
crimination of the Society for the Psychological Study of
376
Social Issues. APA published a complete report of its
position in July 1973-
Association of Women in Science
The Association of Women in Science (AWIS) was
organized in 1971 in Chicago at a meeting of the Federation
of American Societies for Experimental Biology. The ini
tial group consisted of 35 women. There had been six years
of preliminary meetings because of the growing awareness of
the magnitude of sex discrimination in the professions*
and because of the personal experiences of its founders.
Membership is open to all students, women, and men who
believe in the goals of the association.
AWIS has taken a stand affirming the democratic
institutions of the United States and particularly seeks
the enforcement of recent civil rights acts. It affirms its
belief in the intrinsic ability of women to become scien
tists and takes a firm public stand on matters affecting
careers of professional women.
The association, in conjunction with other women's
groups., has been involved actively in forcing to the courts
cases involving discrimination against women, even tackling
the Department of Health* Education* and Welfare because of
the latter's policy of virtually excluding women from its
lists of advisory committees. AWIS has compiled a registry
of 3.>000 women in science.
377
Modern Language Association
of America
The Modern Language Association of America (MLA)
was founded in 1 8 8 3. It was the first professional associa
tion in the current Women’s Movement to become actively
involved in research about women, including publishing
studies, reports, and books. In 1970, MLA compiled and
published the first directory of Women’s Studies, now in
its second edition. For its first two studies, MLA gath
ered its own data; for the third, it used data gathered by
the American Council on Education. Its Commission on the
Status of Women in the Profession was created in 1 9 6 9.
In its second study, MLA proposed a policy of affir
mative action in terms of hiring, salaries, nepotism, and
curriculum. In curriculum, MLA specifically advocates the
"content and conceptual approaches" at every level so that
consciousness will be raised for women and men alike.
Other areas in which the association has made policy state
ments have to do with flexible scheduling, flexibility on
time for degree completion, more consideration for admis
sion to graduate school in terms of the time limitations,
age limitation, part-time work, transfer of graduate credit,
flexible hiring, parental leaves for men and women, and day
care centers.
In the third study, MLA’s Commission on the Status
of Women notes that it seems clear that affirmative action
378
is not being met and that more aggressive action is needed
for equity.
N a t i o n a l E d u c a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n
The National Education Association is the largest
professional association in the United States., enrolling
1,684,909 members as of August 1, 1975. As might be
expected, since membership encompasses kindergarten through
university level, N.E.A. ’s interest in women's rights has a
broad sweep. The association’s history reflects society’s
treatment of women, but in recent years it has placed women
in leadership positions, even the presidency. Furthermore,
in the past administrators controlled the policies of the
organization, a fact which meant low visibility for women.
Today, administrators hold membership in local organizations
only if teachers allow them to do so. Associate membership
may be granted for insurance and other benefits.
N.E.A.’s Women’s Task Force was not established
until 1973. > but previous to that date the association showed
interest and effort in the questions advanced by women.
The t a s k f o r c e ’s f i r s t r e p o r t r e v i e w e d t h e h i s t o r y o f women
i n h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n , N .E.A.'s p a s t and c u r r e n t a t t i t u d e
to w a r d th e m , t y p e s o f i s s u e s a n d p r o g r a m s u n d e r w a y i n t h e
a s s o c i a t i o n , and t h e n e e d t o d e v e l o p a n y a f f i r m a t i v e a c t i o n
p o l i c y .
379
N.E.A. sponsored the first National Conference on
Sex Roles Stereotyping in Elementary and Secondary Education
in July 1973- Forty-seven organizations and societies were
represented. Since the heart of teaching concerns the cur
riculum., N.E.A. has recognized the "invisible curriculum" as
well as the blatantly visible one which is prejudicial to
females and also harms males. In October 1975^ N.E.A.
sponsored two National Conference on higher education,
specifically focusing on human rights. The subject of the
conferences was "Achieving Equity in Higher Education."
Joint Statement on Women
in Higher Education
The American Association of University Women was
founded in 1883 for the newly educated woman who found that
society had no place for her. Since that time, AAUW has
been in the vanguard in upgrading educational opportunities
for women and in the studying of public issues. In 1973^
AAUW coordinated a meeting of thirteen national organiza
tions, which issued a policy statement on women in higher
education. Eleven organizations endorsed the statement.
The Statement is concise but very comprehensive and covers
every aspect of higher education for students and teachers,
for returning women, for older women. There are statements
on "underrepresentation, underutilization,, and undercompen
sation of women. " There are statements on health., pregnancy.,
380
and retirement policies. And finally, there is a section
concerning the areas where women are almost never seen, in
the decision-making processes--from boards of regents to
deanships and presidencies.
The organizations endorsing the policy statement
are listed below:
American Association for Higher Education
American Association of University Women
American College Personnel Association
American Council on Education,
Commission on Women in Higher Education
Federation of Organizations for Professional Women
Intercollegiate Association of Women Students
Interstate Association of Commissions on the Status of Women
National Association of Student Personnel Administrators
National Association for Women Deans, Administrators,
and Counselors
National Council of Administrative Women in Education
Women in Communications
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary
This study was concerned with the status of women
from prehistory to the present, primary emphasis being on
Western Culture with reference to women's achievements,
education, and reasons for her inferior status as compared
with man. A broad survey was made of historical anteced
ents culminating in the current Women's Movement, one aspect
of which is the impetus for Women's Studies in institutions
of higher education.
The purpose of this chapter was the following:
1. To summarize the findings of male-female rela
tionships from a historical perspective (Pur
pose A) .
2. To summarize the opinions of a panel of dis
tinguished women on their experiences as
females and their perceptions of needs of
women in higher education (Purpose B).
3. To summarize perceptions of instructors, direc
tors, and students about Women's Studies in
381
382
selected institutions of higher education
(Purpose C).
4. To summarize positions and actions taken by
representative professional organizations on
the status of women (Purpose D).
5. To draw conclusions and to make recommendations
based on the findings (Purpose E) .
The Procedure
An in-depth study was made of the literature to
gain a chronological and historical perspective of condi
tions that helped to determine the current status of women.
A group of 13 distinguished women answered a questionnaire
on their backgrounds as females, their opinions on the needs
of women in higher education, and how Women's Studies might
help to equalize the status of women with that of men.
Eight instructors and instructor-directors and 115 students
at five colleges and universities in Southern California
answered a questionnaire on their experiences in Women's
Studies or classes about women and gave recommendations how
such studies or classes may be made more effective. Seven
representative professional associations submitted evidence
on their policies, research, and actions on the status of
women in their own organizational structure and on their
public stands and actions in regard to the status of women.
383
In addition, 11 associations gave a joint policy statement.
The Findings
The findings of the study are organized and pre
sented according to the five major purposes as set forth in
Chapter I.
Findings from the Literature
(Purpose A )
1. A study of folklore and of primitive peoples
today indicates that male-female conflict is intimately
intertwined with sexuality. Lack of knowledge of his role
in conception caused the male to look with envy at the
female., who apparently controlled the secret of life., and
to become jealous or resentful of her because she could
refuse to participate in the reduction of his sexual ten
sions. The rites of circumcision,, subincision, and the
couvade are seen as efforts of men to make a bodily change
such as girls go through at puberty., or in the latter situ
ation., such as a pregnant woman goes through during labor.
The concept of the Mother Goddess looms large in
many diverse cultures, and even after man became supreme,
this concept arose again and again in human rites and tales.
For example, during the Olympic Games in Greek culture,
when death could be a penalty for a woman to view the games,
an older woman was allowed to represent the Mother Goddess.,
or the Earth Goddess.
384
In order to compensate for the power of woman, man
developed compensatory activities to give him some status
deemed analogous to the status of woman. Eventually* per
haps his greater physical strength made It possible for him
to rule and to develop principles of government because
woman was weakened by childbirth* nursing, and menstruation.
But there have always been matriarchal and matrilineal
cultures. For example, Jewishness is determined by the
blood lines of the mother even today* and this is true of
a number of American Indian tribes. In ancient Egypt*
inheritance of possession was through the mother from the
queen down. In diverse cultures* woman's sexuality and
virginity became a property right of the males in her tribe
or of the tribe into which she married.
This same theme of sexual conflict permeates the
Old Testament. In the New Testament* the Apostle Paul does
not seem to dwell on the underlying theme of jealousy of
woman's ability to give birth* but he definitely expected
women to defer to men. It apparently was the Church Fathers
and the rise of the concept of celibacy in the Roman Catho
lic Church that brought to light and exacerbated the old
jealousies. Also the reappearance of the writings of
Aristotle* which the Church put on par almost with the
Bible* reinforced the latent beliefs about the inferiority
of woman and her wickedness in the Garden.
385
But the Christian Church is on shaky ground in its
concept and treatment of women if it but compare its
actions and teachings with those of Jesus. Jesus believed
in marriage,, was a special friend of women, and held man
equally guilty in sexual misconduct. By getting control of
organized religion and its child* the university* man was
able to control both society and the salvation of souls.
Along with the ancient myths that men have believed
and have taught women is the one that woman’s place has
always been in the home. Not so* not even in ancient cul
tures. And it certainly was not so in the roots of the
English-speaking peoples. A review of English legal
records until well into the Industrial Age shows that women
had jobs and professions as a rule and not as the exception.
Furthermore* cottage industries were a family affair. Even
the making of ale was the responsibility of women* both for
home .consumption and for the market. Colonial women took
these traditions with them to the New World.
In 1785 there appeared the first volume of a publi
cation that was to make vast changes in the lives of English
and American women* especially the latter. At this date
there appeared volume one of Sir William Blackstone's Com
mentaries . Blackstone was a conservative interested in
preserving class order* and he collected common law prin
ciples that may have fitted his concepts. Common law was
386
the law of the upper classes, but chancery law still had a
strong hold in English legal circles. But the codified
common law became the law school of the far-flung American
Colonies and eventually controlled legal thought in this
country. Jefferson was among the thinkers who fought
against the wholehearted acceptance of BlackstoneTs pre
cepts. Chancery law,, or the law of equity., eventually lost
to Blackstone, and women, especially married women, became
virtual nonentities under the law.
Another factor having vast influence on the rela
tionships between man and woman was the coming of the
Industrial Age, which took industry from the home and
enslaved men and women and their children to machines. By
playing on the theme of the inferiority of women and dan
gling before men the fear of losing their positions to
women, industry was able to obtain a cheap source of labor.
Eventually it became a source of ego gratification for those
men who could to be able to make enough money so that their
wives did not have to work. But this did not affect the
vast number of married women. Law, church, and industry
came together in stressing "woman’s role," however. Thus,
the nuclear family is but a moment old in the history of
marital arrangements. For the first time in history, home-
making and childrearing was conceived to be the sole occu
pation of the wife and mother.
387
It seems that five major forces have run through
history affecting male-female relationships:
a. The conflict involving sexuality. Woman's abil
ity to bring forth life was not understood, and man had to
develop compensatory achievements to try to offset the
important achievement of woman. Heroic deeds in war and
the eventual control of most ruling functions were thought
to be two of these.
b. The control of "magic.” This affected both
religion and science and gave rise to educational institu
tions and organized religion. Both eventually became the
function of males, who endeavored to keep woman's influence
out or, at best, used it to enhance their own positions.
c. The force of law. Man codified the laws which
gave advantages to him as a class, from Moses to Hammurabi
and on down to Justinian, Blackstone, and Napoleon.
d. The rise of Industrialism. This force did more
to change the course of history in a few years than hun
dreds of years of the usual evolutionary changes. The
relationships that had developed between men and women
through eons of interaction were suddenly revolutionized.
For awhile, both were losers, but eventually a new system
of values relegated some women to the home and others to
388
the marketplace at low positions and salaries but still
expected to maintain their functions in the home.
e* The post-World War II social changes. Emphasis
on human and civil rights has once again drawn women
together to fight for these rights for themselves.
2. For whatever reason, the early power of woman
never was taken from her entirely. Ancient cultures give
evidence of distinguished women in various fields and act
ing in their own right as well as powers behind men in
commanding positions. There are countless examples. In
Hebrew culture, prophetesses were revered and allowed to
prophesy even into the Christian Era. In the early Chris
tian Church there were also women prophetesses who were
respected. Greek drama is renowned for its extraordinary
women. The plays would not have been patronized nor sur
vived with respect if such characters had been too foreign
to Grecian culture and subsequent cultures. Named Greek
women have survived, e.g.* the poetsCorinna and Sappho;
Diotima, the teacher of Socrates; and Theano, a philosopher
and wife of Pythagoras.
There were reputed to be as many as 10 sibyls in
the ancient world. They were consulted by peoples of
diverse cultures and exerted a major influence on Christian
art and literature. There were many powerful Roman women
389
whose names we know, but what may be more important is the
aggregate influence that women in. general eventually had in
Roman culture.
Famous queens stand out in the pages of history--
Deborah, the Jewish military leader and ruler; Sheba, from
a country where it was the tradition for women to rule;
Cleopatra VII; and so on to the names such as Isabella, a
ruler in her own right and more powerful than Ferdinand.
Eleanor of Aquitaine, Blanche of Castille, Elizabeth I, and
Catherine the Great are among others. All of these women
were patrons of-‘the arts as well as being at ease in the
offices of government. Such women could not have come from
cultures completely devoid of opportunities for females and
respect for intelligence regardless of sex.
In the everyday affairs of life, the literature
indicates that women shared equally with men the challenge
of bringing in food for the family, in participating in the
commercial life, and in doing whatever kind of work was at
hand. In times of war, women virtually ran the country in
its manifold aspects. When the kings were away fighting, at
times the queen had to suppress rebellions or lead troops
herself. Women of all stations went on the Crusades.
During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, such
names as the religious leaders Clare, Teresa of Avila,
Catherine of Sienna, and others appear among founders of
390
religious orders, schools, hospitals, and abbeys. At least
some women attended the universities, and some women
scholars also taught at the universities. Olympia Morata
died while on her way to Heidelberg to teach the classics.
Lucia de Medrano taught at the University of Salamanca and
Frandisca de Lebrija at the University of Alcala, both
universities having been sponsored by Queen Isabella. The
brilliant Elena Cornaro Piscopia was the first woman to
receive a doctoral degree, it having been granted at Padua
in 1 6 7 8. In spite of not being allowed to study at the art
academy, Sophonisba Anguisciola and Marietta Tintoretta
were famous artists, the former accredited by Van Dyck to
have been his best teacher. And there were others.
English writers such as Mary Anne Elliot and the
three Bronte sisters having to write under masculine names;
Jane Austen having to write on small pieces of paper hidden
in the folds of her skirt as she played , r woman' s role"; and
Aurore Dupin writing under the name of George Sand can only
suggest the sorrow these women suffered as they struggled
to express some measure of their creativity.
Colonial American women brought with them activi
ties of the homeland, and conditions in the New World also
enabled them to prove their mettle. Single women or widows
were given lands in their own names to colonize. Examples
of outstanding women are Margaret Brent, Eliza Lucas, and
391
Anne Hutchinson. Colonial women were doctors and surgeons,
the midwife being one of the most important people in a
community. Obstetrics became the province of men only when
medical training became primarily the function of higher
education. Like their English sisters, Colonial women were
also printers, owners of taverns, and businesswomen in many
fields.
Women served in the Revolutionary War, but where
have the records gone? Nobody knows the number. Washing
ton tried to keep the ratio, to about one or two women per
man, but this could not be done. During the Civil War,
women organized the Sanitation Corps (medical corps),
raising $50,000,000. Many women went to the battlefield to
doctor and nurse, among them Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell. The
whole vast project of the Sanitation Corps was organized
and run by women, but Jealous men put their own names as
managers. World War I found women serving as yeomanettes
in the Navy and a major force in munition plants. World
War II saw women pilots training men to be pilots, but the
women could not draw the salary of the men they were train
ing. In World War II, 70 percent of the workers who made
the airplanes were women.
Distinguished women dot the annals of American
history--Mercy Warren, Abigail Adams, the Blackwell sisters,
Dorothea Dix, Jane Hull, Mother Jones, Maria Mitchell,
392
Amelia Earhart^ Eleanor Roosevelt, and countless others, to
say nothing of the vast numbers of women who served as nobly
as men in the routine of keeping civilization alive but who
appear in history merely as appendages,, if at all.
3. The major changes that have affected woman in
history have run parallel to the changes which have
affected man. Woman eventually lost her position as the
Mother Goddess who performed the miracle of birth and kept
the tribe alive as man's role in conception was recognized.
Though polyandrous cultures existed even in the last cen
tury ^ generally cultures became polygynous.
Woman passed through a period when both her sexu
ality and her physical labor were the property of males in
her family, and of the males of her husband's tribe when
she was purchased, captured, or persuaded to "marry." And
the children she bore also belonged to the mate or the
tribe.
In Western Culture the concept of one wife or hus
band at a time became enforced by social mores, religion,,
and state. Man and the state placed on women the responsi
bility for rearing of children. In order that this be done
properly, certain religious functions in the home and state
ceremonies became the duty of woman. There was always a
close affinity between organized religion and the state.
On women fell the awesome duty of instilling morality and
393
patriotism into the young. Somehow also man perhaps
developed a feeling that woman was the better side of his
own nature.
At times men in power recognized the intellectual
and leadership abilities of women close to them., in blood
lines or not, and allowed these women high positions or
listened to their counsel. Also the belief of the people
in the importance of bloodlines caused them to defer to
women when men associated with such women met misfortune.
Because of this beliefs high-born women were able to wield
more influence and to rule, thus conditioning society to a
less stereotyped view of woman’s role and status.
The Protestant Reformation loosened woman some from
the mold in which she was held under Roman Catholic theology
by accepting her with man as equals under the Covenant of
Grace.
Vast changes wrought by the Industrial Age forced a
drastic new relationship between man and woman, eventually
allowing woman to gain greater independence since she was
no longer entirely dependent on man financially.
As the quality of material life and the blessings
of a more democratic society raised the status of man as a
class and man in his various classes, the status of woman
was also raised. But woman in a given class or woman as a
class were never allowed the status of their counterparts.
39^
Changes in the Cybernetic Age--for which there are
no superlatives— are forcing a reappraisal of all inter
relationships between men and woman. There is no way at
present to assess the changes that have already taken place.
But the prestige of the Warrior Class is gone when a button
can be pushed to destroy a country. The. "pill" and legal
decisions have made it possible for a woman to be free to
have children or not when she chooses.
F i n d i n g s fro m t h e P e r c e p t i o n s
o f a P a n e l o f D i s t i n g u i s h e d
Women ( P u r p o s e B )
4. Eleven of the 13 women recalled acts of dis
crimination against them as women. One woman believed that
the men were not discriminatory,, but rather their acts were
from thoughtlessness. Another woman replied in the nega
tive; this woman, if one is to go by name, is from a
culture in which men are most definitely involved in their
"machismo” (Table 4).
Altogether., the panel mentioned 37 instances of
discrimination which they recalled. Seven spoke of restric
tions in employment and career opportunity. Five wrote of
being passed over in favor of men not as well qualified or
no better qualified. Every one of the 37 instances of
discrimination had to do with educational or work oppor
tunities (Table 5)•
395
The panel recalled 29 special people who encouraged
them, at least 13 of these being men who were not relatives.
Only three non-relative women were recalled,, but fewer
women have been In places of power to aid other women.
Sixteen of the total 29 were educators (Table 6).
In order to help counteract the influence of dis
crimination or to be prepared should an opportunity arise,
the panel tried to obtain as much education as possible.,
among other activities. All 13 women wrote about this.
Seven of them had the doctoral degree, and six of them had
the master’s degree or beyond (Table 2; Table 10).
5. The jury saw the needs of women in higher edu
cation to be the same as the needs of men, e.g., to be
treated as persons with full rights and opportunities.
Five of the women wrote this. There were 31 suggestions
altogether, and the specific points made only amplified the
basic five (Table 1 3). For the non-traditional student,
the panel made 49 suggestions in total. There were 11
recommendations having to do with the need for the univer
sity to look at its limits on age cutoff for entrance to
degree programs, the time limits for the completion of
degrees, and the discounting of "old" coursework. Also
eleven women saw the need for realistic counseling (Table
15) .
6. Responses the jury gave about the rationale for
396
Women's Studies were not totaled but were quoted (p. 264).
The remarks of 10 of the women were consistent with the
rationale of women in the Women's Studies movement., in
essence that WS help men and women to understand the his
tory of their mutual relationships. Two women expressed
concern about the separation of knowledge and people, one
of them fearing that such studies might cause women to
forego some courses that would help them in the new profes
sional fields opening for women.
7. Only one of the jury believed that Women's
Studies should be a separate department. Eight, or more
than 69 percent of the women, believed that material about
women should be incorporated into existing courses. Three
of the panel wrote "Perhaps" (Table 12). On perceived
weaknesses in the programs of Women’s Studies, 12 of the
panel believed that the focus was too narrow; 4 said there
was a need for sound scholarship; and 4 said the programs
should be reappraised because they have grown so rapidly
(Table 1 3).
8.-9. Eleven of the women had role models, some
more than one. Relatives were mentioned 3 times as "family
members," "Mother," and "Grandmother.” No woman in the
first Woman's Movement was named. There were only two
women from what is now the United States, Sacajawea and
Lillian Gilbreth. Twelve of the role models were educators
(Table 8). Only two of the women believed that courses
397
about women would have made a difference In their lives.
Six said., "Perhaps, " but only two of these made a qualify
ing statement. Five of the women replied in the negative
(Table 9).
Findings from Opinions of
Faculty and Students
(Purpose C)
10. The impetus for the setting up of classes
about women and Women's Studies at campuses participating
in this study grew from the spirit of the times. Roots of
a realization for the need for educational reform go back
to at least the time of Sputnik. Then the waves of student
unrest about the purposes of the University followed by the
explosive Black Movement and the push for Black Studies
caused more shock at the higher levels of education.
Heightened awareness of many groups that they were not a
part of decision-making that affected their own lives
spread.
Women's Studies were an offshoot of the Women’s
Movement,, born of the campus, a coming-together of students,
faculty, staff, and faculty wives. It embodied all the
elements of a true movement: no organization, no national
direction, but an infectious spirit that spread throughout
the land.
It was this spirit that brought together women of
395"
the campuses involved. Women gave their time freely to
make signs, answer the telephone, speak, entice friends to
speak, and petition for room and courses. In some instan
ces, there was hostility from some segments of administra
tion, and even from other faculty, including women. Some
women faculty members were penalized for being part of the
program. On the one hand, some administrators liked the
large classes because they looked good for proof that the
school needed more money; on the other hand, they did not
want to make changes in the curriculum. But the movement
has continued, and some of the schools offer minors, majors,
and at least one confers the doctorate in Women's Studies.
11. All instructors believed that Women's Studies
are a valid academic discipline. As one wrote, "If the
proper study of man is man, what is the proper study of
woman?” All of them expressed in some way their concern
about acceptance on campus, however. They listed as chief
obstacles "lack of prestige," "acceptance as a valid aca
demic discipline," and "lack of a sense of permanence."
Some believed that administration was with them but that
funding was a problem.
Faculty and students, including the three men who
answered the questionnaires, saw the need for courses about
women so that both men and women would have their conscious
ness raised about forces that had segregated the sexes.
399
Some women commented about having had "their eyes opened"
to the various ways that women have been held down and
back. They wrote of the hesitant women asking questions
about themselves and the need for women to become confident.
Students recognized,, with faculty, the problem of accept
ance for the program.
12. By far, faculty and students all believed that
the courses should be open to all students in some way.
Some expressed concern that there was not a first general
course for all entering students so that special courses
would not get "sidetracked" trying to cue in those without
background. There were only two expressed instances of
hostility against males, but in another instance, three
students thought males should not be in class because they
caused disturbances, did not take the movement seriously,
and some women were hesitant to talk around men. A number
of students were concerned by what they felt was bias
against men and the narrow focus of the courses. Although
all faculty wrote that male students were interested and
amazed at the amount of discrimination against women, five
of them mentioned defense mechanisms males used in class.
One instructor said that minority males were the most
defensive of all. One male believed that "Women Libbers"
showed bias and also felt that his female instructor seemed
uneasy with him. The response of one woman student indi-
Zfoo
cated lack of tolerance for students not In front of the
cutting edge of the movement.
It was especially believed that women who had been
out of school some years needed special' help in facing the
problems of being a new student and that special categories
of women., e.g.., the divorced., need special courses.
At one school, men were not allowed in the class
and demonstrated because of this. The course was "Women
and Their Bodies."
1 3. Faculty were not asked to express an opinion
about who should teach the courses. Sixty-nine of the
students did not believe that men were as qualified to
teach as were women. Twenty-eight of the women gave quali
fied answers such as "if a man were compassionate." Only
18 students believed that men are now qualified to teach
Women's Studies. Two of the men were in this category, and
the third did not answer.
14. The faculty perceived the strengths of the
program to be faculty support and the camaraderie of women,
with three comments in each category. Other comments had
to do with the substance of the courses and the need for
students for them. Students listed many strengths. The
major one was the varied teaching approaches. There were
39 comments about this. Second came the camaraderie of the
women with 32 votes. The concern, enthusiasm, and knowl-
401
edge of instructors were mentioned 22 times. There were 20
comments about the exciting new materials and 16 about the
relevancy to life of the subjects being taught.
15. Faculty perceived the weakness of their pro
gram to be lack of prestige on the campus. If there were
prestige., there would be adequate funding and more involve
ment of students and faculty. There were nine remarks
about this. Students saw the greatest weaknesses in terms
of the classes themselves. There were 23 remarks having to
do with the class structure, the repetition of material in
various classes, the same reading lists or library books.
Nineteen students made comments about what they perceived
as bias of the instructor,, the animosity against men, the
attitude of radical "Woman Libbers., " and the narrow focus of
the classes. Eleven students thought that there should be
more men in the classes. Ten said that the classes were toe
large,, and nine believed the time was too short to cover
all that needed to be done.
Findings from Positions and
Actions of Representative
Professional Organiza
tions (Purpose D)
16.-17.-18• American. Association of University
Professors. AAUP*s Committee W on the Status of Women was
first established in 1918 but deactivated in 1928„ probably
because of the Depression. It was reactivated in 1970 under
402
the chairmanship of sociologist Alice Rossi. She said that
the Committee’s 1921 report could have sufficed for the
1970 report., so few had been the changes for women in edu
cation. Furthermore, AAUP's internal structure hardly
qualified it to point a finger at any group which discrim
inated against women. The latter criticism is no longer
valid, but AAUP has not yet elected a woman president.
Through three of its committees, AAUP has taken an
active role condemning antinepotism policies that discrim
inate against women, and indirectly against men also. It
is among the organizations working for part-time appoint
ments for men and women with scaled perquisites. It has
taken stands against maternity leave policies that penalize
women, and it supports affirmative action. In 1970,
Committee W sent an eight-page report to HEW pointing out
the flaws In Title IX that enabled Institutions to discrim
inate in various ways, e.g., a place for "sex" on the
Graduate Records Examination and the Law School Admissions
Test, and for "sex" and "marital status'1 on the Admission
Test for Graduate Study in business.
Some of the women actively involved in various AAUP
committees have done major research about women and have
published or edited well-received literary works. Gerda
Lerner and Alice Rossi are but two of the women noted for
403
their writings and interest in Women’s Studies. Lerner is
a historian and Rossi a sociologist.
l6.-17.-l8. American Bar Association. The ABA has not
taken a public stand as an organization on the status of
women,, but committees within the ABA have sent positive
resolutions to the ABA House of Delegates on equal treat
ment of women in credit and housing, support of the United
States Supreme Court's decisions on abortion, and for vast
changes in laws affecting prostitution. The ABA has
appeared as amicus curiae in some cases affecting women,
e.g., the law in Louisiana that stipulated that a woman
could not serve on a jury unless she went to the courthouse
and asked to be put on the list. The ABA actively supports
the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. There is no law
requiring that institutions put Women's Studies into their
curriculum; thus the ABA would be amiss to go on record
asking that such be done.
l6 .-i7.-l8. American Historical Association. In
October 1969* this body voted to appoint an ad hoc Committee
on the Status of Women and gave it broad responsibilities
to investigate the status of women at all levels of the
profession, to hold hearings, and to publicize its findings.
At its next annual meeting, the association committed
itself to helping to rectify past wrongs and to prevent
future ones. It established a standing committee named
4o4
"Committee on Women Historians." In 1973 an appointment
was made of an assistant executive secretary among whose
duties is the status of women.
There are a number of well-known feminist histori
ans in AHA., male and female. Among them are William
O'Neill, Gerda Lerner, Page Smith, and Berenice Carroll.
l6.-17.-l8. American Psychological Association.
In October 1970, the APA authorized an eight-member task
force to prepare a position paper on the status of women in
psychology. The goal was to advance psychology as a sci
ence and as a means of promoting human welfare. The task
force made surveys and established a vast network of
communications with other organizations and governmental
agencies regarding discrimination against women in federal
employment practices such as awarding of grants. It also
made recommendations relative to accreditation procedures
in helping to wipe out bias. Based on two surveys a year
apart, APA found that there had been no change in the status
of women. One-fourth of the members of APA are women; one-
fourth of the doctorates in the field are held by women;
only 10 percent of the faculty in psychology departments
are women.
APA admitted that dominant clinical theories postu
late that women are biologically, intellectually, and
morally inferior to man. Furthermore, such theories are
405
taught in higher education and in clinical practice because
women are so seldom appointed to supervisory positions.
APA a l s o sh ow ed c o n c e r n b e c a u s e o f s e x u a l e x p l o i t a t i o n o f
women i n t h e r a p y .
The a s s o c i a t i o n a d v o c a t e s t h e t e a r i n g aw ay o f m y th s
and s t e r e o t y p e s a b o u t women., t h e r e v i s i o n o f t e x t b o o k s ., and
new a p p r o a c h e s t o t h e r a p y . In i t s p o s i t i o n p a p e r , APA
s p e l l s o u t r e c o m m e n d a t io n s f o r i m p l e m e n t i n g i t s p o s i t i o n on
w om en.
l6.-17.-l8. Association of Women in Science. This
association was organized in 1971 in Chicago after six
years of preliminary meetings struggling with the question
of discrimination against women in the scientific profes
sions. Membership is open to all who believe in the goals
of the professions--students, men, and women. AWIS has
taken a stand affirming the democratic institutions of our
country and especially seeks to help enforce the civil
rights acts. It takes a firm public stand on matters
affecting the careers of professional women. In conjunction
with other groups, AWIS has been actively involved in legal
suits involving discrimination against women, even tackling
HEW for not including women on its advisory lists. It has
also compiled a registry of 3 ,0 0 0 women in science for
those institutions that "can’t find any women scientists."
AWIS made no special statement relative to Women’s Studies.
40 6
16.-17.-18. Modern Language Association of America.
MLA was the first professional association in the current
Women's Movement to become actively involved in research
about women,, publishing studies, reports, and books. It
has made policy statements on hiring, nepotism, salaries,
flexible scheduling, time and age limits for degrees, and
parental leave policies for men and women. MLA has made
two studies on the status of women and participated with
the American Council on Education on a third. In 1970 it
compiled and published the first directory on Women's
Studies, Female Studies, now in its second edition. In
curriculum, MLA advocates the "content and conceptual
approaches" at every level so that consciousness will be
raised for men and women alike.
l6.-17.-l8. National Educational Association. The
NEA encompasses chapters from kindergarten through univer
sity level, and its interest in the Women's Movement has a
wide sweep as it related to education. Its past structure,
however, was parallel with that of society in that males
held the dominant positions. That has changed, and there
have been two women as national presidents in the past few
years. NEA's task force on women was established in 1973-
The first work of that group was to review the history of
women in higher education, NEA's past and current attitude
407
toward women, types of issues and programs then underway,
and the need to develop an affirmative action policy.
NEA s p o n s o r e d t h e f i r s t n a t i o n a l c o n f e r e n c e on
M S ex R o le S t e r e o t y p i n g i n E l e m e n t a r y and S e c o n d a r y E d u c a
t i o n " i n J u l y 1973- F o r t y o r g a n i z a t i o n s and s o c i e t i e s
a t t e n d e d . I t h a s c o n c e n t r a t e d on t h e " i n v i s i b l e c u r r ic u l u m "
i n t e x t s a s w e l l a s t h e b l a t a n t and v i s i b l e c u r r i c u l u m
w h ic h d i s c r i m i n a t e s a g a i n s t women. In O c t o b e r 1 9 7 4 , NEA
s p o n s o r e d two n a t i o n a l c o n f e r e n c e s , on e i n San F r a n c i s c o
and t h e o t h e r i n A t l a n t a , i n v o l v i n g t h e b r o a d i s s u e s o f t h e
th e m e , " A c h i e v i n g E q u i t y i n H ig h e r E d u c a t i o n . " I t h a s more
th a n $ 2 , 0 0 0 , 0 0 0 i n t h e DuShane fu n d f o r l e g a l c a s e s .
16.-17.-18. Jo int Statement on Women in Higher
Education. In 1973 the American Association of University
Women coordinated a meeting of 13 national organizations,
which issues a policy on women in higher education. Eleven
of the attending organizations endorsed the statement. The
statement covered every aspect of higher education for
women, from student to teacher, young student and older
student with all their attendant needs. Also there was a
section concerning areas where women have seldom been seen,
in decision-making processes, from boards of regents to
presidencies and deanships.
4o8
Conclusions
On the basis of the review of literature* question
naires to a panel of distinguished women* questionnaires to
instructors and instructor-directors and students in
Women’s Studies at selected colleges* and positions and
actions taken by a group of professional associations* the
following major conclusions may be drawn:
According to Major Purpose A
1. Woman lost her position as Mother Goddess as
the human race advanced intellectually. Afterwards in most
cultures* man became the dominant force. As a consequence
the relationship between the two sexes may be seen as being
analogous to a class conflict. A major difference* perhaps*
is that there developed between them a general feeling of
mutual respect. Equality in its true sense* however* was
between individuals and not the two sexes per se.
2. Since man held the keys to power* by physical
might* religion* and education* he could dole to woman what
he wished and prevent her accomplishments from becoming
part of general knowledge.
3. The humanitarian qualities especially ascribed
to women have been brought about by conditioning; however*
such have added measures of grace to the human condition.
Also the fact that some women rise as persons in their own
409
right shows that both man and society gave at least some
credence to the concept of equality.
4. Both men and women in their personal lives and
the human race as a whole have been vastly harmed because
of the subjection of women.
According to Major Purpose B
5. Distinguished women exemplify in their own
lives the condition of women at large who try to achieve.
People of both sexes encouraged and discouraged them.
These women made many personal sacrifices to break the mold
and to succeed in other than the traditional role of woman.
Their experiences are analogous to experiences of achieving
women in the past.
6. Based on a larger view of society,, these women
do not believe in fragmenting society even more by separat
ing the study of women from general education.
7. Teachers of both sexes played crucial roles in
inspiring these women and female teachers were positive
role models for half of them, but the group did not see
their mothers as role models.
According to Major Purpose C
8. Teachers in Women’s Studies exemplify the quali
ties associated with the best of teachers in their dedica
tion to the needs of students and their realization that
410
much of what has been taught to men and women has been from
one perspective,, and that the purpose of education Is to
uncover truth and to look at an Idea from every aspect.
9. Students in Women's Studies are fired with
enthusiasm because they are being exposed to concepts that
apparently respond to some unanswered question in their
being. Some of them are afraid of new ideas. The over
whelming majority of women and the small sample of men
recognize the need for a more balanced curriculum and of
their need for each other as partners in the human experi
ence .
10. The overwhelming majority of women students
have no animosity against men. Only two out of 112 women
students expressed such a feeling. But only 18 students
out of 115 believe that men are now qualified to teach
Women’s Studies., and two of these were male. The third
male did not answer.
According to Major Purpose D
11. Representative professional associations, some
of them having great influence, have looked at their own
internal structure and have found it not consistent with
their espoused philosophy. In general they have made defi
nite changes for a more democratic internal structure and
have made public stands of their commitment to the larger
goals of education,, believing that such advance the cause
of both men and of women and the ideals of society. These
associations have formed networks of communications with
other organizations, and they actively pursue cases where
there have been infringements or denial of rights. All
this has helped to set a climate for a growth toward
equality.
Recommendations
Based on the findings and conclusions presented in
this study, it is recommended that
1. Institutions of higher education look at the
basic documents governing themselves to see if there is a
conflict between their philosophy and policy about the
goals of education and how each institution is working to
carry out these goals;
2. Institutions of higher education obey federal
and state laws regarding the basic obligations they have to
the society that supports them;
3- State and federal governments move to enforce
laws that they have made;
4. Programs of Women’s Studies be set up on all
campuses in good faith in whatever form that best serves
the common good of all members of that educational community
and of the larger community;
412
5. Institutions of higher education recognize that
the University has changed to meet the needs of citizens of
different periods of our history,, e.g.; the dormitories,
and such aids for women— and men— as child care facilities
would be in the tradition of change and service;
6. Institutions of higher education take an active
role in helping to effect change in curriculum in elemen
tary and secondary schools so that fragmentation of courses
will not be needed at the collegiate and university level
and that the larger goals of democracy will be accomplished;
7. Special efforts be made to help make professors
acquire a deeper understanding of the feelings of women
students so that a spirit of trust will replace or ameli
orate the current doubt of these students;
8. Follow-up studies be made of students taking
courses about women to ascertain any influence such courses
make in their lives.
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413
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APPENDICES
441
APPENDIX A
CORRESPONDENCE AND QUESTIONNAIRE
TO DISTING UISH ED W OMEN
442
(letterhead)
Mrs. Mary Louise Harris
I83I Mar Boulder Drive
Seattle, Washington 98331
Dear Mrs. Harris:
In concluding my doctoral -work at the University of Southern
California, I am investigating the program of Women’s Studies at
selected California colleges and universities -with emphasis on the
historical background of •women in Western culture.
To help validate whether there is a need for such studies or
whether the programs as constituted meet perceived needs, a number
of distinguished women have been selected as a jury. The group rep
resents a wide spectrum of women recognized for their accomplishments
in educational, social, or political areas. It is felt that these
women have special insights into the status of women and of the cul
tural milieu. You are one of these women.
The enclosed questionnaire was designed as an aid in helping to
guide thinking about education for women and the problems they may have
in higher education. It is in no way comprehensive, and any additional
comments or observations that you may have will be gratefully accepted.
The identity of each respondent will be held in strictest confidence.
All data will be treated in a scholarly manner and used for the pur
pose of this study only.
I am aware that you have many professional and personal commit
ments. But the insistent pressure from women about changes in their
status through different emphasis in our educational institutions makes
research about Women’s Studies of vital concern. A stamped, self-
addressed envelope is enclosed for your opinions, which are especially
solicited. Participants of the study will, of course, receive a sum
mary of the findings.
Sincerely yours,
Sibyl M. Strain
Enc. (2)
443
444
( letterhead)
Mrs. Mary Louise Harris
I83I Mar Boulder Drive
Seattle, Washington 9&331
Dear Mrs. Harris:
Recently as part of a doctoral study at the University of Southern
California, I mailed you a questionnaire on your perceptions about
Women’s Studies and the needs of -women in higher education. You are
one of a panel of distinguished women chosen because of their own
accomplishments as women.
The response to date has been gratifying, but I would like very
much to include you in the study. As indicated in my previous letter,
all data will be considered in a professional manner, and in no way
will the identity of respondents be revealed. All participants will
receive a summary of the findings.
May I please hear from you soon? Another questionnaire and
stamped, self-addressed envelope are enclosed for your convenience.
Sincerely yours,
Sibyl M. Strain
Enc. (2)
445
Questionnaire to Jury of Distinguished Women
Instructions: During the past few years, higher education has experi
enced a rapid increase in courses about women and in Women's Studies—
from perhaps a hundred in 1969 to over two thousand today. It is now
possible to receive a minor, a major, and a master's degree in Women's
Studies. In addition, at least one university offers a doctorate in
that area. But there has been little research on the theory of Women's
Studies or their effectiveness. Some questions needing answers are (D
What do Women's Studies subsume? (2) Is there a need for such pro
grams? (3) Are Women's Studies a legitimate discipline? (4) How should
programs be organized? This investigation is designed to try to find
some answers to such questions. The questions below are merely sugges
tive. Please elaborate as you wish. Thank you for your help.
1. In the past, have you experienced discrimination in terms of
being a girl or a woman? (a) Yes____. (b) Wo____. Please
comment if your answer is "Yes."
2. In retrospect, can you recall ever having received encouragement
from anyone which influenced you to take steps leading to your
present position? (a) Yes____. (b) Wo . If your answer
is "Yes," comment on the identity of the person(s), giving sex
and type of encouragement.
3. In retrospect, can you recall ever having received discouragement
from anyone concerning your aspirations, in that such person was
trying to prevent your being disappointed or hurt by society's
treatment of females? (a) Yes____. (b) Wo____. If your
answer is "Yes," comment about the identity of the person, giving
sex and type of advice.
4. If you are not "white," have you felt more discrimination because
of your sex than your ethnicity? (a) Yes____. (b) Wo____.
Comment.
446
5- What is your educational background? (a) BS . BA .
Major:________■ ___________. Minor:____________________.
(b) MS . MA . Discipline:___________________ .
(c) Ed.D. . Ph.D. .Discipline:___________________ .
Professional degree (name)______. _______________________ .
6. Did you "aim" at your current field and/or position., say from
high school or college age?
7* In retrospect, can you recall specific steps that you took that
helped you to be prepared "-when the time was right?" (a) Yes_
(b) No . Comment if your answer is "Yes."
8. How important was the "spirit of the times" (Zeitgeist) in help
ing you to achieve your current status and/or position? Comment.
9. In retrospect, would courses about women and their contributions
taken in high school and college have made any particular differ
ence in your life? (a) Yes . (b) No____. (c) Perhaps____
Comment.
10. Did you ever have a woman as a role model, either a living person
or one in history or fiction? (a) Yes____. (b) No____.
Comment if your answer is "Yes."
447
11. What do you perceive as the special needs of women as women in
higher education? Please comment.
12. Since at present Women's Studies are a fait accompli, what do
you perceive as their rationale? Please comment.
l^. Do you believe that Women's Studies qualify as a distinct disci
pline in higher education? (a) Yes_____. (b)_No_____.
Comment.
Ik. Which of the following would serve the needs of women and of
education better: (a) Separate courses about women should be
in the departments concerned, e.g., "The Psychology of Women"
should be in the psychology department _____. (b) Work by
women psychologists and material about the psychological
makeup of women should be incorporated in existing psychology
courses
15. What weaknesses do you perceive in the concept of Women's Studies
or in programs of Women's Studies? Comment.
16. What recommendations can you make that would help institutions
of higher education be more responsive to the needs of women in
terms of the following: (a) the young married woman student,
0>) the mature woman who is attempting advanced work while hold
ing home responsibilities, (c) the older woman who is returning
to college to finish a degree or to update the one she has,
(d) other comments that you may have on the subject.
APPENDIX B
CORRESPONDENCE, QUESTIONNAIRE, AND INTERVIEW GUIDE
TO INSTRUCTOR-DIRECTORS AND INSTRUCTORS
OF WOMEN'S STUDIES PROGRAMS
448
(LETTERHEAD)
To Instructor-Directors and Instructors
of Women's Studie s Programs
Dear Colleagues;
In concluding my doctoral ■work at the University of Southern
California., I am studying the program of Women's Studies at selected
California colleges and universities. These institutions were chosen
because preliminary research indicated that they have strong interest
in restructuring the curriculum to meet what is perceived as weakness
in women's education. Yours is one of these schools.
As you know, most of the research about Women's Studies has been
in the tabulation of courses and/or listing of institutions where such
courses are offered. National publications have carried articles
describing some of the courses and postulating the need for them. But
there has been little empirical research on the need for such programs
or their effectiveness. Part of my study calls for campus visitations,
questionnaires to faculty and students, and interviews with directors
of Women's Studies. It is hoped— and expected— that findings from
this study will be beneficial to the institutions involved and will
offer guidance to other schools setting up such programs. I will be
involved in setting up a program at my own college. Your help in this
research is earnestly solicited.
Copies of the appropriate questionnaire, the interview guide, and
a stamped, self-addressed envelope are enclosed. Any additional com
ments that you may have to make the research instrument more effective
will be accepted gratefully. Be assured that all data will be used in
a professional manner, and in no way will the position of respondents
be compromised. Participants will, of course, receive a summary of the
findings if they desire to have it. Thank you in advance for any help
that you may give me in this work that is so important in the Woman1 s
Movement.
Sincerely yours,
Sibyl M. Strain
Enc. (3)
449
450
Interview Guide with Instructor-Director
of Women’s Studies
1. Were you part of the initial group who started the move for a
Woman’s Studies program?
2. How did you reach your position as director or coordinator?
J. What was the impetus for establishing the Women's Studies Program
on this campus? Can you comment on the attitude of students,
faculty, curriculum committee, deans, and other administrators
that was a positive or a negative force in setting up the program?
k-. What has been done to minimize negative feelings if they existed?
What special obstacle was the hardest to overcome, if any?
5. How is the program financed— such as regular budget, special fees,
grant s ?
6. Is the program inter-disciplinary, a separate department, or is
material about women incorporated into existing courses? If the
latter, how do you know this is accomplished?
7. If you have done any research about the program, published or not,
what are some of your findings?
8. How was— and is— the program publicized?
9- What has been the trend in terms of growth of the program?
10. Is there a childcare center at this campus? If so, how is it
financed? What are the general policies covering the center?
11. Do you have further comments on the program to amplify your
answers to the questionnaire or this interview guide?
451
Women's Studies Questionnaire to Instruetor-Directors
and Instructors
Instructions: The purpose of this questionnaire is to enlist your aid
in a project designed to explore the need for programs of Women's Stud
ies in colleges and universities and, possibly, to help improve such
programs that now may exist. Opinions of administrators, faculty, and
students are crucial in this study. All information is confidential.
If you want a summary of the study after it is completed, please give
the necessary information in the last question. A stamped, self-
addressed envelope is enclosed. Kindly return the questionnaire as
soon as possible. Thank you for your help in this project of interest
to so many women.
1. Sex: Male . Female____. Age: 20-30 ; >
40-50 ___; 50+ .
2. Marital status: (a) married ___ (b)_single____ (c) divorced__
(d) mate deceased ___. Number of children . Age range of
children ___________.
5- Ethnic group: (a) American Indian ___ (b) Black____
(c) Chicano ___ (d) Chinese-American (e) Japanese-
American ___ (f) Mexican-American (g) White ___
(h) Other (name) __________________________ .
4. What is your highest level of education? (a) BS— BA ___
(b) MA— MS (c) Ed.D.— Ph.D. (d) Other degree (name)
5- List college or university from which you received your degree(s).
(a) (b) (c)_______
6. Major? (a) (b) Minor? _________________
7* Was any of your undergraduate or graduate work in Women's Studies?
(a) Yes ___ (b) No . If "yes," give name(s) of course(s)
452
8. If you are a faculty member, how did you become part of the Woman’s
Studies program? (a) Volunteered (b) Assigned .
9- If you are an administrator, were you a faculty member before
accepting your current position? (a) Yes (b) Wo .
10. When you were younger, did you have a "role model”— either male or
female, real or in fiction— who inspired you? (a) Yes ____
(b) Wo ____. If your answer is "yes," please give name of role
model.
11. Did you ever have a high school teacher or counselor or a college
professor who encouraged you to continue your education and/or to
teach or work at the college or university level? If your answer
is "yes," please comment, giving sex of such teacher and your
state of education.
12. If you are a male, what raised your consciousness about the status
of women, the stereotyped roles society has had them to play, etc.?
Comment.
13. If you are a female, can you recall any experiences that made you
notice, accept, or resent the position of girls and women in rela
tion to the position of boys and men? If your answer is "yes,"
comment.
14. If you are a faculty member, list courses which you teach or have
taught in the area of Women’s Studies. (a) ___________________
(*>) _______________________ (c)_________________________
15. What is the format of your courses? (a) structured _______
(b) Informal . Comment is appropriate.
16. If you are a faculty member, how are your course(s) evaluated?
(a) Letter grade ____ (b) Pass/Fail____ (c) Credit/Wo Credit___
(cL) choice of above according to course ___ (e) student-professor
conference
^53
17* If* there are male students in your classes, can you describe their
attitude about Women's Studies and course content?
(a) interested _ _ (b) ill -at-ease and defensive ___
(c) flippant ____ (d) attempts familiarity -with instructor, such
as calling him/her by first name ___ (e) amazed and enlightened
at degree of discrimination against "women ___.
18. Do you encourage your students to be on a first-name basis with
you? (a) Yes ___ (b) Wo ___.
19. Have you published any articles in a professional journal about
your course(s) or the Women's Studies program at your institution?
(a) Yes ___ (b) Wo ___ . If your answer is "yes," please give
reference.
20. According to your experience, what is the attitude of faculty
members in "other" disciplines toward Women's Studies? Is sex a
variable in such attitudes?
21. What do you perceive as the major strength of the Women's Studies
program at your institution?
22. What do you perceive as the major weakness of the program?
23. What do you perceive as the major obstacles that must be surmounted
before the program becomes a truly viable part of your institution?
2*+. Do you think Women’s Studies qualify as a distinct discipline in
higher education? Comment.
25. Which of the following would serve the needs of women and education
better: (a) Separate courses about women should be in the depart
ments concerned, e.g., "The Psychology of Women" should be taught
in the Psychology Department ______. (b) Work by women psycholo
gists and material about the psychological make-up of women should
be incorporated into existing psychology courses _____.
454
26. What do you perceive as the rationale of Women's Studies?
Pie a s e comment.
27. What weaknesses, if any., do you perceive in the concept of Women*s
Studies? Please comment.
28. What recommendations can you make that would help institutions of
higher education be more responsive to the needs of women in terms
of the following: (a) the young married woman student, (b) the
more mature woman who is attempting advanced work while holding
home responsibilities, (c) the older woman who is returning to
college to finish a degree or to update her education, (d) any
comments you may have on the subject.
29. Thank you very much for your help. If you want a summary of this
study when it is completed, please give your name and permanent
address below.
APPENDIX C
CORRESPONDENCE AND QUESTIONNAIRE
TO STUDENTS IN WOMEN'S STUDIES
455
(uetteehead)
Dear Student:
The enclosed questionnaire is part of a doctoral study at the Uni
versity of Southern California. As you know^ there has been a rising
interest in Women’s Studies for the past several years, hut there has
been little research about what kinds of programs are needed or how
effective those in progress are. The focus of this study is to help
answer some of the questions about Women’s Studies.
Your help in this research is earnestly requested. You, the stu
dent, are the person who has the keenest insights about how well the
program is responding to the educational and personal needs of women.
Furthermore, your evaluation is critical to the building of sound edu
cational policy.
A stamped, self-addressed envelope is enclosed for your response.
All replies will be used in a professional manner and the identity of
respondents held in confidence. Any additional comments that you may
have will be gratefully received. It has been heartwarming and exciting
to read the answers and comments of students who participated in the
pilot study. I am looking forward to your insights and opinions.
Since there is a deadline for the completion of this dissertation,
I would consider it a great personal favor if you could give this ques
tionnaire your prompt attention. I thank you in advance for your valu
able help.
Yours in sisterhood,
Sibyl M. Strain
Enc. (2)
456
457
Women!s Studies Questionnaire to Students
Instructions: The purpose of this questionnaire is to explore the
need for programs of Women's Studies in higher education and to help
improve programs that may now exist. Insights of students who have
experiences in courses about women are most crucial. Please give all
questions your thoughtful attention. If it is your wish, you need not
sign your name; however, if you would like to receive a summary of the
study, please give the necessary information in the last question.
Thank you for your help.
1. Sex: Male . Female_____. ____Age:____.
2. Marital status: (a) married____ (b) single____
(c) divorced (d) mate deceased_____ (e) separated____
(f) living with lover .
3. Number of children:____. Ages of children:__________________ .
4. Ethnic group: (a) American Indian (b) Black_____
(c) Chinese-American (d) Chicano (e) Japanese-
American _ (f) Mexican-American_____ (g) White____
(k) Other (name)________________________ .
5. Citizenship status: (a) United States (b) foreign student
(c) resident alien____. If you are a foreign student or
a resident alien, what is your country?_____________________.
6. Did you finish high school? Yes . No .
7. How much time elapsed since you left your previous high school or
university and entered this one?__________________ .
8. If you were in another college or university before this one,
indicate type. (a) community college (b) four-year institu
tion (c) special school (kind) .
9* What is your status in college? (a) fr. (b) soph.
(c) jr.____ (d) sr.____ (e) grad.____.
LO. Major______________________. Minor_________, ____________.
458
11. If you have children, if adequate childcare facilities had been
available, could you have started your college -work.sooner?
Yes . No . Question not applicable .
12. Have you ever received any financial aid from your college or
university? Yes . No_____. 'What kind of aid?
(a) opportunity to work (b) cash (c) loan____.
15. Why did you go to college? (Use back of page if needed.).
14. How did you learn that classes in Women*s Studies or about women
were being offered at your college or university? (a) college
catalog or bulletin (b) friend____ (c) instructor____
(d) other (name)_______________________________
15. Do you think there is a need for Women1 s Studies on your campus?
(a) Yes (b) No____. On what do you base your opinion?
16. Please give the course name and sex of instructor of all courses
that you have taken in Women’s Studies. (Use the back of page if
needed.).
17. Which of these courses has been the most enlightening to you?
Why was this particular course special?
18. Do you believe that a male professor can handle courses in Women’s
Studies as well as a female professor? In other words, should sex
be a variable. Please comment.
19. How do you think Women’s Studies should be organized? (a) as a
separate department_____ (b) existing courses should be modified
to include material relevant to women’s contributions and needs__
(c) courses about and for women should be in departments as cur
rently structured, e.g., a course called ’ ’ Nineteenth Century Women
Novelists" should be in the English department.
459
20. What methods of evaluation should he used in courses in Women's
Studies? (a) Credit/No Credit____ (b) Pass/Fail____
(c) Letter grade____ (d) conference with professor____.
21. Do you feel more free to talk with your professors in Women’s
Studies about grades than with professors in other courses or
departments? (a) Yes . (b) No • Please comment.
22. What are, or were, the major strengths in courses in Women’s
Studies which you are studying or have studied?
23. What are, or were, the major weaknesses in courses in Women’s
Studies which you are studying or have studied?
2b. What suggestions do you have for improving courses in WS in which
you have had experience or in improving the whole program of
Women’s Studie s ?
25. When this study is completed, if you want a summary of the data,
please give your name and permanent address below.
APPENDIX D
PARTICIPATING COLLEGES AND
UNIVERSITIES
460
Los Angeles State University
Los Angeles, California
Long Beach State University
Long Beach, California
Loyola MaryMount University
Los Angeles, California
Fullerton Community College
Fullerton, California
Saddleback Community College
Mission Viejo, California
461
APPENDIX E
CORRESPONDENCE TO AND NAMES OF PARTICIPATING
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
462
(IETTERHEAD)
Dr. Mary Doe, Executive Secretary
American Historical Association
4-00 A Street Southeast
Washington, D.C. 20003
Dear Dr. Doe:
As part of my doctoral ’ work at the University of Southern Califor
nia, I need position papers of professional associations relative to
their stand and actions on the status of women and the needs of women
in higher education. Kindly send to me any material that you may have
on the subject.
I am enclosing fifty cents (50/) in stamps toward postage. If
there is a charge, kindly indicate. Thank you for an early response
to this request.
Sincerely yours,
Sibyl M. Strain
Enc. (l)
463
American Association of University Professors
American Bar Association
American Historical Association
American Psychological Association
Association of Women in Science
Modern Language Association of America
National Educational Association
Joint Statement on Woman in Higher Education
American Association for Higher Education
American Association of University Women
American College Personnel Association
American Council on Education,
Commission on Women in Higher Education
Federation of Organizations for Professional Women
Intercollegiate Association of Women Students
Interstate Association of Commission on the
Ststus of Women
National Association of Student Personnel
Administrators
National Association for Women Deans, Administrators,
and Counselors
National Council of Administrative Women in Education
Women in Communications
464
APPENDIX F
COMPARISON OF ACADEMIC RANK AND SALARIES BETWEEN
MEN AND WOMEN IN INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER
EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES
PERCENTAGE OF DOCTORAL DEGREES AWARDED
TO WOMEN IN MAJOR FIELDS, 1920-1973
CHRONOLOGY OF FEDERAL EXECUTIVE ORDERS
465
PERCENT WOMEN AMONG FULL-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL FACULTY,
BY ACADEMIC RANK: 50 STATES AND D.C., 1972 AND 1974
ACADEMIC RANK 1972 1974
Total 22.3 24.1
Professors 9.8 10.3
Associate Professors 18.3 16.9
Assistant Professors 23.8 27.1
Instructors 39.9 40.6
WOMEN AS PERCENT OF TOTAL FULL-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL FACULTY ON 9-I0-MGN7H CONTRACTS
IN INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION, BY ACADEMIC RANK AND CONTROL AND LEVEL OF
INSTITUTION: 50 STATES AND D. C., 1974-75
CONTROL AND LEVEL
OOP INSTITUTION
TOTAL,
ALL
RANKS PROFESSORS
ASSOCIATE
PROFESSORS
ASSISTANT
PROFESSORS INSTRUCTORS LECTURERS
UHDE3IG-
KATEB
RANK
Ail las titutions 24.1 10.3 16.9 27.1 40.6 39.8 34.3
Publicly Controlled 24.8 10.5 16.1 27.0 39.4 39.5 34.0
Universities 19.3 6.6 13.3 24.4 49.6 36.3 39.1
Othsr Four-year 24.4 12.7 17.0 27.6 47.7 43.8 39.9
Two-Year 32.7 24.7 24.7 33.8 34.2 50.0 33.7
Privately Controlled23.5 10.1 18.6 27.3 46.5 40.5 35.5
Universities 16.3 5.6 13.5 22.4 44.8 35.9 10.0
Other Four-Year 25.6 13.0 20.3 28.7 46.2 46.2 30.8
TWo-Year 44.1 26.6 26.6 43.2 51.0 91.7 44.5
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, Departraent of Health, Education,
and Welfare, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Education, Washington, D„C.
1975. (National Education Association, Teachers' Rights Division, Wash
ington, D. C. )
466
467
AVERAGE 1974-7} SALARIES FOR 252,000
FULL-TIME FACULTY MEMBERS*
ALL INSTITUTIONS TOTAL
2-YEAR
INCREASE UNIVERSITIES
4-YEAR
COLLEGES
2-YEAR
COLLEGES
Tote I
Men
V c n i e n
$15,269
15,926
13.243
1 0 . 3 * 4
10.9%
11.3%
$16,704
17,421
13.552
$14,342
14,876
12.736
$14,736
15,244
13.724
Professorb
Kan
Women
20,633
20,909
18.433
9.2%
9.31
8.6%
22,514
22,674
20.145
18,875
10,041
17.753,
18,343
18,649
17.417
Assoc , Profascors
Ken
Women
1 5 »S20
16,069
15.185
10.9%
11.OX
10.5%
16,623
16,746
15,820
15,214
15,372
14.529
16,569
16,614
16,435
Aset. Professors
Men
Women ,
Instructors
Hs«
W o r s e n
13,104
13,276
12,642
8.9%
8.5%
10.4%
13,582
13,769
1 2 . . 989
32,653
12,825
12.237
13,713
13,813
13.522
12,825
13,520
11.812
20.3%
22 ,9%
16.5%
10,737
10,976
10.486
10,404
10,624
10,157
14,716
15,354
13 .529
Lecturers
Men
Woman
11,980
12,713
10,869
12,343
12,919
11.327
11,455
12,375
10.320
10,749
11,753
9,847
Not ranked
Ken
Women
13,308
13,738
12,483
—
12,337
13,463
10.457
10,936
11,170
10.445
13,693
14,142
12,841
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS
Total
Men
Woman
$15,552
16,166
13.697
12.1%
12.6%
12.2%
$16,395
17,099
13.445
$15,073
15,576
13,540
$14,934
15,462
. 14,034
Professors
Men
Woman
20,967
21,177
IS,17 3
9.6%
9.8%
8.4%
22,075
22,219
20,044
19,876
19,979
19,168
18,670
18,976
17,739
Assoc. Profsessss
Men
Women
1 . 6 , 4 1 5
16,452
_16^011
13,48?'" ™
13,614
13,123
12.3%
12.4%
1 1 . 3 7 ,
16,573
16,687
15,824
16,112
16,160
15,881
1 . 6 , 8 7 5
16,907
16,780
. . Aas tprofeasore*
Ken
Women
11-0%
11.1%
11.0%
13,555
13,733
13.005
13,286
13,404
1 2 , . 9 8 0
13,946
14,017
13,806
Instructors
Men
Women
13,449
14,155
12.363
22.1%
24.4%
18.1%
10,648
10,887
10,406
10,642
11,069
10.594
14,955
15,538
13.836
Lecturers
Men
Women
12,009
12,684
10.973
12,282
12,877
11.242
11,694
12,412
10,774
10,954
11,797
1 0 , no
Net ranked
Men
Women
13,831
14,283
12,954
—
11,907
12,917
- L-
11,475
12,184
10,609
13,957
14,375
13.135
2-YEAR 4-YEAR 2-YEAR
PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS TOTAL INCREASE UNIVERSITIES COLLEGES COLLEGES
Total $14,590 6.7% $17,628 $13,428 $10,234
Men 15,358 7.0% 18,350 13,994 10,661
Women 12.086 8.7% 13.929 11,782 9.694
Professors 20,085 8.4% 23,566 17,723 12,340
Men 20,427 8.4% 23,751 17,957 13,014
Women 17.040 9.4% 20.435 3 . 6 , 1 6 4 12,359
Assoc. Professors 14,874 8.0% 16,784 14,038 12,182
Men 15,149 7.9% 16,937 14,290 12,310
Women 13.677 9.6% 15,810 13.081 11,829
Asst. Professors 12,318 4.3% 13,669 11,830 10,658
Men 12,570 3.2% 13,882 12,046 10,684
Women 11.647 9.4% 12,934 11.294 10,524
Ins true tors 10,001 7.9% 11,095 9,850 9,174
Men 10,262 8.3% 11,302 10,077 9,608
Women 9.701 7.9% 1 . 0 , 8 4 1 9.586 8,758
Lecturers 11,911
— 12,491 11,080 7,806
Men 12,784 — 13,024 12,313 7,960
Women 10,631 — 11.540 9,646 7,7 9 2
Not Ranked 10,686 — 19,705 10,632 10,190
Men 10,944
—
19,798 11,001 10,441
Women 10,218 -- 18,869 - ’^454 9,878
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, published in the Chronicle of
Higher Education, Vol. IX, No. 19 , February 1 0 , 1975. (Includes data on
252,000 faculty members at 2,744 campuses in the 50 states and the District
of Columbia.) (National Education Association, Teachers' Eights Division,
Washington, D.C. )
PERCENTAGE OF DOCTORAL DEGREES AWARDED TO WOMEN
IN MAJOR FIELDS, 1920-1973
FIELD PERCENTAGE AWARDED TO WOMEN
1920-1973 ~ 1973
Life Sciences
Agricultural, biological
and medical sciences 12.22 17.18
Physical Sciences
Math & computer sciences,
physics and astronomy,
chemistry, earth sciences 5.10 7.18
Engineering 0.51 1.35
Social Sciences
Psychology, political science,
economics, sociology, anthro
pology 11.62 21.02
Arts & Humanities 19.93 28.84
Professional Fields 11.29 13.69
Education 20.44 24.61
Total 12.91 18.03
Source: Scientific Manpower Commission, Professional W o g i e n and Minorities,
A Manpower Data Resources Center. The Commission: Washington, D.C,
(Prepublication release). £ National Education Association, Teachers'
Rights Division, Washington, D.C.)
CHR0H01DS7 OF FEDERAL EXECUTIVE ORDERS
470
Measure Requirement Action Date
1 . Executive Order 8802
Pres* Franklin D.
Roosevelt
2 . Executive Order 3348
Pres* Franklin D.
Roosevelt
Executive Order 10308
Pres. Harry S . Truman
Established a Committee on Fair Employ
ment Practices to investigate discri
mination complaints holding defenses
contracts.
Expanded Committee’s jurisdiction to
"war industries" and specified con
tract clause of "noudiscrimination in
hire, tenure, terms or conditions of
employment or union membership in all
government contracts."
Established Committee on Government
Contract Compliance to receive, in
vestigate complaints; and supervise
the actions of agencies responsible
for nondiscrimination in federal
contracts.
June, 1941
May, 1943
4. Executive Order 1C479
end Order 10557
Pres. Dwight D .
Elsenhower
5. Executive Order 10590
Pres. Dwight D.
Elsenhower
6. Executive Order 10925
and Order 1114
Pres. John F. Kennedy
Established new Government Centrest Aug., 1353
Compliance Committee to be chaired by
Vice-President. Expanded nondiecrim- Sept., 1554
ination obligations of the employer
to "employment, up-grading, demotion,
or transfer; recruitment advertising;
layoff or termination; rates of pay
and other forms of compensation: and
Selection for training." Employers
required to post n o t ices, of obliga
tions.
Established President’ s Committee on Jan., 1955
Equal Employment Policy which became
Involved with training and motiva
tion of minority group workers.
Established President's Committee on 1961
Equal Employment Opportunity which
was made responsible for eliminating
discrimination in federal government
employment. First order with enforce
ment provisions. Extended authority
to federally-assisted construction
and provision for contract debarment
for noncompliance. 1114 extended cover
age to federally aided construction
projects.
471
Measure acquirement Action Cate
7 . Executive Ord«r 11246
*ad Order 2 , 1 3 7 5
Pres. Lyndon E.
Johnson
8 . Executive Order 11478
Pres. Richard H.
Nixon
9 . OFCC f i u i i i e l i r . e s for
Executive Order 11246
Assigned contract compliance t o Secre- Sept., 1965
tary of Labor, who established Office
of Federal Compliance, Required that
all contractors (over $10,000) take
affirmative action and required that
euch action cover all of contractor’s
operations.
Order 11375 amended 11246 to prohibit Oct., 1967
discrimination on the basis of sex and
include affirmative action to ensure Effective
hiring without regard to sex. Specifies 1968
nondiscrimination in employment, up-
grading, demotion, or transfer; recruit
ment or recruitment advertising; lay
off or termination; rates of pay or
other compensation; and selection for
training.
Amended 11246 by prohibiting discrim- Aug., 1969
instion based on race, sex, color,
religion or national origin in federal
employment. Directed executive depart
ments and agencies to establish and
maintain affirmative employment pro
grams.
Specified affirmative ac t i o n, which Dec., 1971
included ideutification and analysis
of "problem areas," prescribed use
of goals and timetables. Detailed
penalities aad procedures for non-
comnlienee.
10, Order No, 4 and
Revised Order 4 for
Executive Order 11246
11. Revised Order 14 for
Executive Order 11246
Extended specification of affirmative 1970
action plan and penalties and proce
dures for nonccmpllance.
Further specification of an affirma- Kay, 1974
tive action plan, procedures for
noncompliance review, and citizen’ s
access to information.
(National Education Association, Teachers' Rights Division, Washington, D.C.)

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Creator Strain, Sibyl Marjoria (author)

Core Title An exploratory investigation of women's studies in selected institutions of higher education with emphasis upon the historical background of the status of women and the special needs of women in ...

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Education

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag education, history of,Education, Social Sciences,OAI-PMH Harvest,women's studies

Language English

Contributor Digitized by ProQuest (provenance)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c26-462489

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Document Type Dissertation

Rights Strain, Sibyl Marjoria

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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