{"id":12022,"date":"2022-03-24T13:06:32","date_gmt":"2022-03-24T12:06:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=204556"},"modified":"2022-03-24T13:26:17","modified_gmt":"2022-03-24T12:26:17","slug":"flappers-sanitary-pads-and-public-drinking-was-the-1920s-a-time-of-increased-liberation-for-women","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/flappers-sanitary-pads-and-public-drinking-was-the-1920s-a-time-of-increased-liberation-for-women\/","title":{"rendered":"Flappers, sanitary pads and public drinking: was the 1920s a time of increased liberation for women?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Emily Briffett\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 24 March 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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The 1920s has often been seen as a time of significant social change in the West, with the rise of an increasingly consumer-oriented economy, mass entertainment and cultural shifts. But did these changes permeate through the whole of society, and was this a time of social liberation for women too? Yes \u2013 according to Professor Sarah Churchwell. \u201cWomen in the 1920s had a very different experience to what their mothers had,\u201d says Churchwell on a recent episode of the HistoryExtra<\/em> podcast<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s not an exaggeration or a myth to say that their lives changed in this decade.\u201d<\/p>\n

The decade began with a major moment of political emancipation as many women became eligible to vote. With a proportion of British women \u2013 those over the age of 30 \u2013 having won the franchise<\/a> in 1918, American women attained the vote soon after in 1920. This was a massive step forward \u2013 although there were a few significant limits. \u201cAlthough all <\/em>women got the vote in theory, in practice white women were able to exercise this franchise much more extensively than black women in the US \u2013 especially in the south where their vote was often suppressed,\u201d explains Churchill. \u201cIt\u2019s important to remember that was true for white women was not necessarily true for black women.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to remember that was true for white women was not necessarily true for black women <\/blockquote> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>

Women as wage earners<\/h2>\n

In the wake of the First World War<\/a>, the 1920s also saw major economic changes. After a generation of men had been sent off to fight \u2013 many of whom did not return home \u2013 women could no longer necessarily rely on husbands or fathers to support the household economically. \u201cWomen suddenly had to be the wage earners,\u201d explains Churchwell. \u201cSo we see that they start to move into more professional situations and pick up new skills, such as learning to write and drive. Much of this was driven by necessity, but women also began to make the most of this opportunity to earn economic and professional autonomy.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201d refused to go back to traditional domestic roles and full-time housekeeping, says Professor Churchwell. (Photo by Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>While some women did return to the domestic sphere in the years following the war, Churchwell states that \u201can appreciable proportion of them\u201d refused to go back to full-time housekeeping and traditional roles. Having taken on new responsibilities working in factories and on the home front, some women continued to build upon their professional advances afterwards. It was, however, \u201ca steady progress rather than a rapid acceleration of rights,\u201d argues Churchwell. \u201cThe First World War was just one step on that ladder of progress.\u201d The war, she adds, wasn\u2019t \u201cas much of a cultural and social rupture\u201d in the US as it was in Europe; American culture instead saw more progress after the Second World War.\n