Industrial Revolution Gender Roles

The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes from 1760 to sometime in between 1820 and 1840. It was a major turning point in history that influenced almost every aspect of daily life. Before the Industrial Revolution women and men had jobs inside of the household. Some men worked outside and were getting paid to do so. Many were self-employed farmers, craftsmen, and other occupations. Economic dependency was upon the men. They were bringing in all of the money for the household. When the Industrial Revolution began to take place, women were dragged into factories and forced to do jobs that were outside of their comfort zone. A gender hierarchy existed within most households. Women were below men at the time.

This goes along with the gender inequality within the household. They brought that attitude into the workforce which helped transition the gender hierarchy that existed in the household, into the factories and other production facilities. Ideas of women’s placement in society were underpinned by legal, political, and social practices which subordinated women. They were seen as less important. One circumstance that made women seem less powerful was how poorly they were paid compared to men. The men during this time were paid significantly higher than women were. While men were paid higher than women, factory owners thought it was beneficial to hire women because they were unaware of what “good pay” was. Even if some women were strong enough for the job, all women were often excluded from it. Men were the dominant figure which meant they could all of the jobs

Before it truly began, men and women were working inside of their household. When it started, women were put into factories and it changed their whole lifestyle. They were used to working in their house, cooking and cleaning and taking care of everyone. Women were always seen as less powerful than men which just enabled factory owners to take advantage from the start. They were used to doing jobs from the demands of others. They did not know any better. Factory owners liked to use the women for work because they did not have to pay them as much as they would have to pay the men. Another element that helped transition the gender hierarchy was that the women were not independent. They were used to their domesticated lifestyle in the homes. The gender hierarchy that existed within the household transitioned to the workforce and the factories. Women were still seen as the lower class and less