Women in War How did war affect gender roles in Australia and
abroad?
Slide 2
WW1 Oral History We began hearing a lot about 'the war effort'
and people stopped saying the war would be over in six months, or
even a year. Whenever I came home from school, the house was full
of women clicking knitting needles and manipulating dark wool, and
making huge quantities of socks, vests, mittens and mufflers, as
well as sewing pyjamas and shirts. Mum ran Red Cross classes with
first aid and bandage rolling... Mum, who was a leading light in
the CWA (Country Women's Association) as well as the Red Cross,
spent more and more of her time on the war effort... Nora
Pennington, the good little girl who had written the composition
about Gallipoli, was the school's champion sock knitter. At
lunchtime and recess she sat with her ankles neatly crossed and her
boots buttoned, turning the heels of the socks very prettily. She
eventually won the district record for the number of socks,
mufflers, mittens and balaclava helmets knitted by anybody under
the age of thirteen; her father made sure that the news reached the
front page of his paper, with the heading 'LITTLE NORA DOES HER
BIT'. The rest of us longed to grab her knitting, rip the stitches
out and snarl the wool for her. David Gleason in Jacqueline Kent,
'In The Half LIght', Doubleday Sydney 1988 pp56-58 At the outbreak
of WW1 far fewer women than men participated in work, and these
tended to be in lower- paid occupations. Womens main role was seen
to be in the home. 1.From primary source A, what did men think
womens roles in the War should be? 2.What can we learn from this
source about how some women felt about this? Why might they have
felt this way? A
Slide 3
Women in WW1: Cause/Effect & corroborating primary and
secondary sources 0 The withdrawal of about half a million men most
of whom had been in the workforce did result in [w]omens
contribution to the workforce [rising]from 24 per cent of the total
in 1914 to 37 per cent in 1918, but the increase tended to be in
what were already traditional areas of womens work - in the
clothing and footwear, food and printing sectors. There was some
increase also in the clerical, shop assistant and teaching areas.
Unions were unwilling to let women join the workforce in greater
numbers in traditional male areas as they feared that this would
lower wages. ANZAC Day Commemoration Committee of QLD 2014, found
at http://anzacday.org.au http://anzacday.org.au Cartoon from 'The
Worker' 10 February 1916. 1.How does Source B demonstrate the
historical concept of CAUSE and EFFECT? Use evidence from the
source in your response. 2.What is happening in Source C? What
message can be inferred? 3.How does Source B and C corroborate?
BC
Slide 4
Women in WW1: Historical Continuity Many women sought to become
more involved in war-related activities - such as cooks, stretcher
bearers, motor car drivers, interpreters, munitions workers - but
the government did not allow this participation. A number of womens
organisations did become very active during the war - including the
Australian Womens National League, the Australian Red Cross, the
Country Womens Association, the Voluntary Aid Detachment, the
Australian Womens Service Corps, and the Womens Peace Army. ANZAC
Day Commemoration Committee of QLD 2014, found at
http://anzacday.org.auhttp://anzacday.org.au Australian Red Cross
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4YVqKJl0o0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4YVqKJl0o0 D E 1.Explain how
Sources D and E demonstrate historical continuity? Give
examples
Slide 5
WOMEN IN WWII: CORROBORATION in History The war was the best
thing that ever happened to us. I was as green as grass and
terrified if anyone spoke to me... At work you did exactly as your
boss told you; then you went home to do exactly what your husband
told you. The war changed all that. The war made me stand on my own
two feet.. Mona Marshall, a nursemaid who had become a steelworker
during the war, said this in 1986. F G List the evidence from both
sources that CORROBORATES the idea that World War II was a
LIBERATING influence for women.
Slide 6
WOMEN IN WWII: PERSPECTIVE in History Many of the girls had
never been away from home beforeTheir tasks were not easy. They
lived and worked under the same conditions as the men whom they had
released for overseas service. Many jobs were menial and
monotonous. Postings in some of the isolated areas took them to all
sorts of unpleasant conditions life on lonely islands with
mosquitos and sandflies as companions, and to sandhills and the
edges of swamps. H I J 1)Which of the source offer a POSITIVE
PERPECTIVE of womens roles in the war? What EVIDENCE proves this?
2)NEGATIVE PERSPECTIVES?
Slide 7
WOMEN IN WWII: EVALUATING Historical Sources 0 We were all much
enriched by the experience. Better people for it. You were not just
yourself, you behaved, became part of something much bigger than
yourself.
