General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: "But What About the Menzzzzzz?????" is the anguished cry after this travesty of an election. [View all]valleyrogue
(1,162 posts)The truth of the matter is the 1950s "roles" for women were an aberration because there was a desire by companies and by government to 1) free jobs up for men when they returned from WWII, and 2) to get the birthrate up. The federal government tinkering with the income tax to give preference to married people (which shouldn't be) and the GI bill were just two examples of how this forcing women back into the home worked and was encouraged. There was also wholesale firing of women in manufacturing jobs. This were not "traditional" but social engineering.
Despite the era being crappy for women (to say nothing of minorities and gay/lesbian people), it still has some bizarre hold on the public.
I am talking about the U.S. here and the West in general, but even in agricultural societies, women didn't sit around and not contribute to bringing in money for the household.
I suggest people read The Feminine Mystique (1963) by Betty Friedan to get an understanding of how absolutely shitty the 1950s were. Those of us who lived through the fifties and the majority of the 1960s know how shitty they were.