In the Company of Educated Women
...while society still continued to question the value of educating women. The Morrill Acts and the Civil War opened up the access even more for women and Blacks. Due to the shortage of men because of the war, women had to support themselves and the cause of Blacks came to the forefront as a societal issue. The number of women enrolled at institutions increased dramatically and their high level of achievement outshined the males. To counter these “harmful effects of coeducation” policies were enacted that limited the enrollment of females. These consisted of initiatives such as the establishment of junior colleges in California to male only endowed scholarships at Boston University. In some cases doctors stated that pursuing higher education by females would create undue physical hardship on them and perhaps limit their chances on conceiving children. The most famous attack came from Dr. Edward Clarke who I will discuss later in this response. As previously stated, women who received their education between 1870 and 1890 are considered the first generation of educated women. Solomon also wrote about the two other generations and the characteristics of all three generations. The first generation was pioneers and serious students. The second and third generations were focused on the pursuit of happiness. Extracurricular activities became popular which included activities such as hiking, biking, and literary groups. Sororities did not fare quite as well because of the elitism that they promoted. Also during that time there was a significant amount of homosexual relationships that were known and somewhat accepted by the college community. This can be attributed to the social etiquette of being ladylike and not out carousing with men. Instead personal relationships grew in boarding houses and on the college campus. During this period after women graduated from college they involved themselves in various activities. Women tried various activities. Some stayed at home, some worked as volunteers or in paid positions. Others traveled. Paid positions were looked down on in some families as a repudiation of the domestic role. However, the emphasis on work after college grew. By 1920 educators noted that students expected to prepare themselves for a profession of some sort. Many women, however, expected an occupation to delay, not defer, marriage. A minority did defer marriage, however, using the rationale of supporting their parents financially (when in reality they desired economic independence). The Modern Era Focusing on the 1920 and 1930’s you find Solomon speaking to the age of the flapper. This way of life invaded campuses and created freedom and individuality for women. On campuses you would find protests over dress codes and chaperones. Females smoking, although it had always existed now became vogue. It was also a period of changing attitudes towards heterosexual relationships and that a woman, married or not would be unfulfilled without experiencing sexual relations with a male. Between 1920 and 1944 women had to make a choice of marriage or profession. Each graduate would look at their personal situation and decide where to go next. Although there was strong public opinion that a woman should marry, some graduates were able to combine marriage and career. Due to the lack of financial stability, the trend for the majority of black female graduates was to enter the workforce in order to support themselves and sometimes family. As the United States entered World War II, women took jobs that were traditionally considered male jobs. The end of the war also marked the end of those jobs, which meant a return to the role of homemaker and/or wife. Although some noted the need to expand higher education to accommodate the returning soldiers and women who have now found opportunities outside of the home, the GI bill reduced access for women to higher education. Returning soldiers invaded college campuses taking advantage of the bill and even traditionally all-female institutions now admitted men. Men immediately took advantage and enrolled at the prestigious schools such as Vassar, which cause females to be displaced. Although this caused a significant drop of female students, that period was considered an aberration and since that time the number of women in higher education has steadily grown and that trend should continue. I enjoyed reading this text and several passages in Solomon’s text caught my attention. The first passage that I want to comment on is Solomon’s reference to Dr. Edward Clarke’s Sex in Education (1873). In his book he stated that women should not pursue higher education because it would tax the brain and body and a female would be unable to carry a child. His “findings” were accepted as scientific truth although there was no support to his findings. Having to make a choice between education and what was good for society put an added burden on any female who yearned for higher education. Therefore, the young woman who aspired to college faced considerable social pressure to stay home. I identified with this section because scientific truth was used to justify denying minorities access to higher education, specifically African Americans. Utilizing a method of measuring skull circumference, researchers once claimed that African Americans were genetically less intelligent, endowed with smaller brains, oversexed, and more prone to crime and mental disease than Whites. Although the methods were quite different, the end result was the same. This demonstrates how easily "scientific truth" can be manipulated by a researcher's prejudice. The acceptance of the Morrill Land Grant Act in 1862, according to which the states received land to support public and private colleges and universities, was a powerful strong incentive towards the education of women. Although Solomon did mention the Morrill Act, omitted from her text was the influence of private agencies and their impact for women in higher education. The example that I would use would be that of the American Association of University Women (AAUW), whose mission is to promote equity for all women and girls, lifelong education, and positive societa...