The First Wave Of Feminism - 1230 Words

This may seem conflicting with the whole baby boom phenomenon, and although the boom of children born after World War II did occur, the divorces still occurred after the rush of a rash marriage had passed and women’s husbands had returned from war alive. An important component of the historical timeline is the change in the role of women in society. Women had experienced change during the first wave of feminism and gained suffrage, but during the second wave feminism women experienced a change that greatly altered their lives and consequently, the relationships they shared with others. The first wave of feminism was concerned about suffrage and establish rights as people and equality in regards to property law (The Famous Five and the†¦show more content†¦Statistics Canada). These changes in legislature aids those who would have had difficulties in obtaining a divorce otherwise. Women are no longer forced to stay in a marriage in order to be financially stable because they are able to support themselves. Therefore, when problems in the marriage arise, divorce as a solution increases in likelihood because there is no incentive to remain in the marriage if one is unhappy, unwilling to be further committed in the relationship, and if ending the relationship would not affect financial stability. There are many factors that can contribute to divorce; however, factors that affect the amount of marriages that occur also directly affect the amount of divorce. The liberation of women and their breakthrough into the workforce not only changed history and the rate of marriages in the first place, but this also changed the way society defines a â€Å"typical family† and specifically the way women are viewed within the typical family. Prior to the second wave of feminism, women were expected to be housewives; women were expected to take care of their children, cook meals, and clean the house. Starting in the 1960’s, however, women would opt to obtain jobs as well as keep their current responsibilities as a housewife. For some women, they would trade their family entirely for their careers. It is not a coincidence that divorce reached an ultimate high