The Effects of the World Wars on Women

Coming back from war, men were eager to put the gender roles back in place, more so with the First World War. However, due to the hard work that women put into the Wars, there was a fair amount of irreversible change in how women were seen in society. From the First World War, women had gained significantly more political power and work experience, so by the time the Second World War came around, women were incredibly eager to participate. The government realized that it actually needed women working, so it enlisted women into many new occupations. This contributed to women feeling that they were a necessary part of society. When men returned from the Second World War, they still considered themselves superior to women; however, women were respected considerably more for their accomplishments to the war. Seeing their own hard work, women felt empowered and realized that they didn’t need men to run their lives. These ideas greatly contributed to the feminism of the 1960’s.