Difference between revisions of "328 2010--Week 5 Questions/Comments"
From McClurken Wiki
(→The Burden of Rural Women's Lives, 1900-1901) |
(→The Burden of Rural Women's Lives, 1900-1901) |
||
| Line 13: | Line 13: | ||
| − | Reading the Burdens of Rural Women’s Lives the author states that she learned two things from her life on the farm. First, the work never kills. Second, that work must be calculated beforehand to figure out ways to be more efficient. I think these two things are emphasized throughout her description of her life. Not only did these rural women have to worry about keeping the home, but they also had to work on the farm. The lives of rural women were tough, and I would argue that they as tough if not tougher than urban working class women’s lives because they worked the same, if not longer hours as the working class urban women, but they also had to do household tasks without the appliances that were available in the cities and without electricity. Based off of the author’s description of her life, I think that these two lessons that she is passing on were probably essential in getting by as a rural farm woman. –Erin Sanderson | + | Reading the Burdens of Rural Women’s Lives the author states that she learned two things from her life on the farm. First, the work never kills. Second, that work must be calculated beforehand to figure out ways to be more efficient. I think these two things are emphasized throughout her description of her life. Not only did these rural women have to worry about keeping the home, but they also had to work on the farm. '''The lives of rural women were tough, and I would argue that they as tough if not tougher than urban working class women’s lives because they worked the same, if not longer hours as the working class urban women, but they also had to do household tasks without the appliances that were available in the cities and without electricity.''' Based off of the author’s description of her life, I think that these two lessons that she is passing on were probably essential in getting by as a rural farm woman. –Erin Sanderson |
| − | These women's lives totally interest me. As plainly as she tells her life story, as pertaining to work, you get a real sense of the pride that she felt in being so industrious and in being so good at what she did. She even mentions the books she read while she used to churn butter. She was constantly occupied and never (except when she taught before she was married, presumably) for a wage. But by most measures, she and her husband led very successful lives. They provided for their five kids and sent them to school, one even to Cornell. And at 58, it sounds like she even gets to "retire". The values of rural living seem very different than those of urban living. As more and more people moved into urban areas, i wonder how this affected the lifestyles of farm families. -Erin B. | + | These women's lives totally interest me. As plainly as she tells her life story, as pertaining to work, you get a real sense of the pride that she felt in being so industrious and in being so good at what she did. She even mentions the books she read while she used to churn butter. She was constantly occupied and never (except when she taught before she was married, presumably) for a wage. '''But by most measures, she and her husband led very successful lives.''' They provided for their five kids and sent them to school, one even to Cornell. And at 58, it sounds like she even gets to "retire". The values of rural living seem very different than those of urban living. As more and more people moved into urban areas, i wonder how this affected the lifestyles of farm families. -Erin B. |
Nothing really stands out in this piece too much, except for how matter-of-factly she tells her story. She lists out her life, her work, everything she's done. She doesn't seem to be boasting or complaining; it's just life to her. I do wonder if she is aware of life outside the farm, if she ever wondered about not being there. - Christine Leckner | Nothing really stands out in this piece too much, except for how matter-of-factly she tells her story. She lists out her life, her work, everything she's done. She doesn't seem to be boasting or complaining; it's just life to her. I do wonder if she is aware of life outside the farm, if she ever wondered about not being there. - Christine Leckner | ||
| Line 21: | Line 21: | ||
The past couple of class periods we have discussed how women's work on the farm went unaccounted for in census and other data. This really brings that point home. I never truly recognized or grasped the difficulty of women working on the farm. The last paragraph stresses that point: "My husband says, 'You helped earn and save more than I did.' The boys many times say, 'If it had not been for your pushing and helping us to school, we never could have done so well." This encompasses the woman's role on the farm. Not only did she work insanely hard as a farmhand, but a mother still managed to fulfill the role of moral and matriarchal support.--MDvorak | The past couple of class periods we have discussed how women's work on the farm went unaccounted for in census and other data. This really brings that point home. I never truly recognized or grasped the difficulty of women working on the farm. The last paragraph stresses that point: "My husband says, 'You helped earn and save more than I did.' The boys many times say, 'If it had not been for your pushing and helping us to school, we never could have done so well." This encompasses the woman's role on the farm. Not only did she work insanely hard as a farmhand, but a mother still managed to fulfill the role of moral and matriarchal support.--MDvorak | ||
| − | I found this piece fascinating and humbling. Maybe it’s because I am the child of a New York City suburb, and yet only two generations back, this woman’s life was my grandmother’s life. Not seeing the struggles of farmers anywhere close to me, I could not imagine how much work, strength and faith even it took and takes to lead such a life. Farmers, but especially farm women, are completely under appreciated. However, while I was taken aback by the never ending work load of a farm woman, it was pleasing to see her husband’s and sons’ acknowledgment and gratitude. | + | I found this piece fascinating and humbling. '''Maybe it’s because I am the child of a New York City suburb, and yet only two generations back, this woman’s life was my grandmother’s life.''' Not seeing the struggles of farmers anywhere close to me, I could not imagine how much work, strength and faith even it took and takes to lead such a life. Farmers, but especially farm women, are completely under appreciated. However, while I was taken aback by the never ending work load of a farm woman, it was pleasing to see her husband’s and sons’ acknowledgment and gratitude. |
On another note, the line “work never kills” (p. 50) jumped out at me immediately and made me ponder the differences between factory workers and farmers at the turn of the century. It is now a well known fact that factory workers toiled in horrendous conditions, like in the NYC Shirtwaist factory fire. However, the introduction reminded me that the hours were longer for a farmer and the conditions more tumultuous. Our nation needed the industry factory workers provided, but even the factory workers needed the sustenance farmers provided. -- kokeefe | On another note, the line “work never kills” (p. 50) jumped out at me immediately and made me ponder the differences between factory workers and farmers at the turn of the century. It is now a well known fact that factory workers toiled in horrendous conditions, like in the NYC Shirtwaist factory fire. However, the introduction reminded me that the hours were longer for a farmer and the conditions more tumultuous. Our nation needed the industry factory workers provided, but even the factory workers needed the sustenance farmers provided. -- kokeefe | ||
