Rola, zadania i pozycja społeczna mężczyzny i kobiety w rodzinie w świetle wybranych czasopism kobiecych z lat 1864–1914
The Roles, Tasks and Social Rank of a Man and a Woman in a Family on the Basis of Selected Women’s Journals from the Years 1864–1914

Summary/Abstract: The man played the dominant role in the Polish family for centuries. He satisfied the needs of its members. He made all the important decisions solo. He also represented the family to the outside world. The role of women was usually narrowed to act as childminder, hostess and educator of the young generation. This last task was especially important during a period of national captivity, however, it did not result in any visible improvement of the station of women in the family. In the second half of the 19th century women’s magazine publishers had begun to demand of fathers a greater interest of their own offspring than had previously been the case, and especially their education and upbringing. At the same time they pointed out that the wife should support her husband in his difficult moments. She had to provide the right atmosphere at home, the tranquility needed for rest after work and to teach her children gratitude and respect for their father. They forewarned that if a man would not find understanding among his family, he would look for it outside the family. The wife should also support her husband in his efforts to get livelihood for the family through her own savings and work in a woman’s group.The situation started changing in the last years of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th century, when more and more women took up gainful employment. This ushered in the transition from a patriarchal type of family toward the family partnership. Since then, the mother and father worked together to provide for the family and for the education of their children, however this last task was much more the responsibility of the woman.

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