The Contributions of Women during WWII

Video Analysis

• How were women portrayed in the WWII video? • How were women portrayed in the Canadian Forces

video? • What similarities were there in the two videos? • What differences were there in the two videos? • Did the music and images in the second video seem

stereotypical towards women? For example, was the classical, calming music a stereotype expressing that women are sensitive and calm?

• Are women today still portrayed as more fragile than men in the Canadian military?

Women in the Home• A difficult time to manage a home • Rationing

– Hard to find certain goods: sugar, butter, eggs, rubber, gas, metal, and nylon

– Encouraged to re-use goods, instead of buying new ones, which could be used for the war effort instead

– Slogan: “Use it Up, Wear it Out, Make it Do, or Do Without”

– Women did their part by re-using items so that new goods could be used towards the war effort

– Adapted their recipes to become more simple

Women in the Home

• Had regular domestic duties– Cooking – Cleaning – Taking care of their children

• War-related volunteer work – Women’s organizations – Military canteens

• Donated blood • Bought war bonds

Women on the Farm• Many young men went overseas to fight the

war • Women were left at home to meet the growing

needs for the war effort • Had multiple duties on a farm

– Maintain the farm – Grow enough food for the war effort, and their

family – Raise their children – Keep up their home

• Women worked with their children to maintain the farm – Planning – Milking cows – Tending to livestock – Managing the finances – Etc.

• When men returned from the war, in many cases, women continued to help take care of the farm

Discussion Question

• Do you think that the war would have been more difficult for rural women, compared to city women? Were the responsibilities of women on the farm more than those of women in the home?

Women’s Organizations• Organization example- the Women’s Institute (WIs)

– “Central War Charities Fund” – raised millions of dollars during World War Two • Helped neighbors in their daily lives

– The need for help increased during the war – The neighborhood included the Canadian military – Not just helping their neighbors, but helping towards the war effort

• Contributions for those overseas – Made quilts– Bandages – Clothing – Sent books, newspapers, etc. – Parties: “send off” and “welcome home” parties for those in the military

• Created recipe books – Helped women adjust to simpler recipes so that they would not overuse

unnecessary items that were needed for the war effort

Women in the Industry• Men left for the war, leaving behind their jobs • Women filled the jobs that were previously male jobs • Beginning of the war: 570,000 women worked in industry

(mostly clerical jobs) • Five years later, near the end of the war, nearly one

million women worked in the industry, in roles that were normally male factory positions

• At the beginning of the war, individuals were worried about employing women in traditional male jobs

• As the war progressed, it was clear that women were essential, and needed to fill the positions of men

• Many women worked in factories that manufactured essential war items such as guns, ammunition, aircrafts, ships, and so on

• When the war ended, women were encouraged to leave the workforce

• Some women did continue working • Women were able to prove that they were capable of

doing jobs that were traditionally male jobs

Discussion Questions

• Was the Second World War an opportunity for women to prove to men that they were capable of doing traditional male jobs?

• Do you think that women working in industry led to the Second Wave of Feminism, and the call for gender equality?

• Do stereotypes and generalizations such as, women should work desk jobs, not factory jobs, still exist today? If so, has our world truly progressed since the Second World War?

Women in the Canadian Military• 4500 women enlisted in the Canadian

military as nurses – Part of all three branches of the

Canadian military – More than two-thirds of the women

nurses went overseas – Were called Nursing Sisters – Wore a military uniform which was a

white dress with a white veil covering their head

– Were addressed as “sister” and “ma’am”

• Approximately 50,000 women served in other military roles during the Second World War – Were enlisted in the air forces, army, and

navy

Women in the Canadian Military• Royal Canadian Air Force- Women’s Division (RCAF-WD)

– Established on July 2, 1941 – 17,000 members by the closing of the war – Did not fly- “We serve that men may fly” – Beginning of the war

• Clerical work • Administrative positions • Supporting roles

– Duties by the end of the war • Parachute riggers • Laboratory assistants • Electrical and mechanical work (traditionally male work)

– Many members of the RCAF-WD were sent to Britain, to work from the Canadian squadrons and headquarters

Women in the Canadian Military• Canadian Women’s Army Corps (CWAC)

– Created on August 13, 1941 – Approximately 21,000 members – Duties at the beginning of the war: cooking,

cleaning, tailoring, medical assistants – Duties by the end of the war: driving trucks,

ambulances, working as mechanics, and working as radar operators

– Three companies of women soldiers were sent overseas in 1943

• Women’s Royal Canadian Naval Service (WRCNS) – Created on July 31, 1942 – Approximately 7,000 members – Duties at the beginning of the war: clerical

and administrative work – Duties by the end of the war: on-shore radar

operators and coding technicians

Discussion Questions

• Why did women begin to do more male dominated roles as the war progressed?

• Did women contribute more or less to the war effort during the Second World War, than you thought at the beginning of the class?