Young, White, and Miserable

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer discusses that in 'Young, White, and Miserable: Growing up Female in the Fifties', the author, Wini Breines, addresses a lot of the issues that took place in that time period where young women and teenage girls are concerned. The writer notes that one of the most important of these issues is the fact that these women, just a few years later, became feminists - many of them radical - and changed the course of history, which is a fact that is often overlooked today. The writer discusses that had it not been for all of the changes that began taking place in their younger days during the 1950s, society's women might not have come nearly as far as they have when it comes to equality and the rights that they enjoy. The writer concludes that overall women are no longer seen as being weak and inferior in developed countries throughout the world, and this is especially true in the United States, where changes started in the 50s have helped today's women gain ground and move toward equality.

From the Paper:

"Breines is skillful in pointing this out, because it is important that readers understand the build-up behind the problems that women faced in the 50s. Throughout history women had been considered to be a serious source of evil and temptation and they had also been believed to be intellectually inferior. Men treated them with little respect and left them out of decisions and the like. During the 1940s and 1950s, women were hungry for more power. Many of them had gone to work during the war, because there were so many men overseas that companies did not have anyone else to work in their factories. They had no choice but to employ women and they found, oftentimes, that these women were very good workers and had much to offer to the company. They were smart and they were loyal. However, when the men came back most of them went back to work in the factories, and the women had to find other pursuits. This made them interested in change. They had already proven that they could do the job just like a man, and now they wanted to have that chance to be equal again."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Young, White, and Miserable: Growing up Female in the Fifties, Wini Breines

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