Women and their Roles in Pre-Industrial Europe Essay -- essays researc

The Women, Family, and Household of Pre-Industrial Europe   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many of people today feel trapped inside their homes, just how the women of Pre-Industrial Europe felt. Working day in and day out inside the homes, just to keep the family together, and make a little money on the side, these women were an integral part of Pre-Industrial families. Not only were the women important to Pre-Industrial European families, but so were the households. Much of the money was made in the households, and this is where families either succeeded or failed. The household and women of Pre-Industrial Europe played an integral role in the economy of the families, and more importantly, the women of these households kept them running smoothly. Without either of these important aspects of life in Pre-Industrial Europe, it is safe to say that the families would have collapsed, due to a lack of organization and structures. Pre-Industrial Europe, in which the women and the household were â€Å"the factories† per se, due to the income they generat ed, was much different from the Europe we know today. Leading into the Industrialization of Europe beginning in the late 1700's and lasting through the early 1800's, the household played an integral role in the family’s income. Without the household, the families would literally collapse, due to a lack of organization and stability. Within these important family sub-units, there was one married couple, their children, the family’s servants, and in some cases, depending upon the region of Europe, there were grandparents, aunts and uncles. Not only did the father and servants of the house work, but also the women and children. Also, in the case of there being more than one generation of family in a single household, depending upon the region of Europe, the grandparents, aunts, and uncles would also work within the house. Once the children of these households reached a certain age, usually the early teens, they were sent off to work in a house as a servant. These servants were different then the servants of today, as they worked for room, board, and food, not waiting on the family. Once they started to generate income, the teens would save up the money necessary to begin their own family. However, there were the few exceptions; teens that did not work as servants, and ended up marrying into an existing household. This however,... ...n everyday life. For example, because of the early marriages in Eastern European families, the new couples went back to their old home and lived there. However, in Northwestern European families, the newly married couples started their own households and families, because they had more time to gain the money necessary to start their own households. For these reasons, the families of Pre-Industrial Europe were very successful, and were able to produce enough money to keep the family thriving. Sources Cited   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Donald Kagan, Steven Ozment, Frank M. Turner. The Western Heritage. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001. Patricia Ahmed, Rebecca Jean Emigh. Household Structure During the Market Transition in   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eastern Europe. N/A.N/A.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/soc/groups/ccsa/ahmedemigh.pdf Michael Mitterauer. Historical Family Forms in eastern Europe in European Comparison.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  N/A. N/A. http://dmo.econ.msu.ru/Data/mitterauer.html Richard Hooker. Women During the European Enlightenment. N/A. N/A.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/ENLIGHT/WOMEN.HTM