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The National Woman Suffrage Association was formed by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton 139 years ago today. To mark the anniversary, Chris Connolly is here to discuss the role of the bicycle in the women’s movement.
Susan B. Anthony once said, “I think [bicycling] has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world.” A woman on a bicycle, the equal rights champion observed, presents “the picture of free and untrammeled womanhood.”
Susan and her fellow 19th-century women had been severely trammeled their entire lives. Forget the glass ceiling; women in those days were trapped under the glass floor. Battles like “equal pay for equal work” were decades away. The Victorian woman’s cause was more along the lines of, “We’d like to leave the house, sometimes … please … if it isn’t too much trouble.”
The fashion for women at that time tended toward helplessness and frailty. Consider the image of a Victorian lady: She’s sickly and pale, relies on men for everything, and occasionally peeks out from behind an ornamental fan (usually before touching her wrist to her forehead and fainting). The frailty of a “lady” was such that preventing females from studying, working, voting and doing much of anything at all seemed a rational measure.
Obviously, there must have been some inclination that at least part of this frailty was socially projected. A gentleman taking a trip to the market must have come across dozens of hardworking women from the lower classes. In fact, he may have employed one such woman to support the proper ladies at his home while they gossiped, blushed and passed out. But men didn’t see those hardworking females as proper ladies. A proper lady was seen as weak, defenseless and entirely dependent on men.
Seven Pounds of Underwear
Clearly, women haven’t undergone any fundamental alterations of their physiological makeup in the last hundred years, so what allows them to live the robust, fainting-free lifestyles they do today?
Foremost, the Victorian lady rarely exercised or engaged in physical activity, which left her poorly conditioned. Secondly, it was fashionable to be frail. Just as American women in the 1950s were expected to become June Cleaver and young girls today aspire to Gwen Stefani-like independence, the Victorian woman was expected to adopt certain behaviors.
The third contributing factor to the frailty of the Victorian lady was clothing. Their garments were typically thick, exaggerating the female form while concealing the flesh. Curves were accentuated by tightly laced corsets, which, when coupled with long and heavy underskirts, greatly limited women’s ability to move or even breathe. (Hence much of the fainting.)
This attire was not only intended to restrict women physically, but morally, too. In a society where the accidental exposure of an ankle took on the pornographic stature of a lap dance, such dress was required to protect a lady’s virtue. In fact, the term “loose” originated to describe a woman who went uncorseted, while “strait-laced” women obeyed societal dictates.
Eventually, some women began to take a stand, and, in 1888, a letter published by The Rational Dress Society—a group of women who argued for reasonable clothing—stated, “the maximum weight of under-clothing (without shoes) approved by The Rational Dress Society, does not exceed seven pounds.”
Seven pounds of underwear? An improvement? That’s more than any jog bra in the world. Clearly, women needed to change their underwear. And that’s where the bicycle came in.
Bloomers: A Gateway Garment? Continue reading…
Comments (19)
Comment
Best.Post.Ever.
posted by fixedgear on 5-15-2008 at 8:36 am
Oh, how the times have changed! Bloomers as ‘gateway’ clothing! HA! Those wacky Victorians! I wonder what the people of that time would think about The Pussycat Dolls?
posted by Rachel on 5-15-2008 at 8:41 am
The decline of our culture is directly related to the women’s lib movement.
posted by Sam on 5-15-2008 at 9:11 am
Superb article. Thank you!
posted by alanocu on 5-15-2008 at 10:02 am
Yes Sam, obviously. *rolls eyes so hard she almost falls over*
posted by Lisa H on 5-15-2008 at 10:22 am
Posted this link in www.surfurls.com
posted by gibsy on 5-15-2008 at 10:34 am
Great post! Thanks!….um, and I’d like to buy Sam a drink - seems someone needs to relax!
posted by Christian on 5-15-2008 at 10:46 am
What a great post! **applauds**
posted by Krie on 5-15-2008 at 11:06 am
Good story but there are 2 mistakes: First, Victorian women wore many other colors other than black! Most frequently in white, cream, shades of blue or some type of brocade. Second, it’s not possible to “slide” off of a horse’s side-saddle. In fact, it’s really hard to get off the stupid things because two counter-facing “horns” effectively brace the right leg onto the saddle. Sliding is impossible.
posted by Daphne on 5-15-2008 at 11:50 am
Great article! Sam needs to go away.
posted by Olivia on 5-15-2008 at 11:56 am
A woman needs a bicycle like a man needs a fish?
posted by Darla on 5-15-2008 at 11:57 am
This article puts the position of contemporary women in much of the Islamic world into perspective…
posted by Michelle on 5-15-2008 at 12:12 pm
I’ll second what Daphne said re: side saddles. The danger of them is that they’re much harder to get out of than a conventional saddle, not that it’s too easy.
Also, the word is “strait-laced.” (www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=strait) It goes back to Old French estrait, while “straight” goes back to Old English streht.
posted by Erin on 5-15-2008 at 12:48 pm
Thanks for the info, Daphne & Erin. Since corrected. This clearly means our office needs a mental_floss horse.
posted by Jason English on 5-15-2008 at 1:09 pm
Great article! I actually remember seeing a real life demonstration of the liberating effect of bicycles when I was watching that PBS show “1900 House”. The women were going crazy because they couldn’t get out of the house (they couldn’t go swimming with the family because they had their periods and were supposed to be living “in period,” sorry, pun).
Then they got a bike, and suddenly they could go out, get around, wear lighter clothing, breathe, it was awesome.
posted by Julia on 5-15-2008 at 3:23 pm
Great article. A response to Sam and others that denounce him. The only connection between the freedom of women and a decline in culture is that, now, women have security in thier freedom and are less likely to object to society’s more inventive, and less-obvious exploitation and degradation. Today, we have the opposite of the Victorian woman — exhibitionism is the fashion of the day — it is what sells in our culture. This is still a “weak” portrayal and it’s effects will continue to ripple through the culture in a downward spiral because men are more likely to respond positive than women are to respond negative.
posted by AKaufman on 5-15-2008 at 6:32 pm
Delightful article.
My favorite quote: “A satirical poem in one U.S. paper, for instance, suggested bloomers were a sort of “gateway garment,” the wearers of which might go on to participate in such dastardly pursuits as business or reading.”
oooooooooooooooo, spooky… Next thing you know, those uppity, bike riding wenches will be running for President of the United States of America.
posted by Devans00 on 5-16-2008 at 8:14 am
The emancipation effect never faded in many European countries. In particular in Copenhagen - the world’s cycling capital [as seen on the famous Copenhagen Cycle Chic blog,] - and in Amsterdam women ride in style and with grace and the bicycle continues to provide the freedom they deserve.
posted by Mikael on 5-20-2008 at 2:43 pm
Living in Milwaukee, a city saturated with Harleys, it’s great to see the recent rise in the number of women riders.
Slightly off topic, as a part of the “lower classes”, I’ve found this socioeconomic position to be more than enlightening to gender discrimination. My dad taught me that when something needs to be done you do it, and you don’t screw around. Yet time and time again I witness that some men can’t control their need to assert their “superiority” and insert themselves into women’s business, without a polite ‘can I give you a hand?’, and finish the task, complaining when the women don’t throw themselves at their feet with gratitude…meanwhile there’s other work they could and should be doing. I recall a time when a “gentleman” tore a tire iron out of my hands and changed my tire, although I was in a hurry and he took forever, yapping the whole time, taking no notice that I was dirty, greasy, and wearing my Midas uniform.
Sam, did you say something? I’m sorry, I wasn’t listening. It’s really cute you have an opinion, though.
posted by Lorie on 5-22-2008 at 9:57 am