.. enjoyed a freedom in their relationships that had not been seen before (except the wild and crazy Regency era when they were young perhaps). Roles were clearly defined, and while women were active in the politics to gain the right to vote, marital property laws, and rights to education, in general men and women got along.
With all the new-fangled gadgets being invented, they were equal in that no one could figure anything out.
(Photo: 1840’s engageante sleeve and lacework collared wife claims her man symbolically by laying her fan on his knee.. proof Victorians did have some fun.)