… wielded their swords.” (Tennyson). The prevailing attitude of men towards women in the Victorian Era was that all women were weak and helpless fragile and delicate flowers incapable of making decisions beyond selecting the menu and children were taught moral values.
A gentlewoman ensured that the home was a place of comfort for her husband and family from the stresses of Industrial Britain.
“(A wife’s) prime use is to bear a large family and maintain a smooth family atmosphere where a man need not bother himself about domestic matters so he can get on with the making of money.” (“Beeton’s Book of Household Management“)
(Photo: in the 1840’s, young women were taught to let the man win in a game of chess)