Discussion Questions
January
31, 2006
- In looking at the material by Ida
Clarke, what is the message to women and why was such a message
necessary?
- **What are the
contemporary perceptions of women and of gender roles which emerge from
Clarke's chapter?
- **Are there perceptible
differences (ie in gender relations, the role and perceptions of women,
etc.) between the various homefronts?
- How does the
Canadian recruiting leaflet use women? Why is such an approach
used?
- **Given the kinds of
expectations indicated in the various readings, what kind of
"pressures" do you think the homefront civilian would feel?
What kind of atmosphere or general feeling would have existed on the
homefront?
- Do you agree with Braybon's
contention that the war experience was more difficult for women married to a
volunteer or conscript as opposed to those married to professional soldiers?
- What does Testament
of Youth tell us about women's experiences during the war, and
about a society at war generally?
- Clearly there were some differences of experience for women
based on class, but do all classes of women experience change during the
war? How does the war experience differ for women according to class?
- How do the poems by
British women provide us with a different perspective on the female
war experience?
- Of the images from Women
at War, which three do you
find the most interesting or striking, and why?