Gender Roles In The Elizabethan Era

The Elizabethan era may have only lasted for 45 years, but it brought forth a blossoming of literature, and changed the way that people viewed themselves and their society. The gender specific roles in the Golden Age may have not suited the people of today, but in the 1500’s they were acknowledged and seen as a common practice. During the Elizabethan era, diverse family and societal roles were demonstrated through men, women, and children.
First off, men in the 1500’s had said important and powerful societal roles. In a traditional Elizabethan family, it was extremely important that the man had a steady job, and made enough money (Alchin). According to Lisa Alchin, it was a man’s duty to support his family to his fullest ability in the 15th century (Alchin). If a man’s family was not supported it made him look less wealthy; therefore it was important to a man’s pride that he maintained his family to his utmost ability.
The men in Elizabethan era families were in charge of all members of the family, no matter the circumstance. Men in the
Women were considered made to marry, and their parents used this as a way to arrange marriages for their young daughters (“Life in Elizabethan England”). Traditional arranged marriages were mainly seen in lower and middle class families. Wealthy women had their own money to support themselves, and were sometimes able to avoid arranged marriages, like Queen Elizabeth I (“Life in Elizabethan England”). The marriages were usually to neighbors or family friends; therefore the sometimes new the person they were being married to (“Life in Elizabethan England”). The legal age for women to marry was 12, and for boys it was 14 (Elizabethan Marriages and Weddings). Women and their families also had to provide a dowry, which is gifts and money to the family the daughter is being married to (“Life in Elizabethan