Suffragettes
What in your view was the short-term significance of Emmeline Pankhurst 1903-1923?
Emmeline Pankhurst is considered by many to be the exemplary symbol of the suffrage movement. Her followers adored her and she showed women that they did not have to be silent, that they could make a scene and be "unladylike" for the cause of their freedom. ‘She was one of the most fascinating, and indeed one of the most controversial, female figures of all time in British political history’1, yet her story is more complex and Emmeline’s contribution and significance to the suffrage movement have undergone a great deal of debate. While some praise her, others viewed the suffragette movement as ‘damaging to the cause of universal suffrage and criticised it for giving the government an excuse to deny women the vote’2. She was certainly a figurehead for the Women’s Social and Political Union and the sources I have researched for this enquiry focus on how influential Emmeline was and what she did to create a profound impact. Collectively, we can then see that there were many different ways such as Emmeline’s significance on creating the WSPU, actions taken on getting the vote, inspiring others and her involvement in World War One that show the short-term significance of Emmeline Pankhurst. Arguably one of Emmeline Pankhurst’s greatest contributions was in 1903, when she and her three daughters formed the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU). Emmeline in her own book ‘My Story’ says that ‘It was in 1903 that I invited a number of women to my house in Nelson Street, Manchester, for purposes of organisation. We voted to call our new society the Women's Social and Political Union, partly to emphasize its democracy, and partly to define its object as political rather than propagandist’3. Emmeline certainly wanted to create an organisation that was different from those around and what distinguished the WSPU from other societies was that it was an all-female
Emmeline Pankhurst is considered by many to be the exemplary symbol of the suffrage movement. Her followers adored her and she showed women that they did not have to be silent, that they could make a scene and be "unladylike" for the cause of their freedom. ‘She was one of the most fascinating, and indeed one of the most controversial, female figures of all time in British political history’1, yet her story is more complex and Emmeline’s contribution and significance to the suffrage movement have undergone a great deal of debate. While some praise her, others viewed the suffragette movement as ‘damaging to the cause of universal suffrage and criticised it for giving the government an excuse to deny women the vote’2. She was certainly a figurehead for the Women’s Social and Political Union and the sources I have researched for this enquiry focus on how influential Emmeline was and what she did to create a profound impact. Collectively, we can then see that there were many different ways such as Emmeline’s significance on creating the WSPU, actions taken on getting the vote, inspiring others and her involvement in World War One that show the short-term significance of Emmeline Pankhurst. Arguably one of Emmeline Pankhurst’s greatest contributions was in 1903, when she and her three daughters formed the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU). Emmeline in her own book ‘My Story’ says that ‘It was in 1903 that I invited a number of women to my house in Nelson Street, Manchester, for purposes of organisation. We voted to call our new society the Women's Social and Political Union, partly to emphasize its democracy, and partly to define its object as political rather than propagandist’3. Emmeline certainly wanted to create an organisation that was different from those around and what distinguished the WSPU from other societies was that it was an all-female