Women During The 1970's

Union Street also shows women being degraded but in such a way of social conflicts and different opinions. During the 1970’s was a period where women’s political and social lives collided causing uproar about different livelihoods and perceptions of how people should live due to the fact women are now able to vote and have much more of a say in the political world than they did ten years ago. As Monteith states, “The 1970s was a ‘woman’s decade,’ a period in which women’s political and personal lives coalesced in activism”.
Mrs. Brown has an active social life and participates in many activities outside of the house, however she spends a great deal of time with different men, which she is highly criticized for by other women in the community.
She believes there are two types of women in the world, those who are clean, and those who are not. These ideas have been passed from brothels and boarding houses, which she grew up in, and also from the beating from her father to show his power, and also to prevent her from falling into the trap of prostitution, “finished up by beating the hell out of her everything she looked at a lad.” (p.189). This caused Iris to strive for a better future because she did not want to live like that forever, “She was in love with the idea of marriage. A home. She never had a home.” (p.189). After many years she has now improved her life substantially and has now become almost possessed and proud of the fact she cleans and is a domesticated women. As Douglas states, “in chasing dirt, in papering, decorating, tidying, we are not governed by anxiety to escape disease, but are positively rendering our environment, making it conform to an idea” which could be seen as metaphor to cover up all the hurt and turmoil in which she has entailed within her life, and cleaning is seen as a coping mechanism. This also represents the fact she wants to keep her life in order due to her upbringing, and sees this as a second chance for her to do something worthy with her