Marriage and work: women of the early twentieth century in the work of Marianne Schnitger

Abstract

By 1980 there was a new civil code in Germany, widely criticized in the feminist and intellectual circles. It was also criticized by the circle to which Marianne Schnitger belonged, since it kept the privileges of the husbands had over their wives intact; the law subordinated women and children to the guardianship of the husband. At the same time, women were becoming increasingly active in the industrial labor market. In this social and political context, Schnitger includes in her writings a broad sociological reflection on the specific role of gender in this historical moment. Furthermore, it incorporates moral issues and, above all, a concern about the position ofwomen facing both work and marriage.This paper tracks these reflections. The author’s diagnosis is presented regarding the role of women in marriage, salaried work, and objective culture as part of thediagnosis of modernity and how matrimonial relations and the social role of women have been configured and reconfigured, both in the private life - home -, as well as inthe public life.