Women's Finance Quotes
This is a wonderful historical quotation in that it gives us a great deal of insight into the 1924 status of women in American society. Very few American went to college at that time—fewer then 5 percent. And far fewer women than men. Like other Ivy League schools, Nrown students tended to be extremely bright and quite affluent. The sexism of the time fell lightest om the upper class women like the Brown students. Yet this advertisement in the yearbook show us that few college age women, even educated females had the skills or the experience at managing money or controlling a bank account. They were generally deemed equipped to learn calculus but not to manage money. The bank was taking the radical step of encouraging women to learn how to and to manage money. While it was good for their business, profits went to the Rhode Island Hospitals. This was a radical, feminist act at the time. The other fascinating thing we learn is that these elite women, with their ability to learn calculus, the classics, history and science were expected to manage households, not to be scientists, executives, or any of other other areas of contribution that most Americans take for granted today. Particular subtle is the fact that moat of the elite women themselves believed this as this was an advertising pith to gain their business and was directed at their perceptions and aspirations.
