Historian Annelise Orleck points out most scholars neglect of an

Question

Historian Annelise Orleck points out most scholars’ neglect of an important Depression-era (1929-1939) phenomenon in the United States: activism by working-class homemakers who lobbied for food and rent price controls, staged anti-eviction demonstrations and food boycotts, and created large-scale barter networks. Orleck’s research on homemakers' groups acknowledges regional differences in their political styles, but emphasizes a significant commonality: a strong labor- movement affiliation. Male unionists’ wage victories during the 1910s had improved working-class families’ standard of living, but spiraling inflation and the near-destruction of many unions during the 1920s sharply eroded these gains. Depression-era homemakers' militance was sparked by this steep decline in working-class families’ standard of living. It was also rooted in female organizers’ own union experiences. In areas where homemakers' organizations flourished, usually union strongholds, women commonly worked for wages before marriage. The wage-earning years of most leading activists in these organizations coincided with a period marked by women’s labor militance: 1909 to 1920. Women’s union experiences shaped their understanding of the home as enmeshed in a web of social and economic relationships that included unions, the marketplace, and the government. By organizing as consumers. Depression-era women shattered stereotypes of the passive homemaker, showed a keen understanding of their place in larger economic structures, and demonstrated that food and housing, like wages and hours, could be regulated by applying economic pressure.

1. The author of the passage mentions the wage-earning years of the leading activists of homemakers' organizations in the highlighted text primarily in order to

A. help account for the number of women who were union members between 1909 and 1920
B. identify a possible reason for changes in working-class families’ standard of living during the 1910s
C. distinguish certain tactics used by homemakers' organizations from those used by union members
D. show how women began to exercise their power as consumers during a particular period
E. help support an assertion about a source of homemakers' militance

2. The passage suggests which of the following about activism by homemakers during the Depression era?

A. It reduced government leaders’ responsiveness to homemakers' demands.
B. It was most likely to occur in areas where labor unions were well established.
C. It was more militant than was activism by women labor union members during the 1910s.
D. It focused primarily on homemakers' concerns about male wage-earners' hours and wages.
E. It failed to alter the decline in working-class families’ standard of living that had begun in the 1920s.

3. According to the passage, one result of women’s experiences in labor unions between 1909 and 1920 was to

A. bring more women into leadership positions in labor organizations nationwide
B. heighten public awareness of the fact that the effect of food and housing costs on working- class families’ standard of living is as significant as that of wages
C. contribute to women’s awareness of the connections between the home and larger economic and political structures
D. encourage cooperation between labor unions and homemakers' organizations in union strongholds during the 1910s
E. make male unionists more aware of the economic power that could be exercised by their wage-earning spouses

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Show Answer Question #1

Official Answer

E

Show Answer Question #2

Official Answer

B

Show Answer Question #3

Official Answer

C

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sachi-in · Answer

1. The author of the passage mentions the wage-earning years of the leading activists of homemakers' organizations in the highlighted text primarily in order to

The wage-earning years of most leading activists in these organizations coincided with a period marked by women’s labor militance: 1909 to 1920.  Women’s union experiences shaped their understanding of  the home as enmeshed in a web of social and economic relationships that included unions, the marketplace, and the government.

A. help account for the number of women who were union members between 1909 and 1920 -  irrelevant , focus of passage is related to involvement of women relative to men, focus is not on wheather women involvement increased decreased etc.  
B. identify a possible reason for changes in working-class families’ standard of living during the 1910s - irrelevant
C. distinguish certain tactics used by homemakers' organizations from those used by union members - irrelevant
D. show  how  women began to exercise their power as consumers during a particular period - This does not answer how women began to exercise their power but rather what led them to participate in the activism
E. help support an assertion about a source of homemakers' militance -  Correct since this statement explains what was the source or rather how women's role in these activism started what shaped their understanding

2. The passage suggests which of the following about activism by homemakers during the Depression era?

In areas where homemakers' organizations flourished,  usually union strongholds , women commonly worked for wages before marriage.

A. It reduced government leaders’ responsiveness to homemakers' demands. - no mention of govt's change of attitude
 B. It was most likely to occur in areas where labor unions were well established. - Correct, Clearly suggested in passage 
C. It was more militant than was activism by women labor union members during the 1910s. - more militant or less is not mentioned in passage
D. It focused primarily on homemakers' concerns about male wage-earners' hours and wages. - not mentioned in passage
E. It failed to alter the decline in working-class families’ standard of living that had begun in the 1920s. -  We don't know if living standards improvement failed, but we atleast know they managed to demostrate that regulating the food and housing prices was possible!

Out of all the options only B is suggested in the passage ( not directly mentioned but suggested , we can make an inference )

3. According to the passage, one result of women’s experiences in labor unions between 1909 and 1920 was to

The wage-earning years of most leading activists in these organizations coincided with a period marked by women’s labor militance: 1909 to 1920.  Women’s union experiences shaped their understanding of  the home as enmeshed in a web of social and economic relationships that included unions, the marketplace, and the government.

A. bring more women into leadership positions in labor organizations nationwide
B. heighten public awareness of the fact that the effect of food and housing costs on working- class families’ standard of living is as significant as that of wages -  No,  no mention of motive being heightening public awareness .  Though they demonstrated that economic pressure could be leveraged to achieve regulations in living and food housing.
C. contribute to women’s awareness of the connections between the home and larger economic and political structures -   Correct, Passage clearly mentions the result of women's militance helped them understand    home as enmeshed in a web of social and economic relationships that included unions, the marketplace, and the government.  
D. encourage cooperation between labor unions and homemakers' organizations in union strongholds during the 1910s
E. make male unionists more aware of the economic power that could be exercised by their wage-earning spouses

skarmanya · Answer

GMATNinja   KarishmaB   GMATNinjaTwo  ,   SarahPurewal 
 mikemcgarry

saji

Please help clarifying question 1 & 2

Q1: " help support an assertion about a source of homemakers' militance"

-> Source of homemaker's militance - what does this refer to? 
How does the wage-earning years of the leading activists of homemakers' organization support this assertion?
 
Q2: Which line supports the claim " It was most likely to occur in areas where labor unions were well established"

GMATNinja · Answer

Question 1 
The assertion is that "Depression-era homemakers' militance was {...} rooted in female organizers’ own union experiences." This statement implies that the organizers' union experiences were a  source  of their militance.

Many of the women who were engaged in activism during the Depression era (1929-1939) worked for wages before they got married. Some of those women would have been working for wages in "union strongholds" (places where unions flourished) between 1909-1920.

That period (1909-1920) was marked by women's labor militance. So women who would become homemakers and activists during the Depression era were exposed to unions and "labor militance" during their working years. That helps explain their militance during the Depression era.

Where did their militance come from? It came from their experiences as working women before marriage. That workplace experience was a source of their militance during the Depression, so (E) fits.

Question 2 
The above explanation ties in nicely with question 2. Most of the areas where Depression-era organizations flourished were union strongholds and places where women worked for wages before marriage. In such areas, women were exposed to unions and labor militance during their working years. And women with that kind of exposure went on to become leading activists during the Depression.

In short, their experience working with unions before marriage prepared those women to lead and organize activism during the Depression. So that activism was more likely to occur in places that were union strongholds.

LYXlyx · Answer

map
 
 neglect of phe.:activism by homemakers 
 homemaker groups:regional differences,but labor movement affiliation
 
 bg fact:wage victories improved but eroded
 
 decline---homemaker militance  
 
 also female's own union experience
 
 wage earning years---labor militance 
 shape understanding 
 shatted;showed;demonstrated

Historian Annelise Orleck points out most scholars neglect of an

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Historian Annelise Orleck points out most scholars neglect of an

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